Two experiments investigated how child and adult speakers of English and Kannada (Dravidian) interpret scopally ambiguous sentences containing numerally quantified noun phrases and negation. Results showed that 4-year-olds' interpretations were constrained by the surface hierarchical relations (the c-command relations) between sentence elements…

Discusses the use of literature to teach English as a Foreign Language. Suggests that a syllabus that is based or draws on authentic children's stories provides a motivating medium for language learning while fostering the development of the thinking skills that are needed for second language academic literacy. (Author/VWL)

Discusses the SCMCT (Social Cognitive Model of Counselor Training) as presented by Larson in this issue of JCP. Provides considerations relevant to further research including the relationship of self-efficacy to counseling efficacy, the addition of a developmental perspective, level of trainee development, the role of affect, cognitive processing,…

Two studies examined nutritional differences between home breakfasts and breakfasts served at preschool following School Breakfast Program guidelines and evaluated nutritional impact of program participation on 4-year olds' preacademic performance. Results indicated that breakfast intake was altered under school breakfast conditions. Performance…

Summarizes findings on infants' capacity for object segregation. Maintains that infants can use featural and experiential information for segregation and individuation purposes long before 12 months of age. Disputes the claim that formation of object categories awaits early word learning, but acknowledges that language may play a key role in…

Discussion of the special education ideas of Lev S. Vygotsky focuses on the application of Vygotsky's cultural-historical activity theory to special education; Vygotsky's views on the nature of handicapping conditions in children; the principles of psychoeducational evaluation of children with disabilities; the issues of compensation,…

Third-graders showing negligible mastery of multiplication combinations were randomly assigned to two groups which practiced different subsets of combinations. Retest results were inconsistent with Siegler's (1988) proposal that item-specific computational practice is necessary to change error patterns and promote mastery. Results suggested that…

Used head-mounted eye-tracking system to study kindergartners' and adults' moment-by-moment language processing ability as they responded to spoken instructions. Found that 5-year-olds did not take into account relevant discourse/pragmatic principles when resolving temporary syntactic ambiguities and showed little/no ability to revise initial…

This study investigated acquisition of music performance skills over 11 practice trials in novice and expert pianists differing in age, training, and sight-reading ability. The finding of a strong positive relationship between the mastery of temporal constraints and planning abilities within performance suggested that these two cognitive…

A study investigated whether effects of volunteer service during undergraduate years persist after college. Data were drawn from 12,376 students attending 209 institutions, who were followed up four and nine years after college entry. Results show that even when precollege service participation is controlled, student volunteer service during…

Observed gesture and speech to investigate patterns of change in third and fourth graders' strategies for solving mathematical equivalence problems before and after an intervention. Children who received instruction were more likely to generate new strategies. Gradual change was more common. Abrupt strategy change was more common in children who…

Tested 3- to 7-year-olds' ability to calculate with whole numbers, fractions, and mixed-numbers, in a task in which an amount was displayed, then hidden. Subjects were to determine the hidden amount resulting when numbers were added or substracted. Found that, although fraction problems were more difficult than whole-number problems, competence on…

Development of reading speed in Italian children with dyslexia was estimated using individualized growth curves for 38 children with dyslexia tested longitudinally from 2nd-8th grade and compared with controls. Their reading speed development followed a linear trend of .3 syllables per second per grade, half the increment observed in controls.…

Relates Vygotsky's concept of zone of proximal development to a fishing story, thereby providing a scaffold allowing preservice students to better understand the educational concept. Concludes that educators should use the right bait (determined by how engaged children are), technique, and progress at the right pace (evidenced by children's…

Examines the relation between a play-based assessment tool, specifically the PLAY observation system, and a standardized assessment of cognitive and social skills of preschool children. Recorded the level of play each child exhibited. Play behaviors reflected the child's cognitive and social developmental functioning. (CMK)