We investigated how educators, mothers and children used temporal language in reminiscing and future talk conversations. Participants initially included 40 educator-younger child dyads (27-36 months) and 45 educator-older child dyads (48-60 months) from early childhood centres in Sydney, Australia. Educators were asked to nominate and discuss four…

To understand patterns of co-option and tension between discourses of creativity on the one hand, and discourses of school management and administration on the other, it is important to bring these discourses into contact with each other. This paper considers ideas of risk-taking, autonomy, novelty and flexibility, all of which are frequently…

This study aimed to establish the reliability of a novel netball task using a single-leg horizontal jump (SLHJ). Twenty-five females 18-39 years performed SLHJs for maximal displacement and ground-reaction forces. Participants completed two trials for each leg on two occasions separated by 6 weeks of pre-season netball training. Paired sample…

This study explored the effects of noticing and computerized dynamic assessment on the learning of Persian vocabulary through reading. In this quasi-experimental study, 75 intermediate learners of Persian as a Foreign Language (PFL) were assigned to three equal-sized groups. In the Noticing and Computerized Dynamic Assessment (CDA) groups, the…

Individuals with autism have difficulty generalising information from one situation to another, a process that requires the learning of categories and concepts. Category information may be learned through: (1) classifying items into categories, or (2) predicting missing features of category items. Predicting missing features has to this point been…

Purpose: Evidence suggests that extensive experience with lexical tones or musical training provides an advantage in perceiving nonnative lexical tones. This investigation concerns whether such an advantage is evident in learning nonnative lexical tones based on the distributional structure of the input. Method: Using an established protocol,…

Situational interest is short-term interest that is linked to environmental factors in a particular situation. Previous studies have found that some science teaching techniques can be very effective in generating situational interest among students, but the reasons why these are effective remain unclear: Hands-on activities, for example, are known…

Although contentious, there is evidence to suggest that nonconscious processes contribute to creative output, particularly during refractory periods. However, no one has examined whether this break benefit differs as a function of creative ability. To address these issues, this investigation examined Wallas's (1926) seminal theoretical framework…

Adaptability is defined as appropriate cognitive, behavioral, and/or affective adjustment in the face of uncertainty and novelty. Building on prior measurement work demonstrating the psychometric properties of an adaptability construct, the present study investigates dispositional predictors (personality, implicit theories) of adaptability, and…

The genetic factor structure of a range of learning measures was explored in twin children, recruited in preschool and followed to Grade 2 ("N"?=?2,084). Measures of orthographic learning and word reading were included in the analyses to determine how these patterned with the learning processes. An exploratory factor analysis of the…

The present work investigated the effect of modelling on children's pretend play behaviour. Thirty-seven children aged between 27 and 41 months were given 4 min of free play with a dollhouse and associated toy props (pre-modelling phase). Using dolls, an experimenter then acted out a series of vignettes involving object substitutions, imaginary…

Proposes a model for conceptualizing changes in novelty experienced by students in informal settings. Presents a case study and discusses patterns of verbal and non-verbal student behavior with reference to the level of novelty experienced. Reports that student behavior was found to vary with changes in the level of novelty experienced. Contains…

Year Eight students that underwent novelty-reducing pre-orientation to the physical environment of an interactive science museum and had prior experience visiting the museum learned more than their counterparts. Those exhibits most frequently recalled shared a combination of characteristics such as large physical size, prominence in the exhibit…

Investigates the sensorimotor exploration of novel stimuli of 18 Aboriginal and 18 Caucasian Australian children of 4-6 years. Findings indicate that Aboriginal and Caucasian children displayed similar levels and patterns of visual and tactile exploration of a novel object, with Aboriginal children manipulating at a higher rate. (RJC)