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'High-quality talk' is a fundamental principle of many approaches to teaching grammar. However, relatively few studies have attempted to characterize this talk with attention to the ways in which classroom dialogue might engender metalinguistic thinking. This paper explores how the concepts of procedural and declarative metalinguistic knowledge may be applied to classroom discourse in order to identify the problems and potentials of grammatical 'Metatalk'. The data is drawn from observations of functionally-oriented grammar lessons in 17 classrooms across England. This opportunity sample was drawn from the intervention group of a randomized control trial, all of whom were working within a pedagogical model which embeds attention to grammar as a resource for meaning-making within the teaching of writing. Given the impact of effective teacher-student dialogue on student learning, studies such as this are valuable for illuminating how classroom talk operates within the teaching of grammar for writing. The findings particularly reveal the role of teacher-guided talk during collaborative writing activities in facilitating bi-directional transfer between declarative and procedural metalinguistic knowledge.

The literature has yet to reach a consensus as to the stability of severe psychiatric diagnoses in youth. Previous studies among youngsters tracked over set follow-up periods have reported diagnostic stability estimates that are similar to or slightly lower than those of adults. Less is known, however, about the stability of youth psychiatric diagnoses across multiple episodes of psychopathology, such as recurrent inpatient hospitalizations. The present study investigated diagnostic stability among inpatient youth with multiple hospitalizations through longitudinal and cross-sequential designs. Results indicate that diagnostic stability, as measured by positive concordance rates and the kappa coefficient, is highest for mood disorders, especially bipolar disorder. Externalizing disorders and schizophrenia displayed moderate to low stability, with oppositional-defiant disorder displaying the lowest stability. Substance use disorders were found to have moderate stability. Overall, across-episode diagnostic stability among hospitalized youngsters appears to be lower than that of adults. This finding appears to be due to lower stability among certain externalizing disorders and substance use disorders, whereas mood disorders display stability rates resembling those of adults. Potential explanations for and implications of these findings are discussed.

This study explored classroom provisions to enhance creative thinking in one Australian elementary school. The study and a literature review suggest that creative thinking is not being promoted in most schools. Although teachers' attitudes are slowly developing in favor of creative thinking, creatively talented children are still at risk of not receiving appropriate stimulation and training. (Contains references.) (DB)

Teachers nominated 172 emotionally disturbed children as potentially highly creative in either verbal or performance creativity. Found 83 of the students to be highly creative as assessed by Torrance Test of Creative Thinking. Findings suggest that there is more than one type of highly creative emotionally disturbed child, which necessitates different approaches to teaching and behavior management. (Author/NB)

A survey of 71 graduates of the psychology residency program at The University of Texas Houston Medical School and the Texas Research Institute of Mental Science indicated that two-thirds of the respondents were involved in private practice, conducting primarily individual therapy, with assessment also playing a major role in their practice. Managed care had the effect of placing limits on the numbers of sessions available to patients, reducing income, and increasing paperwork associated with practice. Implications for training during residency are that individual therapy, using focused short-term approaches, and assessment should continue to be the primary clinical experiences for trainees, and that there should also be training in the business aspect of practice, including marketing.

CC chemokine receptor 2 (CCR2) is a prominent receptor for the monocyte chemoattractant protein (MCP) group of CC chemokines. Mice generated by gene targeting to lack CCR2 exhibit normal leukocyte rolling but have a pronounced defect in MCP-1-induced leukocyte firm adhesion to microvascular endothelium and reduced leukocyte extravasation. Constitutive macrophage trafficking into the peritoneal cavity was not significantly different between CCR2-deficient and wild-type mice. However, after intraperitoneal thioglycollate injection, the number of peritoneal macrophages in CCR2-deficient mice did not rise above basal levels, whereas in wild-type mice the number of macrophages at 36 h was [approximately equal to]3.5 times the basal level. The CCR2-deficient mice showed enhanced early accumulation and delayed clearance of neutrophils and eosinophils. However, by 5 days neutrophils and eosinophils in both CCR2-deficient and wildtype mice had returned to near basal levels, indicating that resolution of this inflammatory response can occur in the absence of macrophage influx and CCR2-mediated activation of the resident peritoneal macrophages. After intravenous injection with yeast [Beta]-glucan, wild-type mice formed numerous large, well-defined granulomas throughout the liver parenchyma, whereas CCR2-deficient mice had much fewer and smaller granulomas. These results demonstrate that CCR2 is a major regulator of induced macrophage trafficking in vivo.

The effects of two types of oral-language training programs on development of phonological awareness skills and word learning ability was examined. One of the training programs provided explicit instruction on both analytic (segmenting) and synthetic (blending) phonological tasks; the other program trained synthetic skills only. Effects of these programs were contrasted with a language-experience control group that received no phonologically oriented training. Forty-eight kindergarten children participated in small-group training sessions 3 times per week for 7-8 weeks. Children who received both analytic and synthetic training improved significantly on both types of skills, whereas children receiving the synthetic skills training alone improved only on blending skills. Only children receiving training on both types of tasks showed a positive training effect for the word learning, or reading analog, task.

Severely physically handicapped children (N=84) in deinstitutionalized and institutionalized programs were assessed on measures of locus of control and incentive orientation. Ss in institutionalized programs were found to be significantly more internally controlled and more intrinsically motivated than their counterparts in mainstreamed settings. (Author/CL)

Examined the psychological condition of 126 teachers of emotionally disturbed children. Results indicated teachers who were not humanistic in their teaching approach and who were burned out were significantly more dissatisfied and frustrated and believed their needs were either being ignored or subverted. Burned-out teachers reported significantly greater tension, anxiety, anger, hostility, and feelings of depression and dejection. (BL)

Children in grades 3-6 labeled learning disabled, behaviorally disordered, and learning disabled with significant behavioral disorders (total N=78) were assessed for locus of control. Children labeled learning disabled were found to be significantly more internally controlled than children labeled behaviorally disordered or than children labeled learning disabled with behavioral disorders. (Author/DB)