This study investigated the effects of prompting, or directing/controlling attention, during a reasoning task on the performance of 68 children with attention deficit disorders, learning disabilities, or no handicaps, in grades 1-12. All groups benefited from prompting, and prompting was related to a different set of cognitive processes in each…

Assigned college student subjects (N=149) to verbal or mathematics and success or failure conditions to test hypothesis from self-efficacy theory. Changes in task self-efficacy and interest resulting from task success or failure were in accordance with predictions. Task performance effects generalized to global mathematics and verbal ability…

Discussion of hypertext systems and navigation focuses on a study conducted with undergraduates at Clemson University (South Carolina) that compared a hypertext browsing system with a linearly based system for accessing information concerning college transfer courses. Results indicate that user perceptions and performance are more favorable with…

A study found good problem-solving skills, reading at or above grade level, ability to get along with peers and adults, likeability, sense of humor, and having an adult mentor at school were associated with the positive educational progress of 652 boys (ages 13 to 17) with severe aggression and emotional disturbance. (Author/CR)

A study evaluated the emotional and behavioral adjustment of 92 parents and 56 children within three months and one year after the discovery of extrafamilial sexual abuse. Parents and children experienced clinically significant effects, both initially and at 12 months' post-disclosure. Children's self-blame and extent of traumatization predicted…

Gender differences in performance on multiple-choice and constructed-response items in mathematics were studied with 3592 11th graders taking a high school graduation examination. Results suggest that gender differences in mathematics may be linked to content and item format, thus supporting the usefulness of a many-faceted Rasch model for…

Studied the interaction of gender with achievement, scientific interest, and career aspiration for 325 Nigerian high school students and identified distinguishing variables in the profiles of males and females in science. Interest rather than achievement appeared to introduce gender differences in the science profiles of these students. (SLD)

A study involving six bilingually educated children (ages 5-6) with deafness found overall level of involvement was high on three educational tasks and was influenced by type of task, teacher, and language of instruction. Involvement was greater during activities led by the teacher with deafness using Sign Language of the Netherlands. (Contains…

A survey of 125 musically gifted adolescents, 123 parents, and 88 teachers found students believed their success was due to inborn ability and hard work, parents attributed their children's musical accomplishments to encouragement provided by family and friends, and teachers attributed students' musical development to innate talent, hard work, and…

Describes the design of the survey employed to measure the impacts of the Integrated Information Center (IIC) at the University of Minnesota on the end-users and reports the results of that survey. (Author/MES)

Argues that effective road safety education for young children needs to incorporate constructivist and socio-cultural perspectives on learning. Excerpts interviews with young children highlighting the variety of influences affecting children's road safety knowledge and examination of a road safety curriculum to illustrate the value of a dual…

Two studies demonstrated dissociation between preschoolers' understanding of pictorial and mental representations. Results showed that false picture tasks were significantly easier than false belief tasks. There was no correlation between performance on the two. Children were trained on false belief, false picture, or number conservation tasks;…

A study examined the integrity with which four general education teachers implemented an intervention designed to improve the academic performance of elementary school students. The teachers markedly increased the integrity of the delivered treatment when they were provided with performance feedback and students' performance improved as integrity…

Describes use of behavioral descriptors called Performance Results to guide instruction, combined with implementation of portfolio assessment, for middle level students in Utah's Salt Lake City School District. Discusses stumbling blocks to using the Performance Results for teachers and students, positive outcomes from the process, and future…

Four studies examined developmental differences in the representation of basic-subordinate inclusion relationships in three-, five-, and seven-year olds and undergraduates. Found that even three-year olds showed rudimentary knowledge of the asymmetry of inclusion. There was a marked developmental gap between producing subordinate category names…