Studied the effects of eighth grade students' cognitive, motivational, personality, and classroom interaction characteristics on their academic achievement, attitudes toward science, and socio-metric measures. Concluded that a specified combination of student traits and teacher attention could lead to different unintential consequences in science…

Studied relationships of achievement motivation, information status, and group discussion arrangements to risk-taking behaviors for six high school biology classes, using the Extremity-Confidence of Hypothesis Test and Risk-Taking Verbal Observation Scale. Concluded that risk-taking was a multidimensional trait and might be influenced by…

Studied the effects of aptitude variables on learning from programed science material preceded by three differently structured advance organizers. Concluded that the structural properties could benefit low ability fourth-grade students in developing an adequate conceptual scheme for organizing material. (CC)

Studied the utilization and effectiveness of a televised science series in 54 first through fourth-grade classrooms, using multiple category systems to analyze the questioning behavior of studio and classroom teachers. Concluded that questioning behaviors of teachers with or without the teachers' manual was influenced by the TV broadcast. (CC)

Summarizes major findings of the Harvard Project Physics research and evaluation activity, including data gathering techniques, descriptions of teacher characteristics, information about student responses and learning environments, and final evaluation year results. Indicates that the evaluation program is characterized by considerable research on…

Determined was the effect of autotutorial instruction in the laboratory portion of a general biology course designed for nonbiology majors. Results indicate positive effects in enrollment, increased retention, and improved student achievement. (CS)

Described is the development of a test battery measuring nine enquiry skills in three general areas: using reference materials, interpreting and processing information, critical thinking in science. Validation data are reported from the administration to a large sample of junior high science students. (CS)

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…