The Stigma of Giftedness Paradigm served as the theoretical framework to develop a questionnaire which examined the school-based social cognition of 465 gifted adolescents. The model (which focuses on effect of the gifted label on adolescent wishes for normal social interactions) was found to aid in understanding the psychosocial development of…

Pennsylvania State University College of Medicine conducts an off-campus retreat for medical residents, in which the instructional focus is on the humanities and particularly difficult medical and ethical issues. Students have found the format beneficial both personally and professionally, valuing involvement of senior faculty, the programs'…

In this interview, the president of Radcliffe College discusses her own development as one of the nation's higher education leaders and reflects on the identification and development of emerging leaders and talent development of women. (DB)

This study examined the receptive vocabulary of 102 first-, third-, and sixth-grade Spanish/English bilingual students of Hispanic origin. It found that, although students in all three grade levels functioned comparably well on the Spanish instruments, performance on the English instruments increased with grade level. (41 references) (MDM)

A survey of 26,516 alumni representing 120 colleges and universities assessed former students' satisfaction with their bachelor's degrees in 3 areas (personal growth, continuing education, job preparation) and by 4 subgroups (by gender, institution type/size, years since graduation, major). Results are reported, and ways to incorporate findings…

Current efforts to enhance children's self-esteem are critiqued, and an alternative direction is proposed that is based on the notion of self-esteem as a crucial aspect of human dignity. This approach connects self-esteem to both cultural and social conditions and works toward the reconstruction of school and society. (LB)

Examined perceptions of personal control in 1,267 individuals in 4 generations of families participating in multiple cohort, longitudinal study spanning 1971-91. Over 20 years, mean levels of personal control became more internal among 560 individuals who participated in all measurements, probably reflecting environmental factors. Found…

Discusses the dynamics of education. Argues that lifelong education on such population topics as family, sexuality, sociodemography, and human rights has great potential, especially in rural and marginal urban areas for promoting human development. Examines planning and instructional considerations, and principles of a human development approach…

This paper deals with the specific problems of the adolescent and adult hearing-impaired individual who wishes to improve and develop his or her expressive speech ability. Considered are issues critical to the learning process, intervention strategies for improving speech production, and speech production as one part of communication competency.…

In two experiments, five year olds produced more instances in slot-filler categories than taxonomic categories, and eight year olds produced more instances in taxonomic categories than slot-filler categories; for five year olds, slot-filler categories led to superior recall and shorter response latencies than did taxonomic categories. (BB)

Studied high school and university students' use of mental representations in reasoning, and the developmental progression of their reasoning with concrete and abstract content. Reasoning was more difficult with abstract content. Abstract problems followed by concrete ones led to reduced concrete problem performance for high schoolers but not for…

Educational enabling occurs when school staff, social agencies, parents, or peers do things for the students they should do themselves to fully develop a work ethic and academic and coping skills. Parents and teachers must keep their roles in perspective. The article advises parents on how to minimize educational enabling. (SM)

Bernie Bickerstaff discusses how growing up as an African-American athlete in rural Kentucky prepared him to become the general manager of the Denver Nuggets. Triumphing over the area's racial segregation, poverty, and mining perils gave him a sense of strength that enabled him to overcome barriers in advancing his career. (LP)

Outdoor educators in training engaged in a mask-making activity involving partners. One person made the mask and the other provided his or her face as the mold. The anxiety-provoking experience invited an intimate exchange between partners around issues of intimacy, trust, and compassion. (KS)

Multicultural community building, a teacher education curriculum, includes a community training component that seeks to develop a sense of community. The curriculum is intended to relate "community" to the goals of multicultural education; its basis is personal interaction and development. (SK)