When teachers discuss different types of heroes in the classroom, they allow their students to meet powerful new role models. The article discusses how teachers can get students thinking about what makes a hero and in the process, teach them about historical figures, social issues, and current events. (SM)

Two groups of nonnative Spanish students and four nonnative English teachers participated in a study of the effect of high cognitive questions on foreign language learning. Results indicate that the use of high cognitive questions can promote the kind of verbal interaction that facilitates comprehension and written production of the foreign…

Assists teachers in improving the reading comprehension skills of students by using critical thinking strategies which can be integrated into the curriculum and adapted to many grade levels. Describes strategies grouped under microcomputer instruction, cooperative learning, and higher-order questions. Recommends that teachers integrate critical…

Reviews the literature and argues that children need to be taught a range of television thinking skills if they are to use the medium as an educating force over which they have control and discernment. Argues that television can be a powerful tool in the development and application of thinking skills of all children, including gifted and talented…

It is proposed that the postmodern university, with its emphasis on technology and its market orientation, departs from the true principals of liberal education, which is the development of intellect: the ability to think clearly and critically and to understand ourselves and others. (MSE)

Presents concepts from von Wodtke's book, "Mind over Media," to suggest ways to teach thinking skills important for the electronic information age. Topics covered include how to use media interactively, navigating information environments, developing cognitive maps of media space, visualization, creative thinking, and collaboration. (KRN)

Reanalysis of the data from a 1984 study on making and breaking problem-solving mental sets with 50 children found that gifted subjects who failed to initially form the set made the most errors of any group and were least likely to recognize their own errors. Results suggest that motivational reasons may underly this inferior performance by some…

Describes two main categories of mental activity used by students in mathematics classes: mental mathematics and mathematical thought. Calls for the continuation of teaching mental mathematics and asks for the inclusion of mathematical thought in the national curricula. (MKR)

This article describes a 16-session training program to improve analogical reasoning skills in school-age children with language disorders, patterned after R. Sternberg's componential theory of analogical reasoning. Phase I consists of mediated learning experiences in which the instructor focuses on the direct instruction of the component…

Nominal-level analysis of 4 primary learning styles (doing, thinking, watching, and feeling) of 292 subjects (mostly college students) from the Learning Styles Inventory demonstrated their discriminant/convergent validity but not the validity of the learning-style types suggested by D. A. Kolb (1976) (accommodator, diverger, converger, and…

The constructivist hypothesis that the acquisition of domain-specific conceptual knowledge (declarative) requires the use of general procedural knowledge was tested. Students (n=314) were classified as reflective, transitional, or intuitive thinkers and presented with four concept-acquisition tasks. Skill in hypothetico-deductive reasoning…

A sixth grade teacher discusses how she enhanced student writing and thinking skills by having them collaborate on a class monster story. The article describes how they created the story. A copy of the story is included. (SM)

The COMET summer residential program at Purdue University (Indiana) offers gifted and talented youth in grades 4-6 a week of intensive study in a single content area. Courses stress specific problem-solving skills and development of a rich knowledge base. Extensive program evaluation by students, teachers, counselors, and parents was highly…

Discusses Hilda Taba's ideas and influence on the social studies curriculum and her work on a project to develop instructional guides for social studies teachers. Explores the importance of developing multiple objectives and organizing subject matter into key concepts, organizing ideas, and specific facts. Recommends emphasis on thinking, people,…

Discusses two authors' views on critical thinking. McPeck denies the possibility of critical thinking, stating it is burdened by informal logic. Paul believes critical thinking includes logical, epistemological, psychological, and social dimensions springing from moral and political concerns. The paper examines the debate over general versus…