Classroom learning style and cooperative behavior of elementary school children.

Cooperative behavior of 243 3rd–7th graders who studied in cooperative small groups was compared to that of 150 pupils in classrooms conducted with whole-class instruction. An expanded version of M. Madsen's (1971) domino game was used to assess Ss' judgments about distributing payoff to themselves or to others in an altruistic, cooperative, or competitive fashion. In a 2nd experiment, 54 groups of 5 Ss were asked to construct new words from the letters appearing in an epigram, with the option to work alone or to collaborate with others. Ss from small-group classrooms were more cooperative on both judgmental and behavioral measures than were Ss from traditional classrooms. (25 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Peer interaction and learning in cooperative small groups.

77 7th and 8th graders in mathematics classrooms learned a 2-wk unit on exponents and scientific notation in mixed- or uniform-ability groups. Group interaction was tape recorded. Three categories of interaction were related to achievement (ACH): Receiving no explanation for a question or error (receiving no response or receiving only the correct answer) was negatively related to ACH; giving and receiving explanations were positively related to ACH; and ACH and interaction in the group were related to group composition, sex, ability, and personality. Medium-ability Ss in uniform-ability groups showed higher ACH and received more explanations than medium-ability Ss in mixed-ability groups. Males showed higher ACH than females. There was a curvilinear relationship between ability and ACH in mixed groups: Highs performed best, and mediums and lows showed similar ACH. High-ability Ss gave more explanations than low-ability Ss. Introverts outperformed extroverts, but extroverts received more explanations. (45 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Sex differences in interaction and achievement in cooperative small groups.

44 male and female 7th–8th graders in 2 mathematics classes worked for 2 wks in male- or female-majority groups or groups with equal numbers of males and females. Same-sex and cross-sex interactions were analyzed for giving, requesting, and receiving explanations and procedural information. Achievement and interaction results were related to the ratio of females to males in a group. Females and males showed equal achievement and similar interaction patterns in groups with equal numbers of females and males. In majority-female groups, females directed most of their interaction to males and showed lower achievement than males. In majority-male groups, males tended to ignore females and showed somewhat higher achievement than did females. Explanations for these results are considered in terms of status characteristics and expectations states, and consequences for group composition in the classroom are discussed. (34 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Development of elementary deductive reasoning in young children.

This study examined the claim (J. Hawkins et al; see record 1984-25517-001) that young children can reason deductively with content for which "practical knowledge is irrelevant." Ss 6, 8, and 11 years of age were given a set of standard logical syllogisms and a matching set of illogical ones. Six-year-olds gave similar responses to and used similar types of justifications for both logical and illogical forms, indicating that correct performance on the former might be accounted for by a low-level matching strategy, not necessarily by deductive reasoning. A clear developmental pattern emerged, showing that the ability of children to differentiate responses to the two forms improves over this age period. However, the number of children able to explicitly describe illogicality remained small, even among 11-year-olds. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Evaluation of the predictive validity of tests of mental ability for classroom performance in elementary grades.

Examined the relationship between scores on tests of mental ability and classroom performance in approximately 5,200 British early elementary school children (2nd–4th graders). The predictive validity of tests of mental ability for classroom performance recently has come under question, especially when used to examine members of disadvantaged groups. The few relevant studies that have used grades as their criteria of performance have produced contradictory findings. The present investigation yielded a strong predictive relationship between mental ability scores and classroom performance, irrespective of Ss' socioeconomic status (SES) and, in addition, indicated that the predictions of academic performance derived from standardized tests are not biased against children of lower SES. These findings are used as the basis for discussing possible reasons for inconsistencies in the past research and to suggest the appropriate function of mental ability tests in elementary education. (19 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Behavior of temporary members in small groups.

Studied the behavior of permanent and temporary members of the Washington State Supreme Court for a 1-yr period. Nonparticipations for which temporary judges substituted were evenly distributed throughout the permanent membership (n = 9). Results show significant tendencies by temporary members to agree with the views of the majority and avoid the opportunity to voice independent opinions (p     

Academic intrinsic motivation in young elementary school children.

Two studies, 1 longitudinal and 1 cross-sectional, demonstrate that for young elementary school children, academic intrinsic motivation is a reliable, valid, and significant construct. It was positively related to achievement, IQ, and perception of competence, and inversely related to anxiety. Academic intrinsic motivation at age 9 was significantly predicted by motivation measured 1 and 2 years earlier, above and beyond the contribution of IQ and achievement. Children with higher academic intrinsic motivation at ages 7 and 8 were more likely to show higher motivation at age 9. Whereas young children could reliably distinguish between subject areas of academic intrinsic motivation, only math motivation showed consistently specific relations to other math criteria. Findings are discussed with regard to developmental theories of intrinsic motivation and the significance of academic intrinsic motivation for children's education. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Verbal conditioning of middle and lower socioeconomic class schizophrenics.

An experiment with 140 male VA hospital patients assessed the verbal conditioning of middle and lower socioeconomic class schizophrenics and normals under conditions of social reinforcement. Ss were reinforced with a positive or negative word said in a positive, negative, or neutral tone of voice. Social class moderated diagnostic group differences in learning. Combining social classes, schizophrenics learned less than normals with reinforcement entailing incongruent word and tone but were equivalent to normals with congruent word/tone reinforcement pairs (i.e., positive word/positive tone and negative word/negative tone). Results are interpreted in terms of the double-bind theory of G. Bateson et al (1956), which views schizophrenic behavior as a response acquired after prolonged exposure to inconsistent patterns of verbal and nonverbal communication. (26 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Experience of musical performance anxiety in elementary school children.

Performance anxiety is a common problem for musicians. Although empirical research on adult musicians is growing, child musicians have largely been overlooked. This study examined the experience of performance anxiety in 173 children. Participants in Grades 3-7 completed the State form of the State-Trait Anxiety Inventory for Children (C. D. Spielberger, D. C. Edwards, R. E. Lushene, J. Montuori, & D. Platzek, 1973) at 2 points in time: during a regular school day and on the day of a major school concert. Trait anxiety was also measured on the 1st occasion. It was found that state anxiety was significantly higher on the day of the school concert and was related to children's level of trait anxiety. No differences were found for type of music class. Gender differences were apparent in upper elementary grades. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Reactions of middle and lower class children to finger paints as a function of class differences in child-training practices.

Two related experiments are designed to measure the behavioral consequences of the reputedly coercive, rigid middle class child training procedures as contrasted with the more permissive lower class procedures, using class differences in toilet training as the basis for the experimental design. In finger painting, middle class children show a lower tolerance for getting dirty, and for the products they produce while dirty. With crayons substituted for finger paints, this class difference does not persist. The results are interpreted to mean that soiling and smearing behavior does arouse more anxiety in middle than in lower class children. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Group composition, group interaction, and achievement in cooperative small groups.

In 4 junior-high-school mathematics classrooms, 96 students learned a 1-wk unit of consumer mathematics in mixed-, or uniform-ability groups. The interaction variable that related most strongly, and negatively, to achievement was asking a question and receiving no response. The effects of S and group characteristics on achievement were partially mediated by interaction in group. Group interaction was predicted by group composition and S's personality: The frequency of asking a question and receiving no response was higher among uniform- than mixed-ability groups and was higher among extroverted Ss (as assessed by the Eysenck Personality Inventory) than among introverted Ss. (36 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Oral discussion, group-to-individual transfer, and achievement in cooperative learning groups.

75 2nd graders were randomly assigned to cooperative learning groups in which oral discussion was structured or unstructured or to an individualistic learning group so that daily achievement, postinstructional achievement, and retention could be compared. Groups were stratified for sex and ability level. Results show that Ss in cooperative groups performed significantly higher on the accuracy of daily work than did Ss working individually. In addition, the high-, medium-, and low-ability Ss in the structured oral discussion cooperative condition scored higher on the postinstructional and retention tests than did Ss in the other 2 conditions. Ss in the unstructured oral discussion cooperative condition scored higher on these tests than did Ss who learned individually. Findings suggest that group-to-individual transfer takes place within cooperative learning groups and that orally summarizing the material being learned and the monitoring of others' summaries contribute to the efficacy of cooperative learning. (33 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Self-care and deviance in elementary school-age children

Fourth-, fifth- and sixth-grade students were surveyed to investigate whether self-care was related to self-reports of behavioral or attitudinal deviance, liking for school, or both. The Child Self-Care Measure (CSCM), a multiscale self-report instrument, measured self-care as a developmental task with four major dimensions: temporal, physical, structural, and psychological. Self-care in general was not linked to deviance. However, increases in psychological self-care were strongly correlated with reductions in children's liking for school. Additionally, children in self-care who cared for younger siblings for more than a year reported more deviant behaviors than those without responsibility for younger siblings; children in the care of older siblings less than 16 years old for more than 4 years reported more tolerance for deviance than peers in self-care without older sibling caregivers. Findings support earlier speculations that children in self-care may not be developmentally ready to take responsibility for elementary school-aged siblings. Results also indicated that although girls in self-care manifest problems earlier than boys, long term self-care may be more problematic for boys than girls.     

Dominance as a factor in achievement and perception in cooperative problem solving interactions.

Sullivanian theory was quoted as assuming that a person's mode of relating himself to others enables him to minimize the experience of anxiety in these interpersonal relations. On the basis that some people are primarily dominant (D) and others submissive (S) in interpersonal relationships, an experimental design was constructed so as to test the hypothesis that the most propitious pairing of these was D with S and each playing their habitual role. The measure of successful integration was a problem solving situation. Ss were assigned to role congruent and dissonant with their habitual modes and paired with naturally and experimentally similar and dissimilar Ss. The results confirmed the hypothesis that "congruence of role and habitual pattern within the subject and complementarity of patterns as between subjects were major determining variables in cooperative achievement." From Psyc Abstracts 36:04:4CN35S. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Preschool predictors of narrative writing skills in elementary school children.

This study examined the preschool predictors of elementary school narrative writing skills. The sample included 65 typically developing African American children, ranging in age from 5.0 to 5.5 years, and was 44.6% male. Targeted preschool predictors included measures of phonological processing, core language abilities, prereading skills, and early writing concepts assessed during the spring or summer, just before beginning kindergarten. Using hierarchical linear modeling, findings showed that core language abilities, prereading skills, and maternal education at preschool significantly predicted the level of writing in Grades 3–5, but only core language abilities and prereading skills significantly predicted the rate of growth in writing. When kindergartners were separated into low and high readers, and low and high core language abilities, a significant pattern of widening differences emerged between the groups over time. These findings point to core language abilities, prereading skills, and maternal education assessed at kindergarten entry as critical predictors of later narrative writing skills, and they suggest the importance of including such measures when screening for written language problems in early kindergarten and early elementary school. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Predictive validity of readiness tests for middle and lower socioeconomic status Anglo, Black, and Mexican American children.

Administered the Metropolitan Readiness Tests, Slosson Intelligence Test, Slosson Oral Reading Test, Clymer-Barrett Prereading Battery, and Language and Concepts subtests of the Tests of Basic Experiences to 411 Anglo, Black, and Mexican-American first-grade children from middle and lower socioeconomic status (SES) homes. Criterion variables consisted of measures of intelligence at 2nd grade and achievement at 2nd and 4th grades. 77% of the correlations were statistically significant for the total sample. However, important differences existed between the 3 racial-ethnic groups and 2 social classes. The readiness tests tended to be most valid for Anglos and least valid for Blacks. Within each racial-ethnic group, the tests tended to be more valid for middle than for lower SES Ss. (17 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Influence of student-teacher and parent-teacher relationships on lower achieving readers' engagement and achievement in the primary grades.

Participants were 443 (52.6% male, 47.4% female) ethnically diverse, 1st-grade, lower achieving readers attending 1 of 3 school districts in Texas. Using latent variable structural equation modeling, the authors tested a theoretical model positing that (a) the quality of teachers' relationships with students and their parents mediates the associations between children's background characteristics and teacher-rated classroom engagement and that (b) child classroom engagement, in turn, mediates the associations between student-teacher and parent-teacher relatedness and child achievement the following year. The hypothesized model provided a good fit to the data. African American children and their parents, relative to Hispanic and Caucasian children and their parents, had less supportive relationships with teachers. These differences in relatedness may be implicated in African American children's lower achievement trajectories in the early grades. Implications of these findings for teacher preparation are discussed. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Brief group therapy with low-achieving elementary school children.

The study encompassed 142 low achievers in 2 elementary schools (Grades 2-6) in Israel, all of whom received 4–6 weekly hours' assistance with their academic difficulties in school. After a random division of this sample into experimental and control groups, the former received an additional weekly session of group therapy of an interpersonal nature. The effect of this treatment was examined on 4 dependent variables: academic achievements, self concept, social acceptance, and locus of control. Results indicated significant gains for the experimental group on all these variables—gains that increased over time. Group therapy appears to contribute both to academic progress and to the psychological and social well-being of low-achieving pupils. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Effects of perceived ability and grade status on social interaction and influence in cooperative groups.

In this study we investigated how a natural status characteristic (grade level) and an experimentally induced status characteristic (ability) combine to affect group interaction and interpersonal perception in homogeneous and heterogeneous groups. Eighty male fifth and sixth graders were randomly assigned to groups of four that were made into homogeneous or heterogeneous "ability" groups on the basis of a bogus aptitude test. Their social interaction was videotaped as groups worked on a group consensus task. The data indicated that the two status characteristics (actual and induced) had a similar and significant effect on the social interaction in the groups. High-status students dominated group interaction, were more influential, and were more likely to be perceived as leaders. The data also indicated that differences in helping behavior may be due, in part, to the perceived status of the student and not only to the student's ability to give help. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)