United States schools are not providing students with the mathematical background necessary to compete on an international level and become successful adults. Recently, educators and researchers have focused on learning what factors might attribute to this lack of mathematical knowledge. However, few studies have searched for answers from the…

School counselors should reform their roles. Developmental guidance and counseling programs focus on academic, career, and personal areas and incorporate the following goals: understanding the school environment, understanding self and others, decision making and problem solving, interpersonal communication and school success skills, career…

Secondary school counselors, whose original purpose was to help high school students choose appropriate courses and apply to college, are now a more integral part of students' daily lives. By designing and implementing a preventive and developmental counseling program, counselors can positively affect school direction and students' personal,…

As shown by a survey of three middle-level assistant principals, student discipline consumes an inordinate amount of attention. Also, participants did not see their position as an avenue to help youngsters. Since school administration duties should be shared, assistant principals must shed their "noneducational,""daily operations…

The proposed "classroom" approach identifies the school counselor as a primary participant in students' overall development. This model enhances students' mental and emotional well-being by providing a preventive/developmental context, normalizing developmental struggles, increasing awareness of self and others, encouraging appreciation of…

Early sexual activity is seen in youngsters who exhibit school behavior problems. As one middle-school prevention program shows, adolescent parenthood can be prevented through careful, thoughtful, and developmentally appropriate strategies. The program's focus-group approach emphasized equal male-female responsibility and discussion of life goals…

Notes as students become more diverse, establishing a comfortable, challenging classroom in which every student feels valued becomes more difficult. Maintains teachers may be able to minimize problems and maximize learning by shifting to a more parental perspective and making the classroom an "academic home." As students share in…

For a beginning administrator, understanding school culture, maintaining a school's cultural elements, and gaining acceptance for building or changing a school's culture are major challenges. Preparation programs blending understanding about school culture with acknowledgment of four developmental stages in an administrator's professional…

The middle-level counselor's role is to work with teachers and administrators to build a program based on young adolescents' unique characteristics, the interrelationship of school and home life, and the importance of peer and adult relationships. The counselor participates as an interdisciplinary team member, provides teachers with relevant…

To meet children's needs in today's complex and troubled society, school counselors must clearly and aggressively define their roles and functions. A 1992 Oregon study replicated in Louisiana revealed agreement about three major counselor roles: developmental counseling, crisis intervention counseling, and career counseling. Administrators should…

The report "Workplace Basics: the Skills Employers Want" was based on interviews with hundreds of employers, who identified seven groups of desirable skills: reading, writing, and computation; listening and speaking; learning to learn, problem-solving and creative thinking; personal management; teamwork; and leadership and organizational…

Service learning is a versatile, developmentally appropriate strategy that integrates public service into student instruction and connects the classroom with the surrounding community and the world. Service learning promotes personal, social, and emotional growth; develops a sense of civic responsibility; provides leadership opportunities; and…