Argues that the demands on education are more pronounced than ever. Analyzes the relationship between education and critique. Reveals that the contradiction between the two is a decisive characteristic of education. Explains that educational theory is theory type and education is a necessary critical category of social development. (CAJ)

This study investigated physical activity patterns of seven adolescents with mental retardation over a seven-day period. It found 6 to 14 bouts of moderate physical activity per day lasting from 2 to 4 minutes. Intrinsic motivation was high and lack of motivation scores were low in this sample. Results identified two main explanatory factors of…

Discusses High/Scope's preschool key experiences (a set of 58 statements that describe young children's social, cognitive, and physical development). The key experiences are grouped into 10 major developmental areas (creative representation, language and literacy, social relations, movement, music, classification, seriation, number, space, and…

This ERIC/EECE report summarizes recent documents and journal articles, and highlights some World Wide Web resources that focus on educational and classroom environments that can support children's social, emotional, and psychological development. Annotations are provided for seven ERIC documents, four ERIC journal articles, and two web resources.…

Investigated how adolescents form positive evaluations of their peer groups. When adolescents compared their peer groups with a group of which they were not members, they consistently favored the in-group. Compared to the out-group, the in-group was associated more with positive characteristics and less so with negative characteristics. Higher…

Direct defiance and passive noncompliance decreased with age, while simple refusal and negotiation increased with age. Five year olds who used skillful forms of resistance were more skillful when directing requests to mothers. Only unskillful noncompliance predicted later ratings of behavior problems. Sex differences and associations between…

Discusses six young adult novels which feature adolescents who possess a variety of gifts and talents. (MG)

The paper looks at similarities and differences between instructional and social problems. Clear parallels are drawn and a basic proactive instructional plan is presented for remedying social problems in students in which educators first analyze the behavior pattern and then teach a replacement strategy. (Author/DB)

Describes a three-day group dynamics workshop which became part of a three-week summer institute designed to address the affective needs of gifted and talented adolescents. Discusses the workshop which contained activities designed to prepare the adolescents for completing communication with retirees. (Author/ABL)

Discusses the significance of emotional communication and social referencing of the mother by her infant as determinants of the infant's affective reactions to other social figures in the environment. (PCB)

In an examination of the association of shared positive affect during 2 communicative contexts, it was found that 18 normal children displayed positive affect toward an adult during joint attention situations, while 18 autistic children did not. Eighteen mentally retarded children displayed high levels of positive affect during requesting as well…

Results are reported from a study which explored which play behaviors are characteristic of the field dependent and field independent cognitive styles. Social factors underlying cognitive style and play are identified. Subjects were 300 3- to 5-year-old children. Implications for teachers and researchers are discussed. (IAH)

The feelings of non-disabled children toward their disabled siblings are explored. Children describe how they sometimes react negatively to situations involving their disabled siblings even though they understand that their reaction is not the best response. The parents' role in serving the needs of all their children is examined. (JDD)

In Europe preschools are viewed as providers of both child care and early education. Preschool programs there are optional, universally available, and designed to further children's social and cognitive development. In the advanced industrialized world, only the U.S. and Great Britain are still debating differences between care and education.…

In attempting to balance the requirements of social structure and the empowering initiative of creativity in children, numerous obstacles must be confronted, including insecurity; fear of uncertainty; ritualistic problem solving; dogmatic, dichotomous thinking; inner resourcelessness; lack of playfulness; restricted affect; forcing premature…