The 50 nonverbal tests in this bibliography assess aptitude and cognitive skills using various nonverbal means, such as pictures, symbols, or figures. They are useful in testing those who may have reading difficulties or those for whom English is not the primary language. Not included are aptitude measure that have both verbal and nonverbal…

Representing current research and effective practice in English education, this book provides inservice and preservice teachers of English practical activities derived from sound educational theory and research to help make their job in the classroom effective and enjoyable. The book is meant to be an easy-to-read and useful source for teaching…

Outcome based education (OBE) is a way to organize curriculum and instruction so that the focus is on what educators want students to achieve. Key principles are defining clear outcomes, expanding learning opportunities to better achieve these outcomes, and having high expectations for learning success. OBE must be viewed as a process, rather than…

It appears that the value of providing students with strategies to activate their prior knowledge base or to build a base if one does not exist is supported by current research. Creating an opportunity to challenge students to call on their collective experiences (prior knowledge) is essential. Through this process, teachers move students from…

Six strategies for using reflective narratives to promote the professional development of school leaders are briefly described in this paper, which is designed to accompany "School Leadership: Reflections on Practice by California's Instructional Leaders." Narratives are characterized by subjective perceptions that are shaped by personal…

This paper describes a practicum that incorporated semantic mapping, "rich" context clue instruction, and teacher modeling into a 12-week instructional program for 18 Chapter 1 fourth-grade students in rural Georgia who had shown deficiency in vocabulary knowledge with standardized test scores below the 50th percentile in the second and…

In a study of memory use in language comprehension, 84 second grade, 54 sixth grade, and 54 college students produced elaborations on sentences. In a context elaboration, task students put sentences in different contexts, and, in a causal inferencing task, they inferred alternative reasons for events. Language understanding was measured by the…

The proposals concerning working memory outlined in this paper involve the architecture of working memory, the reasoning mechanisms that draw on it, and the ways in which working memory may develop with age. Ways of assessing task demands and children's working memory capacities are also considered. It is noted that there is long-standing evidence…

This paper maintains that the best approach to writing across the curriculum is one that focuses on thinking and writing strategies that cut across a number of subject areas. The paper describes some methods and classroom tested activities found to be successful in teaching students the complex thinking skills involved in making and supporting…

The classic film, "Twelve Angry Men," where a lone dissenting jury member (Henry Fonda) implores his fellow jurors not to make a quick decision in a murder trial, is often cited as a resource for analyzing decision-making processes in groups. The film, used in group-process courses to show how conformity pressures can hamper effective…

Presenting information from school projects, interviews, workshops, conference sessions, newsletters, conference review reports, and technological developments, this series of four project information updates reports on a variety of issues relating to student achievement. The first update reports some recent work in facilitating student…

Designed to help practitioners become more familiar with the underpinnings, currents, pros and cons, and research studies produced by the critical-thinking movement in the United States, this special collection offers eight digests and three FAST (Focused Access to Selected Topics) annotated bibliographies concerning critical thinking at all…

This paper investigates the elementary school principal's role in helping to sustain implementation of a complex math and science program designed to foster the development of higher order thinking skills, particularly for language minority students. The study predicted a positive relationship between coordination and program continuation; if the…

This paper discusses whether critical thinking can be taught in the college classroom. It argues that education in general provides the tools for thinking, and therefore, improves the capability for better thinking. The Alverno College faculty, as an example, has improved student critical-thinking ability because the faculty stresses explicitness,…

Originally developed as part of a project for the Department of Defense Schools (DoDDS) system, this learning package on strategic thinking through writing is designed for teachers who wish to upgrade or expand their teaching skills on their own. The package includes an overview of the project; a comprehensive search of the ERIC database; a…