Examined possibility that arousability as manifested in sensitization contributes to individual differences in infants' attentional profiles. Sensitization tended to occur more frequently with more complex than with less complex checkerboards. Infants showing sensitization looked longer and did not habituate as readily as infants who showed no…

Reviews research on external memory strategies, provides a rationale for using neural network models, and discusses their application to intellectual and developmental differences in the external memory strategies of typical and atypical children, including those with mental retardation. Examines mechanisms of intellectual differences and…

The grounded experiences of two participatory evaluation case studies indicate that, when action is the desired outcome of an evaluation, somewhat less rather than more diversity of stakeholder participation is actually what is wanted. A narrowing of diversity is not necessarily in violation of democratic participatory aims. (SLD)

Evaluated three test development procedures designed to measure different levels of domain expertise. Experts and novices in psychology and physics took tests generated by the procedures intended to measure ability to understand, draw inferences from, and recognize "big ideas" in technical text. Results were consistent with the…

Education at its best is an "aptitude development program" that promotes development of learning abilities and effective personal styles needed for future learning in school and throughout life. Much of this development involves adapting and expanding the symbol systems used in teaching and learning to convey essential meanings. Adaptive…

Individual differences in the ability to connect thoughts to emotions were studied with 321 participants who read the writings of a target group and guessed the emotions of targets. Findings are interpreted to mean that some forms of emotional problem solving require emotional openness as well as general intelligence. (SLD)

An essay drawn from a book on the unintended effects of high-stakes tests claims that public images of student assessment are influenced significantly by the cultural symbols of the one-room schoolhouse, sports competition, the factory model, and Disney. (Author/MLF)

Reports on a study that investigated the extent to which two individual learner variables (ethnocultural pairing and gender) and certain types of task (free conversation and decision making) have an effect on negotiation opportunities provided for and by advanced Japanese and Korean male and female English-as-a-Second-Language learners.…

Responds to an article in the previous issue of this journal discussing Howard Gardner's work and its relation to drama education. Suggests that when Gardner's multiple intelligences theory is applied in teaching, differences are valued and communities are strengthened. Concludes that Gardner's theory helps to validate the practice and place of…

Responds to a parent question regarding two children's differing temperaments. Provides information on temperament traits, focusing on approach-withdrawal, adaptability, distractibility, mood, and the role of stress. Discusses the importance of parents recognizing their own temperament as well as their child's and offers suggestions for addressing…

Analyzed the extent to which children's design activities followed the same pattern or differed, based on observations of a group of six-year olds over time. Found that all children in the sample demonstrated the ability to perceive, image, and model, which is a key to designing, and that teachers can intervene to promote children's designing…

Identified subjects' handedness and family handedness (genetic variables) and college major (environmental variable); and tested subjects on the Vandenberg Mental Rotation Test. Found that right-handed females with non-right-handed relatives and with science or math majors outperformed other females and equaled the performance of males on the…

College students (n=349) completed an argument evaluation test in which they evaluated arguments about real-life situations. Argument quality and strength of prior beliefs were used to create an index of differences that were reliably linked to differences in cognitive ability and actively open-minded thinking. (SLD)

Explored whether and how understanding of biological explanation changes with development. Found that adults and children similarly distinguished between biology and psychology and about specific processes underlying biological change. Children's attributions of intention to biological organs or body parts did not differ from those of adults.…

Investigated how conflict management of boys in Head Start related to disruptive behavior and peer rejection in the Fall and Spring of the preschool year. Found that boys who engaged in higher rates of conflict and exhibited greater aggression and avoidance during peer conflicts tended to be rejected by peers and perceived as disruptive by…