The validation of a set of attitude scales developed for use with Australian school students, especially using teacher's ratings, is reported. The four scales measure: motivation to achieve in school learning; respect and confidence in self; attitudes toward school and school learning; and attentiveness in science lessons. (MSE)

Examines four groups of readers: second-language (L2) intermediate; L2 advanced; first-language (L1) Japanese; and L1 English) when they processed and recalled two passages varying in degree of causal coherence. Findings indicate that L1 readers used much of their attention for higher level processes, whereas L2 readers paid more attention to…

Compared activity and behaviors of 36- to 82-month-olds adopted from Romanian orphanages and with varying lengths of institutionalization (more than 6 months or less than 2 months) with those of age- and gender-matched American-born control groups. Found that each Romanian group exhibited more problems in activity level, organization, and…

Discusses changes occurring in two-, four-, and six-month-old infants' visual attention span, through a series of experiments examining their ability to orient to peripheral visual stimuli. The results obtained were consistent with the hypothesis that infants get faster with age in shifting attention to a spatial location. (AA)

Therapeutic games were invented or adapted to assist in counseling deaf children with emotional or behavioral difficulties. The games dealt with assertiveness, giving/receiving compliments, problem-solving, being a friend, self-control, and paying attention. The games helped in overcoming: negative attitudes toward counseling, communication…

This paper first examines specific challenges faced by learners using integrated media, including the cognitive challenges of navigation and focused attention. The paper then examines pedagogical opportunities of integrated media in the following areas: (1) developing vocabulary and reading comprehension; (2) anchoring instruction in meaningful…

Examines what linguistic devices speakers use to make an entity salient in a discourse and how they re-refer to discourse entities moving in and out of focus. Speakers' center of attention was manipulated via a videotaped basketball game. Speakers referred to prominent entities as subjects; when they referred to them as objects, they repeated the…

Factor analysis performed on the Wechsler Intelligence Scale for Children-Revised (WISC-R) for 252 subjects (ages 6-16), who were mentally handicapped, slow learners, or learning disabled, identified 3 factors: verbal-conceptual, perceptual-spatial, and distractibility-short-term memory. Findings suggest that the factor example can be used to…

This study of infants with low birthweight and significant or mild intraventricular hemorrhage showed that the association of mothers' interactive behaviors with infants' exploratory play responses was dependent on both the age and medical risk status of the child. The timing of mothers' attention-directing strategies and the level of structure…

A study examined the effects of differing degrees of bilingualism (English monolingual, English-French balanced bilingual, Bengali-English partial bilingual) on nonverbal problem-solving abilities of 71 grade-three children. The groups were compared on control of attention and analysis of knowledge. Results indicate the balanced bilinguals…

This study measured the effectiveness of a 9 a.m. nutrition break after it had been implemented for 1 academic year at an inner-city high school. Effectiveness was measured by student participation rates, student and teacher evaluations of hunger-associated symptoms experienced by students, and teacher evaluations of the effects on the learning…

This book reviews issues concerning attention deficit disorders (ADDs) in the context of a systems perspective. ADDs are viewed as resulting from dynamic interactions of behavior, cognition, and affect, out of which emerge distinct and idiosyncratic ways of coping. Chapter 1 looks at the interaction of attention and behavior. In chapter 2, the…

The importance of appropriate task relevant behaviors as a necessary condition for school learning has long been noted. This paper suggests a multiple measure of one set of student classroom behaviors, presents a brief theoretical basis for the measure, provides some empirical support for the use of the measure, and indicates some educational…

Specific criteria for the rating of each questionnaire item are explained in detail. The teacher is asked, after reading the questions carefully, to assign each first grade student a rating for every question. This rating should be based on a personal knowledge of the student. The booklet is divided into three sections w1th section 1 focusing on…

Sensory integrative therapy as a treatment for self-injurious behavior (SIB) was contrasted with an attention control condition involving a 15-year-old multiply handicapped boy. Lower rates of SIB during but not following treatment sessions were effected. Effects of such therapies are concluded to be highly variable across individuals. (Author/JDD)