Twenty-four sixth-grade children participated in clinical interviews on ratio and proportion before receiving instruction in the domain. Student thinking was analyzed in terms of mathematical components critical to proportional reasoning. Two components, relative thinking and unitizing, were consistently related to higher levels of sophistication…

Maintains that staff guidance in early childhood and child care programs can be optimized when it functions within the guidelines of developmentally appropriate practices in regards to staff age, stage appropriateness, and individual appropriateness. Differences in individual staff temperament and cognitive styles are considered. (BB)

Describes the conceptual differences between information, instruction, and learning and relates them to hypermedia-based information systems. Locus of control is discussed; information searches in libraries are considered; and issues related to learning with hypermedia-based information systems are explained, including navigational issues,…

This interview brings out Susan Winebrenner's views on key concepts in her book on teaching gifted students in regular classrooms; the importance of appreciating diversity, utilizing flexible grouping, and allowing for varying learning styles; the administrator's role; the role of independent projects; and the special needs of gifted students. (DB)

This study examined the problem-solving strategies and systematic errors of (n=82) preservice elementary school teachers related to place value concepts and decimal representations of rational numbers. Problems were posed in the unfamiliar domain of numeration systems with bases other than base ten. (Contains 13 references.) (MKR)

Presents partial results from an ongoing Japanese study of teachers' practical thinking styles designed to clarify their practical epistemology. Five major findings of practical thinking styles are discussed, and the implications for teacher education in Japan are considered. (GLR)

Reviews literature related to learning styles and gender differences. Determines that abstract and reflection are associated traditionally with mind or masculine, whereas concrete experience and active experimentation are associated with the body or female. Calls for additional experiential activities to provide a more gender-balanced approach to…

Addresses geography students' questions about why, when, and how to take notes. Outlines a step-by-step process for taking notes from written sources and from class lectures. Discusses what types of notes are appropriate for various types of sources. Suggests some ideas for making notes useful for individual learning styles. (DSK)

Examines one aspect of the cognitive development of preservice education students, the ability to utilize different modes of mental representation. Finds associations between the level of mathematics experience and both the ability to utilize three different modes of mental representation (enactive, visual, and verbal) and the overall use of…

Language teachers often do not focus on developing strategic competence among their second-language learners, though research demonstrates that language-learning strategies vary in their usefulness and applicability dependent on many variables. Teachers must develop strategic competence to enhance learners' linguistic and communicative competence.…

Differentiated instruction is an umbrella concept that allows teachers to pull together many disparate messages about multicultural education, alternative teaching and learning strategies, alternative assessments, learning styles, and standards. Developing a range of instructional strategies represents a fine tuning, not a new instrument. (MLH)

Appalachian continuities include attachment to land and religion, high teen pregnancy, and low literacy and income. Trends in Appalachia that institutions of higher education must address are higher rates of college attendance, migration to urban areas, changes in student learning styles, and increasing pressure to educate students to workplace…

Reviews research into the possible effects of field dependence/independence on achievement at school. Finds that field-independent subjects perform better than field-dependent subjects, whether in a specific discipline or across all subjects. Discusses possible explanations for this difference in performance. Includes a chart summarizing the…

Describes a study of business students at a United Kingdom university that investigated the relationship between learners' cognitive styles and their instructional preferences. Results indicate an overall preference for dependent methods of instruction such as lectures or tutorials, print-based media, and informal assessment methods. Contains 38…

Describes the development and evaluation of coMentor, a virtual-learning environment that supports student discussion and debate through the World Wide Web, particularly for theoretical subjects. Discusses its use in an undergraduate philosophy course and reports results that indicate higher levels of learning among students who used the system.…