Introduces and demonstrates a modified task analysis model. On the basis of this model applied in a qualitative study conducted in a program for hearing-impaired preschool children in Taiwan, findings that shed light on how and why discrepant behaviors in teaching practices can results from a well-defined and demonstrated pedagogy are reported.…

Thirty-six TESL trainees of three different age groups used classroom theory and practical experience to shape their own knowledge of English grammar. Participants completed a series of three grammatical explanation tasks over the course of two academic terms. Analysis of results revealed that the two groups of older trainees (23-34 years and…

Examines task-based, synchronous computer-mediated communication (CMC) among intermediate learners of English. Explores whether learners engage in negotiated interaction when they encounter new lexical items, whether task type has an effect on the amount of negotiation that transpires, and how this CMC negotiation compares to that noted in the…

Canadian English-Italian bilingual children were administered phonological, reading, spelling, syntactic, and working memory tasks in both languages. Results suggest English-Italian interdependence is most clearly related to phonological processing but may influence other linguistic modules. Exposure to a language with more predictable…

Summarizes findings from investigations into the development and use of a prototype English language task-based performance test. Data included performances by 90 examinees in 13 complex and skill-integrative tasks. Findings indicated that the task-based test could inform intended inferences about examinees' abilities to accomplish specific tasks…

Two characteristics that determine problem difficulty--the nature of the move search space and its interaction with other aspects of the task--were investigated in experiments in which 26, 69, 42, and 42 community college students attempted to solve the Chinese Ring Puzzle. The origins and implications of difficulty are discussed. (SLD)

Studied joint decision-making strategies of small task group (N=8) over 15-month period. Found 4 problem areas contributing to lack of productivity: expertise, self-oriented needs, permissive operating procedures, and formal status differences. Results suggest important differences between group participants' desire to use participatory strategies…

The relationship between job skills and specific tasks is difficult to analyze, since any one task may require multiple skills. In this study, a sequence of statistical evaluations was conducted to examine the reliability of a subject matter expert panel's association of tasks and job skills and the factor structure of the task by job skill…

Discussion of expert systems focuses on knowledge acquisition methodologies and their potential application to cognitive science research and the development of instructional materials. Topics discussed include subject matter experts; types of knowledge; structured interviews; task analysis; intelligent computer assisted instruction (ICAI);…

Describes the components of a program designed to strengthen ethical behavior relative to corporate policy. The topics covered include the identification of ethical standards and the skills related to those standards, the use of job aids, performance testing using case studies to simulate the application environment, and trainer tools. (CLB)

The author describes the Employment Training program developed by the Work Based Learning Project. This program is designed to help trainers break down tasks into needed skills and to evaluate competence in various skills. (CH)

This article presents learning strategies to help high school students with learning disabilities succeed in technical classes. Strategies address time management, memorization, and learning to use charts and graphs. Figures offer an example of breaking a project into subtasks, a self-questioning strategy, the CAN DO learning strategy, and a…

Outlines principles underlying the theory of polyrepresentation as it applies to user cognitive space and information space of information retrieval (IR) systems. A discussion and diagram illustrate the interactive communication that takes place between users and IR systems in order to complete work tasks such as retrieving full text information.…

This article identifies principles of the constant time delay procedure for teaching skills to students with disabilities and details a graphing method for efficiently monitoring student progress when teaching chained tasks. The method results in a line graph and response grid which show progress and analyze performance on each step of the task…

Describes a model of information processing that could be helpful in teaching students to interpret information. Four stages of information processing are discussed: judging suitability, understanding/comprehending, evaluating, and extracting. Examples based on task analysis and observations of students' work are included. (three references) (MES)