A discussion of how the new rhetoric emphasizes the psychological reactions of the audience. (DS)

Gender differences in predicting displaced volume did not reflect gender differences in spatial ability, field-dependence-independence, or Piagetian formal reasoning. In addition, gender differences were not accounted for by science and math course-taking experience. (Author/PN)

Specific illustrations are given of questions and problems designed to lead students in introductory physics courses into visualizing and reasoning qualitatively about physical phenomena. Examples include phenomena related to mechanics, electrostatic/magnetic interactions, resistive direct-current circuits, and Thompson's experiments marking the…

Describes the value reasoning approach to values education in which students learn to reason logically about values issues. The approach helps students to think more clearly about their own and others' value judgments, to examine value systems objectively, and to deal constructively with value conflict. (Author)

Goals of the study, among others, were (1) to refine a system for assessing the developmental level of persuasive strategies, and (2) to test the hypothesis that children employ more advanced persuasive strategies when addressing unfamiliar rather than familiar persuasive targets (strangers v parents). (JMF)

Compared the assertive behavior of two groups differing in information-processing style. In experiment one, high conceptual-complexity (CC) subjects demonstrated greater content knowledge, direct delivery skill, and fewer negative self-statements. In experiment two, high versus low CC females were more assertive in difficult situations. (Author/RC)

To investigate the role expectation based rules governing formal reasoning performance, a battery of group and individual aptitude measures and formal reasoning tests were administered to 17-year-olds. Individual differences in usage of these rules were clarified by establishing an overlap between an aptitude model and formal reasoning.…

Results showed that the performance of the suburban and urban 10-year-olds on a Piaget-based map drawing task did not differ significantly, while the Appalachian children performed significantly better than one or both of the other groups on three out of the four spatial concepts. (JMB)

Four experiments compared three alternative models of linear syllogistic reasoning: (1) linguistic; (2) spatial; and (3) mixed linguistic-spatial. The mixed model, indicating the importance of both verbal and spatial ability, was supported by all four experiments, and for about three-fourths of the undergraduate students studied. (Author/GDC)

In its own fashion, philosophy encompasses everything and reflects the whole. Thus it has a special role in the liberal arts curriculum whose purpose is generality and breadth. Philosophy translates the generality of the liberal arts into reason and theory in an attempt to make the whole conceptually articulate. (JMD)

Justifications are given for the development of philosophy courses for inclusion in the high school curriculum. Various subjects such as mathematics, science, and language can be given more unity and meaning through the teaching of philosophy. (JN)

Suggests that effective thinking (cognitive skills) should be taught--not just fostered--in English classes, and explores the specific skills of generalizing and abstracting, analyzing, reasoning, and classifying. (JM)

Explores the concept and uses of analogy from the rhetorical perspective, determining rhetorical functions which the analogy may serve and the adequacy with which those functions are performed. (JMF)

Ratings of concreteness and picturability and production data for meaningfulness of 310 words were gathered from sixth-grade children and college students. (JMB)

Derives two models for conceptualizing figure similarities from Piaget's developmental theory of spatial reference systems. An experiment on a two alternative forced-choice similarity matching task revealed age differences in observer dependence among children and young adults. Concludes that some Euclidian space concepts are achieved as formal…