An experiment replicated and extended a previous study on the value of negative instances in concept learning (i.e., an instance of something which does not exemplify the concept helps to make clear what the concept is). In this experiment, the concept to be learned was "adverb". The subjects were seventh grade students. Some groups of subjects…

The role of subject verbalization in the generalization of verbal-nonverbal correspondence was investigated in 12 kindergarten children who underwent either correspondence training (subject verbalization) or performing a behavior verbalized by the experimenter. Pupils who received correspondence training demonstrated greater generalization.…

Examined were the effects of verbal labels alone and in combination with two types of instruction on the concept attainment of 80 educable mentally retarded and 80 normal boys of school age matched for mental age. For learning the concept "equilateral triangle" Ss were randomly assigned to one of four experimental treatment conditions: verbal…

This study compares the relative effectiveness of a meaningful verbal approach and a guided discovery approach to learning selected science principles at the seventh and ninth grade levels. A total of 72 subjects were randomly selected from the seventh and ninth grades of Arnold Junior High School and Cleveland Senior High School and made up two…

Discusses the value of rhymes in developing children's concepts of story and pleasure in reading. (HOD)

Results indicated that discovery subjects took significantly longer than verbal reception subjects in the first-, third-, and sixth-grades to reach the original learning criterion. Verbal reception subjects generally demonstrated performance which was superior to discovery subjects on all measures of retention and transfer. (Author/BJG)

A 3-MONTH STATUS REPORT WAS MADE ON THE ACTIVITIES PURSUED IN PHASE 1 OF A LARGER 10-YEAR PROJECT DEALING WITH THE PSYCHOLOGICAL AND EDUCATIONAL FACTORS INVOLVED IN TRANSFER OF TRAINING. REPORTS OF ONGOING PROJECTS AND THEIR CURRENT STATUS WERE PRESENTED. THEY INCLUDED (1) A STUDY OF THE TRANSFER EFFECTS OF WRITTEN INSTRUCTIONS TO TASK PERFORMANCE…

A STATUS REPORT WAS MADE OF THE ACTIVITIES PURSUED IN A 3-MONTH PORTION OF PHASE 1 OF A LARGER 10-YEAR PROJECT PLANNED TO STUDY THE PSYCHOLOGICAL AND EDUCATIONAL FACTORS INVOLVED IN TRANSFER OF TRAINING BY USE OF PROGRAMED SELF-INSTRUCTION PRESENTED BY TEACHING MACHINES. THIS MEDIUM WAS CHOSEN BECAUSE IT PROVIDES LABORATORY-LIKE CONDITIONS SUCH AS…

THREE- AND 4-YEAR-OLDS WERE GIVEN VERBAL LEARNING PRETRAINING TO DETERMINE ITS EFFECT UPON THE PERFORMANCE OF REVERSAL AND NONREVERSAL SHIFT DISCRIMINATION TASKS. THE EXPERIMENTAL TASK WAS THE CLASSICAL REVERSAL-NONREVERSAL SHIFT PARADIGM. THE 96 PRE-SCHOOLERS, PRIMARILY FROM THE PENNSYLVANIA STATE UNIVERSITY NURSERY SCHOOL, WERE DIVIDED INTO 4…

Described is the use of story telling as a context to introduce mathematical concepts by providing a model, offering problem-posing situations, stimulating investigation, and illustrating concepts. Examples of appropriate stories are given for the primary and low secondary levels. (MDH)

This project successfully taught specific language-based concepts to retarded children with a behavior modification approach and direct verbal instruction, resulting in general intellectual gains. (See TM 504 595 for availability). (Author/CTM)

A study assessed the effectiveness of three cognitive levels of instruction with first graders--three-dimensional (3-D) instruction using real objects, two-dimensional (2-D) instruction using picture representations, and verbal instruction. The study population included 18 first-grade students between the ages of 6 and 8 at a small elementary city…

This study examines thought, language, and related action in sixth-graders working to understand concepts related to mass, volume, and density. Students from a heterogeneous urban classroom worked in various social contexts including individually, in pairs, in groups of four, and as a class. Their work was examined via videotapes, field notes,…

The main focus of this project was the improvement of the understanding of spoken language by lower class kindergarten children. Thus, the project was concerned with (1) identifying areas in which young children are deficient in listening skills, (2) preparing and evaluating instructional programs for the improvement of these skills, and (3)…