Rigid syllabuses and lock-step teaching of mathematics ignore real forces in the mind that promote development and learning, as well as fostering resentment in gifted children, particularly when drill continues after a skill is learned. Discovery of mathematics by the young, acceleration, and a low teacher-pupil ratio are better ways to promote…

Writing teachers can enable students to think critically by teaching composition courses according to two principles: sequencing and revision. The teaching of a basic reading and writing course for college freshmen illustrates how writing, taught from a discovery perspective and in conjunction with selected readings, can develop students' ability…

Third-year students in the University of Alberta's B.Ed. elementary generalist program think that the program's practicum is valuable but that the program's organization hampers learning and causes stress. Students feel ambivalent about their own preparedness for student teaching and perceive a discrepancy between the program's professed and…

Educators have been asking themselves the wrong question about liberal education. The proper question is, can liberal education and preparation for work be separated? The answer is no, because those cognitive and interpersonal skills and motivation developed in liberal education are valuable in the workplace. (MSE)

Responding to an article by Donald Vandenberg (Educational Theory, Summer 1980) on the meaning of the phrase "educative experience" in John Dewey's "Democracy in Education," Chambliss says that Vandenberg misunderstands Dewey's conception of both education and experience. Social and educational implications of Dewey's thought…

Describes an investigation of student approaches to study and briefly relates the results to the need for instructional improvement. Open University students in England were interviewed to determine their study habits and two approaches were identified: deep-level (relating ideas and constructing meaning from learning materials) and surface-level…

Psychoeducational design is a powerful technology with roots in experimental psychology and applied learning research in military, industrial, health care, and educational settings. The users of psychoeducational design should understand its historical, social, and philosophical purposes and significance. (FG)

In excerpts from his inaugural address, Washington College's president reaffirms the value of the small liberal arts college in a highly specialized educational system, denounces the university's scientific approach as inappropriate for providing a value system for students, and notes the need for several distinct approaches to learning. (MSE)

The relationships among students and group characteristics, group interaction, and achievement in cooperative small groups were investigated. Three categories of interaction were related to achievement: receiving no explanation in response to a question or error was negatively related to achievement; giving explanations and receiving explanations…

Mobilizing relevant preexisting knowledge significantly facilitated retention of information inconsistent with prior knowledge but did not affect retention of congruous information. A topically organized passage was not better remembered than a topically disorganized one. (Author/PN)

The relationship between sign and verbal learning was explored using 10 severely mentally retarded adults. They were taught color labels in sign, verbal, or sign and verbal groups. Sign labels tended to be learned more efficiently; combined sign and verbal training improved verbal learning but not sign learning. (Author/CM)

Two groups of undergraduates were forced to process a maplike organizer before or after reading a difficult prose passage concerning the formation of a meander. Subjects with little prior knowledge, provided with the organizer, recalled at a level similar to subjects with a good deal of background knowledge. (Author/CM)

Extends earlier studies investigating possible relationships between student aptitudes and different modes of mathematical instruction. In the study, college students were exposed to either a verbal-pictorial-numeric treatment or a verbal-symbolic-numeric treatment in quadratic inequalities. Interactions between instructional treatment and…

Examined and measured effects of individual differences among the elderly in a cognitive training program emphasizing general learning skills. Memory improvement was greater for learning skill training and social support compared with a waiting list group. Individual variability obscured statistical differences in treatment effect. Examined…

Discusses rhythm as a fundamental element in human behavior. Suggests that the unity of cognitive, affective, and psychomotor functioning, most vividly seen in Black expressive forms, must be studied to more fully understand Black behavior and learning styles. (RC)