The need to teach critical thinking skills at all educational levels continues. But teachers should not rely on special courses and tests to do the job. Instead, teachers should create an atmosphere that encourages critical inquiry. Thinking skills activities for various content areas are reviewed. (BB)

A survey of 249 students at the State University of New York at Buffalo identified medical ethics issues arising during clinical training in professional norms, limits of intervention, defensive shielding of professional colleagues, respect toward patients, communication, and student boundaries. Concerns differed by student year, supporting…

Discusses the reliability and validity of the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM-IV) for Hispanic children and adolescents. Claims that cultural aspects of mental disorders are largely omitted. Provides a table of potential sources of bias and recommendations for reducing diagnostic errors with Hispanic children. (Contains…

Focuses on the issues related to the student classification process and the disproportionate placement of black males in special education programs. The meaning and implications of the following classifications are discussed: educable mental retardation, serious emotional disturbance, specific learning disability, speech impairment, and trainable…

This study of 1,657 children (ages 7-16) found that although children with dyslexia had higher intelligence quotient scores than poor readers, the 2 groups did not differ in performance on reading, spelling, phonological processing, or most language and memory tasks. The performance of both reading-disabled groups was significantly below that of…

Forty children (ages 9-12) identified as having dyslexia on the basis of intelligence and achievement tests were evaluated. Results imply that a test of phonological sensitivity and another of nonsense word decoding identified children who were dysphonetic. Nondysphonetic disabled readers were older and had higher verbal intelligence quotients…

Studied patterns of boys' social development by examining data from two longitudinal studies: a Finnish study of eight year olds begun in 1968; and a French Canadian study of six year olds begun in 1984. Patterns were identified using variables of aggression, hyperactivity, inattentiveness, anxiety, and lack of prosocial behavior. (LB)

Describes a taxonomy of computer user modes in distance education and identifies three major learning and behavioral processes that are extended by computers: (1) information processing; (2) interaction; and (3) communication. Highlights for each process include the relationship to other media, pedagogical functions, hardware and software, and…

Critiques the popular view of rural United States and presents various systems for classifying rural counties. Describes six major socioeconomic and political trends affecting rural areas. Hypothesizes the effects of the six major trends on types of nonmetro counties using the typology which classifies nonmetro counties based on primary economic…

Two experiments with 42 second graders, 55 fourth graders, and 36 fifth graders investigated previous findings of a lack of strategic advantage for expert children dealing with information in their area of expertise. Results from using an expert-novice paradigm suggest that expert children's task advantage is mediated primarily by nonstrategic…

Systems for classifying speakers' communicative intents are typically limited in scope, in applicability across the full developmental range of language abilities and disabilities, and in their theoretical foundations. Criteria for an adequate system for analyzing communicative intents are discussed, and a system is proposed which meets those…

Autism Behavior Checklists were completed for 52 autistic individuals (ages 2-31) and 62 nonautistic individuals, and data were analyzed using signal detection methodology. A single item (looks "through" people) combined with one of five other items discriminated as well as the sum scores, and further combinations did not improve…

This study of visual and auditory problems in 17 children (ages 7-10) with dyslexia concluded that, although eye tracking and binocular fusion problems should always be considered in the assessment of dyslexics, factors involved in information processing in auditory and visual perception appear to be more highly implicated. (Author/JDD)

The number of video examples of a concept and the dispersion of the examples were studied as variables affecting concept learning by 50 Dutch 12-year-old and 14-year-old secondary students. Although the number had no effect, broadly dispersed examples improved posttest classification ability. Implications for concept teaching are discussed. (SLD)

Describes an integrated thematic unit for children from kindergarten to third grade. Explains that the unit incorporates reading, speaking, writing, science, mathematics, social studies, and art into the study of whales. Suggests learning activities on echolocation, migration, measurement, scrimshaw, history, and human interaction with the…