The concept of symmetry is fundamental to mathematics. Arguments and proofs based on symmetry are often aesthetically pleasing because they are subtle and succinct and non-standard. This article uses notions of symmetry to approach the solutions to a broad range of mathematical problems. It responds to Krutetskii's criteria for mathematical…

The present study focuses on math and related skills among 32 girls with fragile X (n = 14) or Turner (n = 18) syndrome during late elementary school. Performance in each syndrome group was assessed relative to Full Scale IQ-matched comparison groups of girls from the general population (n = 32 and n = 89 for fragile X syndrome and Turner…

To help eighth-grade students experience the excitement of Earth science research, the authors developed an inquiry-based project in which students evaluated and cataloged their campus geology and soils. Following class discussions of rock-weathering and soil-forming processes, students worked in groups to excavate multiple soil pits in the school…

This paper reports the findings from an experimental study involving thirty three secondary school students (mean age = 15.5 years) in spatial visualization (SV) training through an interactive desktop virtual environment spatial trainer (iDVEST). Stratified random sampling was used to assign students into two experimental groups and one control…

This review critically examines the research findings which characterize the cognitive, behavioral, and neuroanatomical features of Williams syndrome (WS). This article analyzes 178 published studies in the WS literature covering the following areas: 1) General intelligence, 2) Language skills, 3) Visuospatial and face processing skills, 4)…

This paper describes the background, methodology, preliminary findings, and anticipated future directions of a large-scale multi-year randomized field experiment addressing the efficacy of ST Math [Spatial-Temporal Math], a fully-developed math curriculum that uses interactive animated software. ST Math's unique approach minimizes the use of…

Space is related to power in that it is critical to the social production and reproduction of difference. This paper re-imagines a critical multiculturalism that embraces critical spatial theory and postmodern identity politics. In an overview of postmodern spatial theory, the works of Lefebvre (1974), E. Soja (1989, 1996), and M. Foucault (1986)…

Data from a 1990-91 sample of professional art school students who were given The Spatial Dimensionality Test showed significant sex-related differences with higher male mean scores on spatial abilities tasks. These findings failed to replicate the 1987 data from the same sample that showed no significant sex-related differences on the same test…

Activity theory is a perspective that is largely rooted in the writing of Soviet psychologists. One of the premises of the theory is that human behavior and thinking occur within meaningful contexts as people conduct purposeful goal directed activity. The primary unit of psychological study should be socially organized human activity, rather than…

This study examines 4-year-olds' ability to search and find a missing object, a complex problem-solving task dependent on remembering events, logically deducing the possible subset of hiding places, and implementing situation-dependent search strategies. Sixty-four children recruited from two day care centers in a small midwestern city searched…

Studies of children's representation of spatial relationships and ability to respond to temporal relationships in photographs are reported. Participants in the study of spatial relationships were 90 children at 5, 8, and 11 years of age, who were asked to reproduce three types of depth relationship: enclosure, occlusion, and perspective. Each…

Infants' use of auditory information in guiding their search behavior is examined in this study. The subjects were two groups of 9-month-old crawling infants. Group 1 consisted of 24 infants and Group 2 of 16 infants. The auditory stimuli was the mother's voice. Infants in both groups were initially positioned by their mothers behind a screen in a…

This study involving 38 normally achieving fourth and fifth grade children confirmed previous studies indicating that both spatial-simultaneous (in which perceived stimuli are totally available at one point in time) and verbal-successive (information is presented in serial order) cognitive processing are important in normal learning. (DB)

Studies were designed to test the prediction that spatial search strategies in infants may be influenced by locomotor experience. The pattern of findings suggests that infants with efficient modes of locomotion are more likely than others to profit from the experiences generated by locomotion. (RJC)

Children and adults in large environments showed no developmental differences in judging distances separated by barriers and not separated by barriers. Variables included type of barrier, distance, and environmental experience. (JS)