Traditional teaching models based on linear approaches to instruction arguably are of limited value in preparing students to handle complex, dynamic real-world problems. As such, they are undergoing increased scrutiny by scholars in various disciplines. The author argues that nonlinear approaches to higher education such as those founded on…

Individualized learning is one of the current educational trends. This approach is an answer to the differences found among students in terms of their abilities and disabilities, learning styles, objectives, and interests. Individualized instruction calls for a synthesis of strategies, which should be categorized in a hierarchy projecting all…

A pilot study into adult learners' perceptions of adult learning was undertaken in early 1980 at Adelaide College of the Arts and Education (Australia). The research set out to explore whether there are underlying dimensions which adult learners use in evaluating and comparing learning experiences. Five volunteer subjects completed Kolb's Learning…

This report examined adult learning principles which were developed through an analysis and synthesis of the literature in adult education, andragogy, teaching and learning, and other related fields. The report consists of six sections. The first section deals with background assumptions relevant to the field of adult education and adult learning.…

The inconclusive results of research comparing beginning reading methodologies in the 1960s led many schools to change their approaches to beginning reading instruction. In the 1970s the focus has shifted from the belief in a single method as superior for all children to the attempt to match methodology to the needs of individual children. A…

Computers can effectively promote learning, but only if they are used in ways which are consistent with the natural processes of learning. The analysis of several computer-assisted instructional (CAI) projects reveals that computer-related learning environments are most successful when they closely resemble the natural learning environment found…

John B. Carroll's Model of School Learning is a paradigm which describes the degree of learning that takes place in school setting as a function of the time spent on a learning task divided by the time needed for its mastery. The components of opportunity and perseverance in Carroll's model have particular relevance to a form of school…

Reports on a study that sought to test theories which predict that spacing between two items to be learned improves the probability of remembering at least one of the items. (AM)

Examined patterns of variance for sex and grade level using the Nelson Reading Test, the Gates-MacGintie Reading Test, and the Spache Diagnostic Reading Scales for first to eighth grade students referred for possible reading disabilities. Females outscored males significantly on all measures. Found differences among grades in regard to both…

Part of the monthly Saturday Review supplement, "Education in America," sponsored by the Charles F. Kettering Foundation.

This report suggests that research in education, as well as the design of instruction, can be importantly influenced by the paradigm that guides the work. The application of a paradigm to educational research is illustrated, and two paradigms (reception learning and discovery learning) are contrasted. Finally, it is suggested that all educational…

A SERIES OF RESEARCH PROGRAMS CONCERNED WITH THE EFFECTS OF SYSTEMATIC VARIATIONS OF CERTAIN CONDITIONS RELATED TO LEARNING HAS BEEN CONDUCTED. PROJECTS PREVIOUSLY REPORTED INCLUDED TWO INVESTIGATIONS OF REINFORCEMENT AND SUBJECT VARIABLES AND ONE ON THE STUDY OF PRACTICE AND SUBJECT VARIABLES. THE NATURE OF THE OVERALL PROGRAM WAS DISCUSSED IN…

This report discusses mathemagenic behaviors, which are activities that promote learning. During instruction these are the activities that learners perform when confronted with instructional stimuli. Three groups of hypothetic mathemagenic behaviors are discussed: translation, segmentation, and processing. A review of the literature on…

This paper describes a preliminary study which focuses on the syllable structure of interlanguage and begins to identify some of the processes which shape that interlanguage. Adults learning English as a second language in a formal classroom situation were recorded as they described a series of pictures in English. Two subjects were native…