No description available.

This study was conducted to examine the relationships among teachers' playfulness scores and creativity scores and their styles of interaction with children in a play environment. The Play Interaction Scale, the Multidimensional Stimulus Fluency Measure (MSFM), and the Adult Behavior Inventory were administered to 46 students (future teachers) and 37 teachers of three- and four-year-old children in group settings. The Play Interaction Scale, developed for this study, was based on the five environmental components identified by Rubin, Fein, and Vandenberg (l983) as facilitative of play. The instrument was comprised of 20 play vignettes. Subjects indicated the frequency with which they might respond in a structured, elaborative, or unstructured manner to each vignette. The subjects' creativity was measured by using the MSFM and playfulness was determined by each subject evaluating themselves on the Adult Behavior Inventory. Pearson product-moment correlations were computed for the teacher group and the student group. The expected relationships between creativity, and playfulness, and an elaborative teaching style were found for the student group. However, the elaborative style of interaction and ideational fluency were not significantly related in either group. The predicted negative correlation between creativity and a structured interaction style was found only for teachers. / Master of Science

published_or_final_version / abstract / Education / Master / Master of Education

published_or_final_version / Education / Doctoral / Doctor of Philosophy

No description available.

Abstract not available

This thesis explores cultural specificity and universality in maternal metacognitive guidance of preschoolers’ puzzle-solving. Anglo-Australian and immigrant Indian mothers’ interactions with their 4-year-old children on a puzzle-solving task were videotaped, and the mothers were interviewed about their views on child development, adult guidance and interpretations of puzzle-solving. The nature of the metcognitive guidance was analysed with respect to task initiation, task regulation, metcognitive guidance, strategic assistance, speech styles, and forms of sustaining the child’s mindfulness. The results generally supported the notions of cultural universality and specificity in maternal metcognitive guidance. While similarities were noted in mothers’ collaboration, supportive intent and verbal strategic guidance, differences were revealed in task initiation, linguistic mediation, non-verbal strategic guidance and metacognitive modeling. The findings on metcognitive guidance as a function of gender of the child indicated similarities, suggesting that differential guidance of male and female children’s metacognitive learning may be less pronounced in the preschool years compared with later childhood years. Indian mothers guided and supported their male children’s metcognitive/strategic learning more frequently than did Australian mothers. The findings are discussed in the light of notions of socio-cultural and activity theories. / Doctor of Philosophy (PhD) (Education)

This thesis describes changes in the spatial thinking of Year 2 and Year 4 students who participated in a six-week long spatio-mathematical program. The main investigation, which contained quantitative and qualitative components, was designed to answer questions which were identified in a comprehensive review of pertinent literatures dealing with (a) young children's development of spatial concepts and skills, (b) how students solve problems and learn in different types of classrooms, and (c) the special roles of visual imagery, equipment, and classroom discourse in spatial problem solving. The quantitative investigation into the effects of a two-dimensional spatial program used a matched-group experimental design. Parallel forms of a specially developed spatio-mathematical group test were administered on three occasions—before, immediately after, and six to eight weeks after the spatial program. The test contained items requiring spatial thinking about two-dimensional space and other items requiring transfer to thinking about three-dimensional space. The results of the experimental group were compared with those of a ‘control’ group who were involved in number problem-solving activities. The investigation took into account gender and year at school. In addition, the effects of different classroom organisations on spatial thinking were investigated~one group worked mainly individually and the other group in small cooperative groups. The study found that improvements in scores on the delayed posttest of two-dimensional spatial thinking by students who were engaged in the spatial learning experiences were statistically significantly greater than those of the control group when pretest scores were used as covariates. Gender was the only variable to show an effect on the three-dimensional delayed posttest. The study also attempted to explain how improvements in, spatial thinking occurred. The qualitative component of the study involved students in different contexts. Students were video-taped as they worked, and much observational and interview data were obtained and analysed to develop categories which were described and inter-related in a model of children's responsiveness to spatial problem-solving experiences. The model and the details of children's thinking were related to literatures on visual imagery, selective attention, representation, and concept construction.

Thesis (Ph. D.)--University of Texas at Austin, 2000. / Vita. Includes bibliographical references (leaves 143-150). Available also in a digital version from Dissertation Abstracts.

Thesis (Ph. D.)--University of Texas at Austin, 2000. / Vita. Includes bibliographical references (leaves 143-150). Available also in a digital version from Dissertation Abstracts.