A random sample of 998 lexical words was drawn from a dictionary of the French language. Two groups of subjects rated the words for imagery value (IV) and subjective frequency (SF). Despite substantial individual differences in the ratings, the subjective measures were highly reliable (α = 0.98 for both IV and SF). The relation between the standard deviation and the mean of the ratings can be described by a quadratic function (R = 0.93 for IV and R = 0.75 for SF). The independence of IV and frequency was confirmed. IV was found to be partially dependent on grammatical category (η = 0.50) and slightly dependent on polysemy. Date of entry into the language (DE) was correlated with objective and subjective frequency. The correlation between DE and IV was weak. The words and their characteristics are presented in the Appendix.

Five standard Piagetian tests were administered to 180 adolescents between the ages of 10 and 15 years. The results were compared with those obtained in 1967 and in 1972 for similar participant samples. At equal ages, today's adolescents exhibited a higher level of cognitive development than the adolescents of 20 or 30 years ago. The amount of gain observed varied across tasks, being very large for combinatory thought but mixed for conservation. This acceleration of cognitive development can partially explain the continuous rise in intelligence test performance (Flynn effect). Many cohort comparisons have shown that the mean score on a variety of intelligence tests (e.g., Raven Progressive Matrices, Stanford-Binet Intelligence Scale, Wechsler Intelligence scales) has been rising by approximately 3 IQ points per decade for at least 60 years (see reviews by Flynn, 1984, 1987; Storfer, 1990). This rise has been noted in over 20 countries, including France, where the studies reported in the present article took place (e.g.,

International audienceTo what extent can teacher–student dyadic interactions modify the hierarchy of student performances within a single class? To answer this insufficiently researched question, the authors conducted two parallelstudies involving 33 Grade 5 classes in France (759 students) and 15 Grade 5 classes in Luxembourg (243 students). Interactions were observed during whole-class lessons. Posttest scores were analyzed using multilevel models controlling for five level-1 variables and two level-2 variables. The authors did not find any effect of dyadic interactions on relative student performance in mathematics or in language (French or German), in France or in Luxembourg. This result is interpreted in terms of both the public character of dyadic interactions in whole-class settings and the class management functions of these interactions

This study contributes to the debate about the Flynn effect by proposing a long-term comparison of the numerical knowledge of two cohorts of three-to five-and-a-half year-old children. In 1921, Beckmann (1923 assessed the numerical development of children using four tasks (Production, Distinction, Recognition, and Naming). In 2001, we used these same tasks to test 400 children equally divided into five age groups spaced six months apart. The main results are as follows: (1) the order of difficulty of the four tasks was the same in 2001 and 1921; (2) the 2001 cohort significantly outperformed the 1921 cohort with an advance in numerical development ranging from six months to one year, depending on the task; (3) the superiority of the 2001 children showed up by the age of 3; (4) the magnitude of the rise in scores varied across tasks (the greatest gain was found for the Naming task); and (5) the children in the two cohorts used the same numberevaluation strategies, but the 2001 children used more mature strategies on the Naming task than did same-age 1921 children, particularly subitizing for apprehending small numbers. The rise in scores seems to correspond to a genuine gain in numerical ability, apparently promoted by parental child-raising practices (cross-generational transmission).

La plupart des recherches sur les relations entre l'éducation familiale et les performances scolaires reposent sur le postulat, implicite ou explicite, que ces relations sont indépendantes du milieu socio-culturel. La présente recherche s'intéresse au contraire à l'existence d'éventuelles différences dans ces relations entre les milieux populaire et non populaire. L'hypothèse a été mise à l'épreuve au moyen d'une analyse secondaire de l'enquête 20 ans après (Flieller, Manciaux & Kop, 1995). Un modèle explicatif des performances scolaires a été construit en fonction des variables disponibles dans cette enquête. La conformité des données au modèle théorique a été testée par des analyses en pistes causales effectuées à l'aide des logiciels AMOS et LISREL, d'une part sur l'échantillon global (492 élèves de CE1 et leurs familles) et, d'autre part, sur deux souséchantillons contrastés (246 familles populaires et 246 familles non populaires). Les résultats montrent l'adéquation des données au modèle, qui explique 59 % de la variance des performances scolaires. Mais surtout, la comparaison de l'échantillon populaire et de l'échantillon non populaire à l'aide d'un modèle d'équations structurales, révèle que le réseau de relations entre les variables du modèle présente des différences significatives entre les deux milieux. Il se pourrait que l'influence du milieu socio-culturel sur les performances scolaires passe davantage par l'école pour les enfants du milieu populaire, et davantage par l'éducation familiale pour les enfants de milieu non populaire. Cette interprétation des résultats demande à être confirmée par de nouvelles recherches. Descripteurs (TEE) : éducation par la famille, milieu culturel, milieu social, réussite scolaire. Méthodologie : analyses en pistes causales, modèles d'équations structurales.