Examined the nature of perceptual classification in children and young adults. Found that most children attend selectively to one stimulus dimension when making perceptual classification judgments. Suggests that this developmental trend does not appear to be a holistic-to-analytic shift but rather a trend toward greater consistency in following a…

Compares the effects on college students in a study skills course of five hours of instruction in outlining; networking, a form graphically organizing materials; and memory techniques and library research. Though all groups showed improvement in comprehension and retention of texts, the outlining group doubled the gains realized by the others.…

Summarizes current cognitive psychological knowledge concerning second language vocabulary acquisition and discusses implications for the development of effective computer-assisted vocabulary acquisition methods. (85 references) (Author)

A study analyzed constructs surrounding 45 Nepalese master's students' approaches to and conceptions of learning. Interviews indicated that few students had more than a low level of insight into their learning processes, most used surface learning strategies, and most achieved low-level learning outcomes. Findings cast doubt on the construct…

A study with 342 Nepalese college students suggests the structure of learning processes is similar for Nepalese, Australian, and Filipino students. Internal locus of control also appears to be a factor in adoption of learning strategies. Differences between secondary and college students and between Nepalese and Australian students are discussed.…

A segment of a Hong Kong first-year business administration course attempted to address passivity in students by enhancing awareness of learning strategies and metacognition. Results suggest that such instruction can have a positive effect on the learner processes students adopt and need not be discipline specific to be effective. (MSE)

Offers a response to the previous article, discussing school reforms and restructuring; educational technology; hyperlearning; and future learning environments. (Contains five references.) (LRW)

Discusses situated learning and instruction. Topics discussed include situated cognition theories; prescriptions for instructional design; adapting instructional design to situated learning; evaluating situated learning; situated cognition and the role of the teacher; different types of problem-solving activities; and the work of the Cognition and…

Described are the comprehension monitoring abilities of science students when reading science textbooks. The incorrect use of schemata and the limiting influence of metacognitive abilities on the improvement of meaningful learning is discussed. (KR)

This study tested the hypothesis that children as young as two years use what adults tell them about meaning relations when making inferences about new words. Subjects (n=18) learned two new terms, with instructions to treat one term as superordinate to the other or replace one with the other, and with no instructions. Children used both kinds of…

Discusses telematics and the use of computer networks to support collaborative education, both among teachers for training and planning and among students in their learning process. Highlights include traditional class groups and groups using computer-mediated communication; teachers' roles; learning circles for teachers; online teacher training;…

Eighty-five preservice-education students observed a science experiment concerning either buoyancy or the forces acting on a stationary object, then wrote a series of explanations. Results suggest that students' use of rhetorical structures (explanation, comparison, argumentation, and summarization) stimulated construction of new knowledge, but…

Investigated students' metaphors for themselves as learners in an 11th-grade chemistry classroom. Discovered that students' metaphors were congruent with their views of learning and learning processes as evidenced by multiple data sources. Argues that students' metaphors can provide valuable information for practicing teachers and researchers who…

Presents an activity on waves that addresses the state standards and benchmarks of Michigan. Demonstrates waves and studies wave's medium, motion, and frequency. The activity is designed to address different learning styles. (YDS)

Observed gesture and speech to investigate patterns of change in third and fourth graders' strategies for solving mathematical equivalence problems before and after an intervention. Children who received instruction were more likely to generate new strategies. Gradual change was more common. Abrupt strategy change was more common in children who…