Research programs of the human learning and behavior branch of the National Institute of Child Health and Human Development (NICHHD) are described in five sections of this document. The specific programs conducted in the areas of learning and cognitive development, development of communicative abilities, biological bases of behavioral development,…

All too often educators establish a "pretest, skill, posttest" type of curriculum. While this approach has an educational value, it must be used within a developmental framework based on individual thinking and learning style. Thus, a thorough knowledge of cognitive development is necessary. A review of the body of knowledge concerning…

Intended to provide a publication outlet for systematic and substantive reviews and syntheses, both empirical and theoretical, and for integrative reports of programatic research, this volume focuses on current theory and research on word identification and comprehension and explores the implication of this work for the teaching of reading. The…

Aptitude treatment interaction (ATI) for the two most widely used science teaching strategies (lecture method and lecture method augmented with classroom activities) was investigated. The aptitude variables examined were cognitive ability level expressed in Piagetian terms and cognitive learning style (field independence/dependence). A sample of…

Three studies of children at two developmental levels were made to assess subjects' understanding of the verbal terms "easy" (to do) and "hard" (to do). Such understanding was studied in the context of statements about personal competence at depicted activities. Behavioral criteria of levels of understanding were employed;…

Within the purview of a Chapter One Basic Program, this practicum initiated a 3-month intervention in oral language development for minority group first grade students with language differences and delayed speech who attended Gove Elementary School, Belle Glade, Florida, Goals for students included extension of mean length of utterance (MLU), and…

In the foreword to this book, Inhelder states that its essential contribution is that "it transposed to actual reality Piaget's central epistemological thesis according to which mathematical thought is, from its most elementary manifestations, the product of the subject's activity that he characterized by the term 'reflective…

A psychometric model called Saltus, which represents the qualitative aspects of hierarchical development in a form applicable to additive measurement, was applied. Both Piaget's theory of cognitive development and Gagne's theory of learning hierarchies were used to establish the common features of hierarchical development: (1) gappiness--the…

The 13 articles in this information packet are intended to assist individuals involved in developing plans to improve student thinking within a school or a school district. The topics discussed include (1) the need to improve student thinking, (2) obstacles that stand in the way of teaching thinking skills, (3) practical approaches to improving…

In 1981 and 1982, pre- and postnatal medical, financial, demographic, and maternal social support data were collected from 220 lower socioeconomic status (SES), "high risk" mothers and their newborn infants. An analysis of data on the oldest 100 children in the sample found that 14 families had been referred to a children's protective services…

The reading/writing project described in this document examined the basic cognitive activities children engage in when reading and writing, involved 67 children from grades 3, 6, and 9, and addressed these questions: Since reading and writing both involve the development of meaning, is there a common language core, or routines, that children…

This is a final report of research in dichotic listening performance (DLP). The purposes for the research were to study the development of DLP in children and adults, to examine DLP as a function of verbal information presented in a task, to determine the contribution of perceptual and mnemonic factors affecting DLP by controlling order-of-report…

Designed for integration into existing school curriculum, this is the fifth in a series of five career education curriculum kits for teachers of grades K-3. Each kit pertains to one of five specified career education program goals. The goal for this curriculum kit is, "Students will develop physical and mental skills related to occupational…

The paper presents an overview of Piaget's theory of cognitive development and a review of research in the measurement of formal operations and the impact of the domain of expertise on cognitive functioning. The role of the teacher as described by proponents of Piaget's theory is explored, along with an extensive description of Piaget's stage of…

Intended for parents as well as professionals, the text provides information and practical suggestions on dealing with spina bifida and hydrocephalus. Part I (chapters 1 and 2) concentrates on the medical and physical aspects of the condition with discussions covering such areas as spina bifida's development, locomotor problems, and the role of…