Compared are elementary teacher methods courses differing in the amount of field experience with specific teaching behaviors involving the ability to teach activity-oriented or experiential science. Results include the finding that field experience effects a major difference in the ability to model specific teaching behaviors. (CS)

Supported by this experimental study was the hypothesis that science process skills of premedical and predental students could be improved by a semester-long course modeled after the AAAS Science - A Process Approach curriculum. Recommendations are made regarding the inclusion of science process skills in college science courses. (CS)

Explored were the effects of direct or indirect reinforcement and student knowledge of the criteria for acceptable hypotheses on hypothesis generation by ninth-grade students. A combination of both of the variables, reinforcement and knowledge of acceptable hypotheses, appear to lead to better hypothesis generation. (CS)

Described is a study designed to effect a change in school-related attitudes (towards science and school lunch) using cognitive dissonance theory. Results support the idea that inducing students to engage in behavior considered desirable by others but not necessarily by the students themselves might change the attitude in question. (CS)

Ascertained were the effects of an individualized instruction method, audiotutorial (AT), on the cognitive achievement in biology of prospective general primary grade teachers. Used as a control was a conventional lecture-laboratory format of instruction. Results indicate that the prospective teachers appeared to gain more from AT instruction than…

Examined was the attainment of projective spatial concepts of third-, sixth-, and ninth-grade students. Eight Piagetian-type tasks were developed to provide evidence for Piaget's model of groupings of mental structures dealing with time and space. Task performance among grade levels and gender was examined. (CS)

Explored were classification criteria selected by primary children in free classification situations as a function of grade levels, socioeconomic background, and some characteristics of the classification tasks. Conclusions indicate a strong preference to classify items by their form. Student differences in free and guided classifications are…

Tested and supported was the hypothesis that students receiving high-structured film narrations will acquire more knowledge and will respond more favorably than those receiving low-structured film narrations. Results contribute additional data to evidence supporting the need for critical application of the kinetic structure theory in evaluating…

Described is a study that confirms positive effects on student achievement of manipulation of molecular models by high school chemistry students over a long period of time. Also examined but unanswered were questions regarding applications of Piaget's theories in determining differential effects for concrete and formal operational students. (CS)

Investigated effects of teacher-induced imagery generation on rule recall and transfer using boys in ninth-grade physical science classes assigned to imagery encouragement or discouragement treatment groups. Results indicate that imagery utilization significantly facilitates rule recall and that imagery encouragement during instruction leads to…

Investigated effects of teaching an explicit approach to problem solving on the mathematical chemistry achievement of preparatory college students (with a control group being taught dimensional analysis as its problem-solving strategy). No difference in cumulative achievement between the groups was found. Interpretations of the results obtained…

Presents data on student attitudes (N=380) toward chemistry using the Student Opinion Survey in Chemistry (SOSC) and compares these data with those reported in H. Heikkinen's 1973 doctoral dissertation. The potential usefulness of using the SOSC in cross-national studies is also discussed. (Author/JN)

This study used a microcomputer program which diagnosed and remediated an alternative conception of velocity. Results show computer simulations are credible representations of reality and that the remedial part of the program produces significant conceptual changes in students holding the alternative conception. (Author/JN)

Determined if providing feedback to students had any impact on the correlation between performance in physics and a test of simple, mechanistic mathematics skills. Also determined if students who drop out of the physics course demonstrated any identifiable difference in performance on tests involving a variety of reasoning and problem-solving…

Investigated relationships among attitudes toward science, interest in science, science curiosity, and self-concept of science ability. Data, obtained from 228 sixth-grade students, show that attitudes toward science, interest in science, and science curiosity are highly related. Implications of these findings for science instruction are…