Self-instructions: Effects of cognitive level and active rehearsal

This research examined the effects of a self-instruction intervention on the relationship between cognitive level and conceptual tempo. Preoperational and concrete operational children received the Matching Familiar Figures Test prior to and after serving in either a no training control group, a content only control group, or a self-instruction group. Children in the content only control group received the same set of self-guiding strategy statements as those in the self-instruction group but without overt rehearsal of the statements. Cognitive level and conceptual tempo were strongly related; preoperational children tended to be classified as impulsive, concrete operational chidlren, as reflective. Although cognitive level predicted overall performance, with concrete operational children being more successful and more reflective than preoperational children, the influence of training was similar for both groups. On posttest, children in the self-instruction groups made more correct responses and were more reflective than children in the other two training groups. © 1981

Achieving generalization with general versus specific self-instructions: Effects on academically deficient children

Teacher-referred academically deficient children were randomly assigned to a general self-instruction training group, a specific self-instruction training group, or a didactic training group. Subjects in each group were trained on addition problems. Maintenance and generalization were measured by performance on the Peabody Individual Achievement Test (PIAT), an academic skill rating scale (ASRS), and a mathematics skill test. Children in the specific self-instruction training group improved significantly relative to other training groups on the PIAT math subtest, but not on measures of generalization. Children in the general self-instruction training group significantly improved their performance relative to children in other groups on the PIAT spelling and general information subtests. The results were discussed in terms of efficacy of general self-instruction training procedures for achieving generalization of problem-solving skills. © 1985 Plenum Publishing Corporation

Generalization of self-instruction training

Forty-eight preoperational and concrete operational first and second graders performed on a training task (Matching Familiar Figures Test) and a generalization task (a perceptual perspective taking task) prior to, and after serving in, one of two instructional groups. The instructional groups were: a no-training control group and a group which received general content self-instructions delivered through a directed discovery procedure. Both preoperational and concrete operational children in the self-instruction group improved significantly at posttest on the training task. On the generalization task only the concrete operational children in the directed discovery group performed significantly better following training. These findings are discussed in terms of the dynamic relationship between an individual\u27s cognitive ability and the format of instructions. The need for provoking the cognitive involvement of the child on the basis of this relationship is stressed. © 1982

Die Hochtemperaturzelle HTZ : ein neues Verfahren zur Extraktion von Sauerstoffisotopen aus biogenen Silikaten

Biogene Silikate und deren Sauerstoffisotopensignatur haben sowohl für die marine als auch für die terrestrische paläoklimatologische Forschung aufgrund ihres ubiquitären Vorkommens ein sehr großes Potenzial. Bedingt durch methodische Probleme bei ihrem Aufschluss, sind die Sauerstoffisotope biogener Silikate jedoch bisher nur wenig genutzt worden. Zielsetzung war daher die Entwicklung eines neuartigen, keine Fraktionierungseffekte verursachenden Aufschlussverfahrens zur Extraktion der Sauerstoffisotope. Das neu entwickelte Hochtemperatur-Aufschlussverfahren (HTZ) verzichtet auf die bisher übliche Fluorinierung und erlaubt einen relativ hohen Probendurchsatz. Dies wird durch die Abtrennung sauerstoffhaltiger Verunreinigungen" der Probe und anschließendem Aufschluss in einem Schritt erreicht. Dabei wird ein Mittelfrequenzgenerator zur induktiven Aufheizung eines in eine doppelwandige Glasküvette eingebrachten Reaktionsstabes aus Glaskohlenstoff genutzt. Der Reaktionsstab ist oben mit einer Bohrung, die als Probenbehälter dient, versehen, welche ein Gemisch aus Probenmaterial und Graphitpulver aufnehmen kann. Dieser Stab ist selbst von einem dünnwandigen, oben geschlossenen Zylinder aus Glaskohlenstoff umgeben, um einen Austausch des bei der Reaktion freiwerdenden, im CO gebundenen Sauerstoffs mit dem Sauerstoff der Glasküvette zu verhindern. Nach Evakuierung der Küvette, kann das Probenmaterial aufgeschlossen werden. Der Reaktionsstab wird zur Freisetzung des Sauerstoffs aus biogenem Silikat bis auf eine Temperatur von ca. 1550°C erhitzt. Dabei reagiert Graphit mit Siliziumdioxid zu Siliziumcarbid und Kohlenstoffmonoxid (CO). Das entstandene Kohlenstoffmonoxid wird mit Hilfe flüssigen Stickstoffs unter Verwendung eines Molekularsiebes (5$\mathring{A}$) in ein Probenröhrchen einkondensiert und später in einem Isotopenverhältnismassenspektrometer (Doppeleinlasssystem) vermessen. Zur Freisetzung des Sauerstoffs aus anderen Silikaten kann die induktive Heizung bis auf Temperaturen von 2200°C erhöht werden. Die Temperatureichung erfolgte mit Hilfe eines von der Physikalisch-Technischen Bundesanstalt geeichten Quotientenpyrometers. Die Ergebnisse der durchgeführten Versuchsreihen zeigen, dass biogene Silikate mit dem neuen Verfahren vollständig und ohne Fraktionierung der Sauerstoffisotope in COMessgas umgesetzt werden. Für biogene Silikate unterschiedlicher Herkunft sowie einen internationalen anorganischen Standard konnten $\delta^{18}$-Werte mit einem maximalen Messfehler von ±0,3%o (maximale Abweichung vom Mittelwert) reproduziert werden. Dies bedeutet im allgemeinen eine Standardabweichung von $\sigma \le$ ±0,15$^{°}/_{°°}$. Die Eichung des neuen Verfahrens mit einem internationalen Standard lieferte für Materialien, deren $\delta^{18}$-Werte mit den bisherigen Verfahren publiziert vorliegen, eine sehr gute Übereinstimmung. Damit steht ein neuartiges Verfahren zur Bestimmung der Sauerstoffisotopenverhältnisse biogener Silikate zur Verfügung. Es erlaubt einen wesentlich einfacheren Zugang zu deren $\delta^{18}$-Werten und eröffnet damit eine Vielzahl neuer Anwendungsmöglichkeiten

Self-instruction interventions with non-self-controlled children: Effects of discovery versus faded rehearsal

48 non-self-controlled (Connors Teachers Rating Scale) 3rd and 4th graders were individually assessed on a prorated version of the WISC-R, the Matching Familiar Figures Test, a math test, and the Peabody Individual Achievement Test and assigned to self-instructional interventions. A directed discovery procedure was compared with task-specific faded rehearsal self-instructions, general problem-solving faded rehearsal self-instructions, and a didactic control group. Although Ss in the specific self-instruction group demonstrated significant gains on the task used during training (math problems), neither these Ss nor those in the didactic control group showed significant generalization of training effects. The broadest range of generalization was shown by Ss in the discovery training group. Results suggest the importance for generalization of teaching children a systematic method for generating and applying a problem-solving strategy. (5 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2006 APA, all rights reserved). © 1983 American Psychological Association

The effects of cognitive level and training procedures on the generalization of self-instructions

Preoperational and concrete operational first- and second-graders performed on a training task (Matching Familiar Figures Test) and a generalization task (a perceptual perspective-taking test) prior to and after serving in one of four self-instruction groups varying in the delivery procedures of the instructions. The instruction groups were a no-training control group, a didactic instruction control group, a fading self-instructions group, and a directed discovery self-instructions group. Children in the didactic instructions group received the same instructional content as children in the fading and directed discovery self-instructions groups, but without an active rehearsal component. Children in the fading group received the traditional five-step overt-to-covert rehearsal of instructions; those in the directed discovery group were led to discover the instructions through a Socratic dialogue exchange with the experimenter. Children in the fading and directed discovery self-instructions groups significantly improved their performance on the training task relative to children in both control groups. Only the concrete operational children in the directed discovery self-instruction group demonstrated significant improvement on the generalization task. © 1984 Plenum Publishing Corporation