Reports research into the design and application of physical and mental practice strategies for the development of laboratory psychomotor skills of freshman chemistry students (N=360). Design of instruction materials used (focusing skills using balance, pipet, and buret and skills in quantitative volumetric analysis), evaluation of strategies, and…

Helping children to bridge the gap between physical materials and symbolic representations is the focus of this article. Examples are drawn from numerical topics, with several hierarchies illustrated. (MNS)

Examines the connections between children's writing and their earlier developed form of graphic symbolism--drawing--and explores research on early writing development. Considers the range of contexts for drawing and writing presented in the classroom. (HTH)

Argues that the paragraph represents a semantic unit, not just a grammatical convention. Presents original research to establish the types and frequencies of certain paragraph formats found in expository material. Discusses the most appropriate time for teaching students the ideational relationships within paragraphs. (FL)

Outlines a program of vocabulary development that contains cognitive, affective, and physical elements. Points to test results showing that the program has been effective with fourth grade students. (FL)

Investigates whether teachers change their questioning strategies after they learn a system for categorizing questions into objectively defined categories and receive feedback immediately following class about the types of questions asked. Changes in the types of questions and the distribution of questions were noted during four observational…

The task classification scheme suggests that motor skills be categorized as the processing demands placed on a learner, feedback availability, and pacing conditions. Potential learning strategies were identified and defined in relation to the classification scheme. (JN)

An approach to teaching geometry is promoted that allows students to decide for themselves what they could prove from given information. Such an approach allows pupil involvement in the personal process of discovering mathematical ideas and formulating problems. It is noted these methods will not work for all. (MP)

Investigated the learning outcomes of 83 nursing students randomly assigned to a computer assisted instruction (CAI) group or to a group taught with printed programmed instruction (PI). Findings suggest that CAI can be as effective as more traditional instruction in teaching both factual content and application of learned material. Fourteen…

Guessing is seen in all forms to be a creative and critical process which has practical and scientific utility. The goal of science in early childhood is viewed as having children make better guesses. Ways of instruction that create and develop an atmosphere for guessing are detailed. (MP)

Reviews recent research and concludes that it supports a continued and pragmatic developmental analysis of the processes involved in beginning reading. Discusses the instructional implications of this research. (FL)

Discusses how concept maps with two dimensional diagrams which show hierarchical relationships among concepts of a discipline can be used in teaching physics. An example for teaching a course in electromagnetism at the Federal University of Rio Grande do Sul, Brazil is presented. (HM)

Identifies six field-specific and generic skills necessary for instructional developers, i.e., interpersonal communication, receiving and assimilating large amounts of new information, creative problem solving, applying behavioral sciences to instruction, seeking and locating new information, and specific instructional development skills. The…

This review analyzes research on the influence of perception on reading disabilities among adolescent and young adult populations. It addresses three primary areas associated with reading achievement: perceptual discrimination, memory and retrieval, and comprehension. Implications for reading instruction are drawn. (Author/SJL)

A 22-item question preference test was developed and administered to different age and ability groups in an attempt to identify "describer/explainer" question preferences. All groups preferred "explainer" questions, but there was a highly significant difference between low and high ability groups. Implications for the classroom are considered.…