Explores context in information seeking as equivalent to the situation in which a process is immersed. Discusses contingency approaches that detail active ingredients of the situation that have specific, predictable effects. Examines major frameworks for meaning systems. Discusses how a deeper appreciation of context can enhance understanding of…

Assesses the effect of delay between an event and new postevent information related to it in six-month-old infants' memory. Three phenomena were studied: memory impairment, memory facilitation, and categorization. Suggests that postevent information has different qualitative effects depending on its timing, and provides a basis for understanding…

Evaluates Horowitz's (1989) test question categories in a different context from his North American study. Examines questions from two tertiary institutions in New Zealand and compares differences between New Zealand and American institutions. Results suggest that assessment workshops within an institution may be useful for standardizing…

Explores the conditional nature of good and bad news while focusing on three topics: (1) the status of information as news according the participants in a conversation; (2) the valence of this information with regard to its perception as good or bad; and (3) the effect of news on individuals. Notes that good news is privileged over bad news in…

Presents a situated based computer-assisted language learning system named VIDYA. The principles discussed include use of mastery learning in the situated learning context, student modeling of language constructs, dynamic courseware presentation and a generic courseware evaluation technique. Summarizes the present status of VIDYA. (24 references)…

Examines how medical writers discuss matters they believe to be true, possible, and untrue, drawing on research papers from medical journals. To conclude, a discussion of teaching difficult concepts in medical reading and writing is presented. (80 references) (Author/CK)

Argues that the key distinction of a situated approach to studying intelligent behavior is not the method used but the focus of the investigation, specifically the unit of analysis. Discusses contemporary approaches to assessment, collaborative problem solving as an assessment context, situated assessment, intentional dynamics, and interaction as…

Although context is a potent force in learning, instructional design models contain little guidance in accommodating contextual elements to improve learning and transfer. Defines context, outlines levels and types, specifies contextual factors within the types, suggests methods for conducting contextual analysis for instructional design, and…

There is no substantial difference between adults' and children's learning processes: both use task-conscious and learning-conscious methods. The difference in teaching adults and children lies in differential power relationships between teachers and learners, the identities they construct, and the ways in which power and identity affect teaching…

As the 21st century unfolds, there is a need to consider the context in which school counselors practice as well as the corresponding challenges and opportunities that this context presents. This article identifies a number of the challenges facing school counselors, and attempts to respond to these challenges as opportunities to better meet the…

According to DiPerna and Elliott (2002, this issue), academic competence comprises both academic skills and academic enablers. This article describes a theoretical framework for considering the direct and indirect effects of important contexts on student performance and how these contexts change over time is described. Also, the literature…

Maintains that the social learning theory of career development and counseling has not been applied to diverse populations. Qualitative analysis of interviews with middle school students revealed four themes, reflecting the influence of discrimination on participants' career learning: contextual barriers and resources for learning, and…

Presents a model of teacher professional growth that views professional development as teacher learning. The model includes four analytic domains in which teacher change occurs, indicates potential relationships among change domains, and identifies mechanisms operating to produce these relationships. The article illustrates the model with data…

Examined college students' (n=276) definitions of social and problem drinking for male and female students in two common drinking situations. Results indicated that definitions of social and problem drinking were strongly influenced by drinking context, and estimates of amount opposite sex problem drinkers drank was greater than that for same sex…

Findings indicated that low levels of word recognition skills, which are characteristic of dyslexic children, persist into adulthood, particularly in terms of slow word recognition. Further, adults with childhood diagnoses of dyslexia do not use word-recognition processes that are appropriate for their age level or, in some cases, for their…