The realities of teacher preparation are not self-evident. Researchers, educators, and policymakers need a framework to describe what goes on in teacher education programs and to determine how they do or do not measure up as preparation for teaching. This paper presents such a framework. The framework rests on a conception of the central tasks of…

The "process option" approach for speech students should be expanded through the development of a learning context in which (1) topic development replaces last minute subject selection through the spoken equivalent of freewriting, (2) the revision process of writing occurs in preparation for delivered speeches, (3) student/teacher…

This investigation of the impact of feedback upon scrambled discourse was intended to show the effects of idiosyncratic processing and to provide a more sensitive indicator of feedback usefulness. Learner schemata, text organization, and feedback strategies interact in processing discourse, although past research has favored limited models…

In an examination of the acquisition of the spatial syntax of American Sign Language (ASL), 43 children aged 3-10 years were given a range of comprehension and elicitation tests designed to analyze the subsystems involved in the corrrect use of ASL syntax. The subsystems were nominal establishment, verb agreement, and consistency of reference. The…

A theory of memory is introduced, which seeks to respond to the shortcomings of existing theories based on metaphors. Memory is presented as a mechanism, a comparison process in which information held in some form of immediate storage (whether based on perception or previous cognition or both) is compared to previously stored long-term storage.…

It is argued that the close relationship between learning and testing is best exemplified in achievement tests, which are designed both to reinforce learning and to provide feedback about the effectiveness of teaching. Of the four types of achievement tests (placement, formative, diagnostic, and summative), two (formative and diagnostic) are…

Recognizing that toy-making activities have tremendous potential for developing good parent-child interactions, this paper examines (1) the why, where, when, how, and who of making toys at home; (2) the use of toys in play; and (3) the value of toys as tools for learning. The snags and obstacles of toy making as well as the challenges and benefits…

Intended for administrators and policymakers as well as teachers, this digest explores the nature of students' metacomprehension, or their awareness of their own understanding, and the implications of this awareness for reading instruction. After defining metacomprehension, the digest discusses why this awareness is important to the learning…

This paper describes the complex issues that block the language teacher's progress towards better teaching and learning. The issues are problematic, for they involve political, financial, organizational, and sociological concerns. All teachers need encouragement in the form of central support, improved career prospects, and value attributed to…

Five current theoretical approaches to second language learning are examined: practice, problem-solving, creative construction, monitoring, and personality development. The points in each approach that are most controversial and those that require further clarifying research are reviewed. It is concluded that in at least three major areas,…

Using W. Brockriede's model of constructs, experience, and argument, this paper shows how teacher-student communication can be enhanced through the application of the principles of rhetoric. Following a brief introduction, the first part of the paper deals with the centrality of rhetoric to the education process, then discusses rhetoric as method.…

A study was conducted to investigate incidental learning of word meanings from context during normal reading. Subjects were 129 third grade, 85 fifth grade, and 138 seventh grade students of differing comprehension ability who first completed a vocabulary checklist containing target words and distractors, then read either expository or narrative…

Comparisons of expert and novice problem solving in physics have helped characterize some of the key features of expert behavior. There is considerable debate, however, as to whether these characteristics are specific to the field of expertise (physics) or exportable to other fields. While the question seems difficult to answer in general, at…

To clarify the perceptions of college freshmen regarding the kind of teaching they experienced in public schools and how those experiences relate to the split-brain theory, a study surveyed 241 first-semester college freshmen from the fall of 1984 to the fall of 1987 at Southwest Missouri State University. Only students who had completed at least…

This study used the sense-making approach of message-q/ing to examine how individuals arrive at an understanding of new technology, in this case, word processing. Subjects were 10 computer naive undergraduate students learning to use word processing as part of a course requirement. Using the WordStar program manual, subjects employed the…