While there has been much debate about defining and teaching critical thinking, little discussion has occurred regarding the connection between critical thinking and creative thinking, especially in relationship to teaching speech communication. While it was once thought that creativity is something that some are born with and some are not, recent…

A study was conducted to contrast the characteristics of three groups of college students who completed a developmental algebra course at the University of Maine at Orono during 1980-81. On the basis of a two-part final examination, involving a multiple-choice test of algebraic concepts and skills and a free-response test of problem-solving…

These proceedings summarize the Fourth Nationwide Vocational Education Dissemination Conference that concentrated on the knowledge, tools, techniques, and topical areas needed by disseminators, linkers, and other change agents. Introductory materials are a conference overview, reflections on the conference, and the agenda. Brief summaries follow…

During the last two decades of work in predicting and explaining school achievement, much research has emphasized the identification and measurement of student cognitive and affective processes which predict and also promise to help explain and facilitate school achievement. This review focuses on modifiable cognitive and affective processes, as…

Seven potentially useful maxims from the field of human information processing are proposed that may help institutional researchers prepare and present information for higher education decision-makers. The maxims, which are based on research and theory about how people cognitively process information, are as follows: (1) more may not be better;…

Since May 1980, participants in the Early Adolescent Project at Brooklyn College of the City University of New York have studied the early adolescent as a learner in a series of colloquia, discussions, and observations. The purpose of the study has been to develop recommendations for schooling of the early adolescent and for continuing and…

For the individual, gender difference falls along the feminine-masculine continuum with strong neurodevelopmental influences at various points throughout the lifespan. Neurodevelopmental influences are conceptualized in a vector model of sex difference. Vector attributes, direction and magnitude, are influenced initially by differences in levels…

Abstracts and abstractors' critiques are presented for 11 articles related to instruction, attitudes, and teacher education. The research studies examined: (1) an instructional strategy incorporating process and conceptual knowledge to promote transfer of learning; (2) effects of instruction using a Visual Response System on achievement of male…

Two learning strategies are discussed: (1) fluent and creative idea-production involving concepts and problems, and (2) metacognition, or students' awareness of and direction of their thinking. The sample included college students, as well as teachers who used these strategies in elementary and secondary mathematics classrooms. Techniques for…

In a previous study, the benefits of matching instruction with students' needs were examined. Three personality variables were used for the purpose of matching: Maslowian need level; locus of control; and cognitive style. This study used the ninth-grade physical science students (N=301) participating in the previous study to (1) examine…

This report was part of the total scope of The Microcomputers and Middle School Problem Solving project. It employed representational models during problem solving in order to study: (1) observable patterns in self-directed use of representational models; (2) correlations between use of models and problem-solving ability; and (3) the motives of…

In the last edition of "Teaching History", Maria Osowiecki described in detail the fourth lesson in a five-lesson enquiry entitled: What was remarkable about the Renaissance? She also shared her resources for two lively, interactive activities--the Renaissance Party and a balloon debate. Here she complements that piece with a full…

This preliminary study compared the effects of technology-enabled courses and face-to-face instruction using student learning styles and student preferences for content types. Two groups of students enrolled in problem-based courses (one in the College of Engineering and the other in the College of Applied Science) were included in this…

An investigation was conducted to examine the relationship between goal-setting behavior and the Conceptual Level Model (CLM), an interactive theory of development that considers progression or growth to be determined both by the learner's present developmental stage and by the environment he experiences. Conceptual Level (CL) is an index of…

This paper reports a case study of the implementation within the special education division of the Massachusetts state department of education of fiscal reforms required by the Massachusetts Comprehensive Special Education Statute, Chapter 766. Three theoretical perspectives were used to organize the study--a rational, organizational, and…