Creativity training: An assessment of a novel approach

The right hand hemisphere of the brain is purported to be the seat of the perceptual, intuitive, synthetic, visual and non-rational activities. In it is believed to reside the creative ability. Evidence is presented which suggests that, by exercising specifically the right hand hemisphere using a series of carefully structured tasks, some aspects of creative behaviour can be enhanced. It follows that users of creativity training courses should not expect every aspect of creative behaviour to be enhanced by any given course.     

EVENT-RELATED BRAIN POTENTIALS, EYE MOVEMENTS, AND READING

Abstract— This article compares studies that use event-related brain potential (ERP) and eye movement data to examine changes in reading behavior when a text is read twice. Although the types of information provided by these methodologies are different, both indicate that rereading a text facilitates many aspects of processing. ERPs provide a method for measuring comprehension and memory processes separately, while eye movements provide a continuous record of performance and allow changes in reading behavior to be localized to specific words. The results from these studies are compatible. However, converging evidence is not always found when different paradigms are contrasted, and diverging results can provide important information. To facilitate comparison across experiments, we suggest using a common set of materials for both paradigms. We conclude that comparing the results of research based on more than one paradigm provides a more complete understanding of the processes involved in reading.     

'After my breakdown': Implications for counsellors of accounts of change in self-understanding during recovery

In this exploratory study, 22 individuals who understood themselves to have had a nervous breakdown were interviewed and their experiences were compared with those of another group of 10 individuals who survived very stressful life events without ‘breaking down’. It was concluded that a nervous breakdown can be understood as an individual's experience of the collapse of his or her framework of self-understanding. Also that an important aspect of recovery from a breakdown involves the search for, and appropriation of, a new and more viable understanding of self. Counselling strategies aimed at promoting this process are discussed.     

Evaluating student achievement with a relational database

Commercial database programs such as dBase and Paradox, although developed originally for business applications, are versatile and powerful tools that can be used for an academic purpose such as evaluating student performance. They can be used to write and store test questions, assemble and print classroom or on-line laboratory tests, and calculate grades, test statistics, and so forth. Databases are flexible, unlike textbook “ancillary” test bank programs that are inextricably bound to the strictly linear format and brief shelf life of specific textbook editions. A prototypical relational database program is described, with which an instructor can produce tests based on generic terms adapted from Boneau’s (1990) study of psychological literacy, as well as on behavioral learning objectives adapted from Bloom’s (1956) taxonomy of educational objectives. As a relational database, the program integrates terms, objectives, questions, tests, and test scores, and avoids unnecessary data duplication and waste of computer storage space.