The experience of 316 Icelandic students (grades 4 through 10) in reading, media, and cultural activities was analyzed in relation to cultural change and cultural literacy. Results show that the cultural experience of Icelandic students is heterogeneous and that reading has not diminished with the introduction of television. (SLD)

Studied how Swedish schools try to promote students' reading through examination of school-run booktalk conversations held by students in grades 4 through 7. Observations of eight groups show the conflict between the stated aim of promoting reading for pleasure and both tasks presented to students and problems in synchronizing the reading of…

The influence of positive achievement motivation was tested by analyzing data for 594 Norwegian sixth graders and 21 previously published studies, with simultaneous categorization of subjects on positive achievement motivation and test anxiety/fear of failure. Analysis of variance and multiple regression analysis indicate that positive achievement…

The relationship between cultural background and giftedness was studied for 52 fifth graders (24 males and 28 females) in Finland using a case study method. Giftedness was assessed by 18 teachers. Cognitive strategies were linked to self-concept and strategies of perceiving information, supporting the background role of social experiences. (SLD)

Studied the effects of borrowing norms for the Human Figure Drawing Test for use with children in Curacao, for whom there are no norms or studies of validity for this test. Results for 96 fourth graders suggest that frequency tables for the United States are better for scoring Human Figure Drawing Test results for these children than are Dutch…

Studied equity in education during a national recession in Finland in which the supply of special services for children decreased. Results for a sample of 906 sixth graders and their teachers show a considerable gap between need and supply. The selection process was biased against boys in remedial \instruction and internalizing children in…

Studied the time of day of optimal attention for 204 5th graders and 202 10th graders who varied in their aptitude for mathematics. Attention levels of fifth graders were especially high in the afternoon, but 10th graders reported increased concentration in the morning hours. Among 10th graders, there was significant interaction between…

Data for 1,833 Norwegian students in grades 4, 7, and 9 show that learning disabled (LD) (n=214) and low achieving (not diagnosed as LD; n=156) attributed success in mathematics and language to ability to a greater extent than other students. LD students showed more helplessness than other low achieving students, although these students showed…

Demonstrated an experiment on the properties of air to 2 groups of Swedish fourth graders (total n=45), using familiar materials in one case and unfamiliar, "scientific," materials in the other. Written explanations by students show that the unfamiliar materials were a barrier to understanding and may have actually obstructed students'…