"Collaborative learning" has recently provoked a great deal of controversy in Cognitive Science and Pedagogy, but only a few attempts have so far been made at collaborative learning in the cognitive approach to science education. The purpose of this paper is to analyze the process of student-student interaction using a concept map as a representational resource from the perspective of "Situated Learning." The results were as follows : (1) Students understood the meaning of and felt positive about collaborative learning. (2) Students found new ideas and accepted their partner's ideas in collaborative learning. (3) Students recognized the "difference" of collaborative learning. (4) The pairs of "experts" and "novices" learned through dialogue.These results leads to helpful suggestions for science education in the future.

In the first exeperiment,children were divided into a sketch group and a memo group. Each of them observed a Cole flower. The memo group mede memos while obser the flower, while. The sketch group made sketches. The sketches and memos were collected. Afterwords, blank sheets were distributed to children They were told to reproduce the form of the flower by a memo as accurately as possible. The observation score was calculated from their sketches and memos. As a result, the memo group got higher scores in the reproduction than the sketch group. Correlations of the scores in observation with the score in reproduction were calculated. The memo group got the higher correlations. In the second experiment, children were divided into a memo group and a memo/sketch group. Each of them observed a mapleleaf. The memo gruop made memos while obser the leaf, while the memo/sketch group The memo made memos and sketches. The sketches and memos were collected. Afterwards, blank sheets were distributed to the childlan. They were told to reproduce the form of the flower by a memo and a sketch as accurately as possible. The observation score was calculated from their memos and sketches. As a result,the scores of the memo group were nearly the same as the scores of the memo/sketch group. But the memo group got higher score in the memo reproductions than the sketch group.

The purpose of this study is the following two points. First, we develop a method for clarifying the actual state of a student's cognitive strategy. Secondly, we clarify the reality of the student's cognitive strategy. The following results were obtained. In the first place, a close look at the selection of the items between will reveal that there are differences having something behind one's ideas before and after the learning. In the second place, many students mistake the "sound" for the "object" when they try to recognize these natural phenomena. In the third place, many students do not recognize adequately and correctly the change in their learning. Furthermore, a lot of students notice something about the meaning of learning, even if their ideas do not change correctly after the learning. As a result, we proposed the following three points to nurture the student's cognitive strategy. To begin with, it is necessary to have plenty of time for learning in order for the students to look back on the process of their own learning. Then, it is necessary to compare one's own thinking and its process with those of others. Finally, it is necessary to treat each student's thinking and its process with great care.

The purpose of this paper was to make clear the influence of the U.S. donated elementary science textbooks in the Textbook and Curriculum Library (T.C.L.) on Japanese education. Through the study of documentary records and interviews with the persons concerned, the results were as follows : 1 . The American textbooks in the T.C.L. were referred to in compiling "Science for Elementary School Students" for the fourth, fifth, and sixth grades. 2 . The elementary science textbooks in the T.C.L. selected by the U.S. War Department Textbook Committee and sent to Japan were the newest texts in the United States. 3 . "Science for Elementary School Students" was compiled under the influence of the American textbooks, especially "The Basic Science Education Series" to a large degree. 4 . The object of the T.C.L., which centered on contributing to the compilation of Japanese science textbooks locally, was fulfiled. 5 . The use of the T.C.L. was promoted according to a system in which drafts of elementary science textbooks were prepared by the local District Science Committee and then the elementary science textbooks were compiled by the Advisory Science Committee thereafter.

Drawings have been used as a method for probing children's ideas about events. It has been suggested that using drawings in a class is effective, but their significance for children has not been examined concretely. In this study we conducted classes on "The function of electricity and light" in an elementary school. We assessed the usefulness of drawings. In this case, the results were as follows : (1) Many children like to draw. (2) Activities with drawings were more effective than verbal explanations by the teacher. (3) Drawings used in predicting a situation were more effective for children than those used in interpreting a situation.