Although Piaget's theory remains the most impressive in its field, there are reasons for caution: its tenuous base in good data, overemphasis on failures or successes of logical structure as explanations of behavior, underemphasis on the possibility that much knowledge is socially constructed and transmitted, and the central but dubious tenet of…

The article reports two phases of a study that, through use of Piagetian reasoning assessments, indicated significant delays in the cognitive development of 75 congenitally blind students (6 to 18 years) compared to 75 sighted Ss. Developmentally appropriate reasoning experiences produced equivalent performance of blind Ss to that of the sighted…

The cognitive development of 125 gifted 10-to 15-year-old students was compared to that of 98 normal Ss. Results supported the invariance of stage progression but revealed that gifted Ss progress more quickly and demonstrate earlier transition to succeeding developmental stages. (CL)

The results showed that the performance of the autistic children was better than the other two groups on concrete discrimination tasks, was poorer than the other two groups on formal discrimination tasks, and the quality of the autistic children's performance decreased as task requirements for formal discrimination increased. (Author/SB)

The LD first graders were found to have a lower level as well as greater variability in their understanding of basic concepts. The greatest discrepancy of the LD group was found on concepts of quantity, space, and miscellaneous, respectively. (Author)

A nonverbal assessment procedure designed to characterize cognition using a Piagetian framework was administered to six autistic children, (4.8 to 15.2 years old). All six children evidenced competence beyond sensorimotor Stage VI and demonstrated cognitive functioning between the periods of early preoperational and concrete operations. (Author)

Uncertainty was researched as a perceptual structure which mediates the transition from sensorimotor activity to language. The guiding notions are that the attentional system is geared to uncertainty from the beginning of life and that a speaker's language use is coordinated with this system as it emerges. (Author)

The social-cognitive skills of 38 retarded children ages 24 to 92 months were assessed on a set of communication tasks. Results indicated that the social-cognitive skills of both retarded and nonretarded children were related to social age. (Author)

Children took a group test of disjunctive reasoning containing 48 inclusive and exclusive items varying in content of the premises, and affirmation or negation of the conclusion. Performance improved until seventh grade. Negative conclusions produced more correct answers. Implications were discussed in relation to cognitive developmental theory…

A chronological listing (1938-1978) of 78 published works by Professor Edwin Peel of the University of Birmingham, England. (SJL)

The difficulties encountered in attempting to apply Piaget's theory of cognitive development to education reveal ambiguities existing within the theory itself. Research activity by educators and by developmental theoreticians must be integrated in order to achieve either a comprehensive developmental theory or an effective application of it. (CT)

Comprehension of usages of "or" was investigated in children 5 to 6 and 9 to 10 years old, and in college students. All age groups made logical inferences involving "or". All age groups perceived contradictions but disagreed regarding inferences to be drawn from contradictions. Except when set union is indicated, "or"…

The training of intelligence is considered as a component of early interventions. The Home-Oriented Preschool Educational (HOPE) experiment is examined, and a currently in progress long term followup study of it is described. (Author)

A theory of cognitive modifiability deals with the phenomenon of low cognitive performance, explains its etiology, and forms the basis for a remedial intervention--Instrumental Enrichment (IE)--that induces changes of a structural nature in adolescents. (Author)

Twenty activities which develop gifted children's creativity; power of reasoning; and ability to analyze, synthesize, and evaluate are listed. (DB)