Psychologists at the University of Liverpool have found
that children as young as two years old have an understanding of complex
grammar even before they have learned to speak in full sentences.
Researchers at the University's Child Language Study Centre showed
children, aged two, sentences containing made-up verbs, such as 'the
rabbit is glorping the duck', and asked them to match the sentence with a
cartoon picture. They found that even the youngest two-year-old could
identify the correct image with the correct sentence, more often than
would be expected by chance.
The study suggests that infants know more about language structure
than they can actually articulate, and at a much earlier age than
previously thought. The work also shows that children may use the
structure of sentences to understand new words, which may help explain
the speed at which infants acquire speech.
August 23, 2011
August 14, 2011
Like Humans, Chimps Are Born With Immature Forebrains
In both chimpanzees and humans, portions of the brain that
are critical for complex cognitive functions, including
decision-making, self-awareness and creativity, are immature at birth.
But there are important differences, too. Baby chimpanzees don't show
the same dramatic increase in the volume of prefrontal white matter in
the brain that human infants do.
"One of the most marked evolutionary changes underlying human-specific cognitive traits is a greatly enlarged prefrontal cortex," said Tetsuro Matsuzawa of Kyoto University in Japan. "It is also one of the latest-developing brain regions of the cerebrum."
That built-in developmental delay, now shown to be shared with chimps, may provide an extended period of plasticity, allowing both humans and our closest evolutionary cousins to develop complex social interactions, knowledge and skills that are shaped by life experiences, the researchers say.
"One of the most marked evolutionary changes underlying human-specific cognitive traits is a greatly enlarged prefrontal cortex," said Tetsuro Matsuzawa of Kyoto University in Japan. "It is also one of the latest-developing brain regions of the cerebrum."
That built-in developmental delay, now shown to be shared with chimps, may provide an extended period of plasticity, allowing both humans and our closest evolutionary cousins to develop complex social interactions, knowledge and skills that are shaped by life experiences, the researchers say.
January 21, 2011
Learning Science : Actively Recalling Information from Memory Beats Elaborate Study Methods
Put down those science text books and work at recalling
information from memory. That's the shorthand take away message of new
research from Purdue University that says practicing memory retrieval
boosts science learning far better than elaborate study methods.
"Our view is that learning is not about studying or getting knowledge 'in memory,'" said Purdue psychology professor Jeffrey Karpicke, the lead investigator for the study that appears January 20 in the journal Science. "Learning is about retrieving. So it is important to make retrieval practice an integral part of the learning process."
Educators traditionally rely on learning activities that encourage elaborate study routines and techniques focused on improving the encoding of information into memory. But, when students practice retrieval, they set aside the material they are trying to learn and instead practice calling it to mind.
"Our view is that learning is not about studying or getting knowledge 'in memory,'" said Purdue psychology professor Jeffrey Karpicke, the lead investigator for the study that appears January 20 in the journal Science. "Learning is about retrieving. So it is important to make retrieval practice an integral part of the learning process."
Educators traditionally rely on learning activities that encourage elaborate study routines and techniques focused on improving the encoding of information into memory. But, when students practice retrieval, they set aside the material they are trying to learn and instead practice calling it to mind.
January 11, 2011
Math That Moves: Schools Embrace the iPad
A growing number of schools across the nation are embracing the iPad
as the latest tool to teach Kafka in multimedia, history through
“Jeopardy”-like games and math with step-by-step animation of complex
problems.
As part of a pilot program, Roslyn High School on Long Island handed out 47 iPads on Dec. 20 to the students and teachers in two humanities classes. The school district hopes to provide iPads eventually to all 1,100 of its students.
The iPads cost $750 apiece, and they are to be used in class and at home during the school year to replace textbooks, allow students to correspond with teachers and turn in papers and homework assignments, and preserve a record of student work in digital portfolios.
As part of a pilot program, Roslyn High School on Long Island handed out 47 iPads on Dec. 20 to the students and teachers in two humanities classes. The school district hopes to provide iPads eventually to all 1,100 of its students.
The iPads cost $750 apiece, and they are to be used in class and at home during the school year to replace textbooks, allow students to correspond with teachers and turn in papers and homework assignments, and preserve a record of student work in digital portfolios.
October 15, 2010
How Practice Tests Improve Memory
Although most people assume that tests are a way to
evaluate learning, a wealth of research has shown that testing can
actually improve learning, according to two researchers from Kent State
University. Dr. Katherine Rawson, associate professor in Kent State's
Department of Psychology, and former Kent State graduate student Mary
Pyc publish their research findings in the Oct. 15, 2010, issue of the
journal Science.
"Taking practice tests -- particularly ones that involve attempting to recall something from memory -- can drastically increase the likelihood that you'll be able to remember that information again later," Rawson said. "Given that hundreds of experiments have been conducted to establish the effects of testing on learning, it's surprising that we know very little about why testing improves memory."
"Taking practice tests -- particularly ones that involve attempting to recall something from memory -- can drastically increase the likelihood that you'll be able to remember that information again later," Rawson said. "Given that hundreds of experiments have been conducted to establish the effects of testing on learning, it's surprising that we know very little about why testing improves memory."
October 8, 2010
The Playground Gets Even Tougher
Mean-girl behavior, typically referred to by professionals as relational
or social aggression and by terrified parents as bullying, has existed
for as long as there have been ponytails to pull and notes to pass
(today’s insults are texted instead). But while the calculated round of
cliquishness and exclusion used to set in over fifth-grade sleepover
parties, warfare increasingly permeates the early elementary school
years.
“Girls absolutely exclude one another in kindergarten,” said Michelle Anthony, a psychologist and co-author of the new book “Little Girls Can Be Mean.” When her own daughter was manipulated by a “friend” into racing down a slide booby-trapped with mud, making it appear to a group of boys as though she’d soiled her pants, Dr. Anthony was taken aback. “You don’t expect to run into that level of meanness in a 7-year-old.”
“Girls absolutely exclude one another in kindergarten,” said Michelle Anthony, a psychologist and co-author of the new book “Little Girls Can Be Mean.” When her own daughter was manipulated by a “friend” into racing down a slide booby-trapped with mud, making it appear to a group of boys as though she’d soiled her pants, Dr. Anthony was taken aback. “You don’t expect to run into that level of meanness in a 7-year-old.”
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