Some potential difficulties involved in using "real-life situations" in teaching problem solving are illustrated with a racing car problem. The importance of developing mental images and the ability to abstract in the solution process is indicated. (MP)

In the field of science, the meaning of insight can be understood by looking at theories which deal with universal laws that have fundamental significance for the totality of matter, independently of conditions of time and space. (JN)

This paper examines the mental processes involved in inferring perspective changes resulting from the rotation of a spatial array or from the rotation of the viewer of that array. Under certain conditions, viewer-rotation problems become easy and array-rotation problems become difficult. Apparently, an array is fixed vis-a-vis the spatial context.…

The author demonstrates how schools reflect our cultural tradition by giving low status to forms of consciousness and intelligence related to the arts. He discusses forms of representation and modes of conceptualization, arguing for the adoption of a broader view of cognition, that values the full range of student aptitudes. (SJL)

An examination of the effects of different types of review questions on the transfer skills of seventh grade math students indicates that relatively difficult review questions can effectively facilitate the retention of these skills. (JD)

The lack of a philosophical teaching approach in social studies is partly due to the lack of exposure students have had to philosophy in preparatory programs and partly due to a lack of preparation for teachers in college. (JN)

The information-processing approach and results of research on spatial ability are analyzed. Performance consists of a sequence of distinct mental operations that seem general across subjects, and can be individually measured. New interpretations for some classical concepts in psychological testing and procedures for abilities are suggested.…

An information-processing framework is presented for understanding intelligence. Two levels of processing are discussed: the steps involved in solving a complex intellectual task, and higher-order processes used to decide how to solve the problem. (MH)

The competencies needed by a successful teacher in instruction are those needed to do whatever is required, within moral limits, to (1) change the truth value of the premises in the practical argument in the mind of the child, or to (2) complete those premises, or to (3) add to the range of premises accessible to the child in the formation of…

Report of a study, using 7 13 year-old boys and girls, which sought to determine if the growth of underlying spatial abilities are enhanced more if technical drawing activities requiring multiview spatial ability are presented before surface development activities, or vice versa. Includes implications for teaching technical drawing. (TA)

Reviews current research on brain-behavior relationships in disabilities of arithmetic and mathematical reasoning from both a neurological and a neuropsychological perspective. Defines developmental dyscalculia and the developmental importance of right versus left hemisphere integrity for the mediation of arithmetic learning and explores…

Reports that there are few documents in the ERIC database concerning using computers as writing tools for gifted students and that the thrust of computer education for the gifted is toward developing abstract thinking only. Argues that more research is needed on classrooms for the gifted writer. (RS)

Presents the results of three studies examining children's conception of the mind itself as an independent, active entity. Findings revealed a developing ability in children to interpret and produce statements personifying the mind and provided considerable evidence of children's movement toward a conception of the mind as an active agent…

Questionnaires were completed by 100 parents of kindergarten-age children whom the parents thought to be mathematically precocious. Five factors were found to characterize responses: (1) general intellectual factor; (2) short- and long-term memory; (3) rote memory; (4) spatial reasoning; and (5) specific relational knowledge. Parents were able to…

Examines from an existential view the development of abstract thought in adolescents and the conflicts arising from its process. Proposes an existential model that views various types of adolescent behavior as the manifestation of the adolescent's defense mechanisms developed in response to existential conflict; presents specific examples of…