Students (n ϭ 797) from 36 4th-grade classrooms were taught the control of variables strategy for designing experiments. In the instruct condition, classes were taught in an interactive lecture format. In the manipulate condition, students worked in groups to design and run experiments to determine the effects of four variables. In the both condition, classes received the interactive lecture and also designed and ran experiments. We assessed students' understanding using a written test of their ability to distinguish valid from invalid experimental comparisons. Performance on this test improved from the pretest to the immediate posttest in all conditions, and gains were maintained at a 5-month delay. For students from both higher and lower achieving schools, gains ordered as follows: both Ͼ instruct Ͼ manipulate. However, students from higher achieving schools showed greater gains in all conditions. Item analyses showed that the interactive lecture improved students' understanding of the need to control irrelevant variables, and experimentation improved students' understanding of the need to vary the focal variable.

Students (n = 1,069) from 60 4th-grade classrooms were taught the control of variables strategy (CVS) for designing experiments. Half of the classrooms were in schools that performed well on a statemandated test of science achievement, and half were in schools that performed relatively poorly. Three teaching interventions were compared: an intervention that used examples of invalid designs to explain the logic of CVS (Invalid condition); an intervention that used examples of valid designs to explain CVS (Valid condition): and a control condition, in which no explicit instmction was provided until after an immediate posttest. The relative effectiveness of the teaching interventions depended jointly on school achievement level and the type of leaming assessment. For students from lower achieving schools, the Valid and Invalid condition were similarly effective and both were superior to the Control condition on an immediate posttest of near transfer. However, only the Invalid condition resulted in better performance than the Control condition on immediate and delayed posttests of intermediate and far transfer. For students from higher achieving schools, the Valid and Invalid conditions were equally effective on the near and intermediate transfer tests. However, on the far transfer test, the Invalid condition was superior to the Valid condition which, in turn, was superior to the Control condition. The pattem of superiority of the Invalid over the Valid condition is attributed to the emphasis in the Invalid condition on the rationale for controlling irrelevant variables.

School psychologists should be aware of developmental risk factors for children who have been abused or neglected. The present study used the Wechsler Intelligence Scale for Children, Fourth Edition to examine the cognitive abilities of 120 children in foster care subsequent to maltreatment. Results indicated that, compared to a demographically matched comparison group, the children who experienced maltreatment had lower full-scale intelligence quotients and profile analysis uncovered potential strengths and weaknesses. The perceptual reasoning and working memory abilities of the maltreated group were commensurate with those of the comparison group. Conversely, the overall verbal comprehension and processing speed abilities of the maltreated children were significantly lower than the control group. At the subtest level, the children who experienced maltreatment had lower Vocabulary, Comprehension, and Coding scores. To address the paucity of information in the literature about children who have been neglected, follow-up analyses were conducted for children who were neglected, but not abused. Results indicated a similar, but not identical, pattern of findings. Implications and recommendations for school psychologists are discussed. C 2014

The current study examines trauma narratives from 28 survivors of interpersonal violence. A mixed-method approach assessed coherence and explored narrative characteristics among differentially exposed groups. The quantitative analysis revealed: (1) exposure to repetitive interpersonal violence was described with greater perception of severity and emotional tone than single interpersonal violence episodes, and (2) exposure to interpersonal violence in childhood was described with greater emotional tone than exposure to interpersonal violence in adulthood. The qualitative analysis revealed: (1) traumatic events were connected to proceeding adverse experiences, (2) attempted avoidance of memories of the violence, (3) an altered view of the self, and (4) lacked recognition that the violence was abnormal. The study supports the "dose-response relationship" of trauma exposure, and the life-altering, transformative nature of trauma exposure.

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