All research on curriculum development incorporates implicit assumptions about the nature of persons and the nature of learning. These assumptions fall into two major categories: (1) psychological assumptions, based on empirical descriptions; and (2) logical (conceptual) assumptions, which give explanatory accounts of meaning. Most curriculum…

The principles of the cognitive theory of learning are analyzed and applied to the process of second language learning. They are then evaluated in terms of the extent to which they contribute to a coherent theory and the extent to which they can be applied to instruction in general and second language instruction in particular. Recent empirical…

The monograph summarizes characteristics of effective instruction of mildly handicapped and non-handicapped students by focusing on two literature areas: Instructional Psychology and Models of School Learning. The review on instructional psychology covers the following areas: definitions of instruction, principles of learning, models of the…

This document outlines a theory of learning and education for the teaching of mathematics. The theory is termed a cognitive taxonomy. The taxonomy, developed over a 15-year period, is based on the connection between mathematical material and pupils' reactions to it. The function of this connection is termed a process. The taxonomy is based on the…

This document analyzes one chapter of a textbook for college remedial mathematics. This analysis is done by one of the textbook authors. The chapter under discussion deals with fractions. The text authors, writing from a constructivist perspective, attempted to write problems which not only developed specific conceptual and heuristic objectives…

This article discusses the role of perceived self-efficacy during classroom learning of cognitive skills. Self-efficacy refers to personal judgments of performance capabilities in a given domain of activity. Students enter classroom activities with various aptitudes and prior experiences, which affect their initial sense of self-efficacy for…

Knowledge of and use of the information provided by learning style theories can be of help in providing better educational experiences for students. Learning style preferences are of particular significance in programs such as allied health/health occupations education that practice selective admissions. Since the students have all been judged…

Intended for secondary school teachers, the bibliographic essay lists publications on oral history available in the United States and Canada. The first section deals with access to the literature through Library of Congress subject headings, indexes (e.g., "Reader's Guide to Periodical Literature"), general bibliographies, an abstract…

A series of experiments were conducted to determine what information readers use when they read to understand a story. The experiments examined both skilled adult readers and children beginning to read. Oral reading was used both because elementary school teachers frequently ask children to read aloud and because oral reading provides an…

The educational reform movement of the 1980s has sparked a renewed emphasis on the quality of teaching and learning, not only in community colleges, but at every level of education. Most teachers embark upon their careers knowing very little about teaching and learning and, unfortunately, remain naive observers of their profession. Classroom…

Issues related to the estimation of individuals' vocabulary size are discussed, including the rationale for vocabulary size research and the psychological, pedagogical, and quantitative approaches to vocabulary research and methodological problems associated with them. Some results from a large-scale assessment of Finnish comprehensive school…

The first of three papers in this publication describes the Harrison School District Bilingual Demonstration Project, a modified curriculum and instructional program which builds on the children's experiences and extends their culture and their view of it in a bilingual, multicultural school environment available to both English speaking and…

The few studies concentrating on adult age changes in discrimination shift behavior have reported that the performance of elderly adults on such tasks is inferior to that of younger adults and, in fact, similar to that of children. To determine whether verbal labeling, which has facilitated the performance of young children, would also reduce age…

This booklet was prepared to provide elementary school teachers with background information and strategies for teaching remedial mathematics. Individual sections focus on educational theory and mathematics, which outlines associationist and developmental theories, summarizes traditional and contemporary teaching styles, and relates theories to…

An annotated bibliography of 224 items drawn from the literature on instruction in English as a second language (ESL) includes citations from bibliographic databases (Educational Resources Information Center, Bilingual Education Bibliographic Abstracts, Bilingual Research On-Line, and Microcomputer Courseware Resource On-Line), professional…