The article will focus on demonstrating the effects of values education on enhancing students' academic diligence through the more positive ambience it creates in the school. Evidence will be drawn from international studies but principally from the Australian Government's Values Education Program and, especially from the "Values Education…

Evidence regarding the effect of early reading instruction on later reading achievement is unusually sparse, given the emphasis often placed on early and intensive reading instruction. Capitalising on international differences in school entry age (SEA), international reading studies may provide such evidence; however, only one quantitative…

A paradigm is described for studying the applicability of two North American instruments (the Students' Evaluation of Educational Quality and Frey's Endeavor) to other countries. Factor analyses of studies in Australia, Spain, and Papua New Guinea support the generality of the instruments' factors to the educational contexts of other countries.…

The six chapters of this theme issue explore data collected by the International Association for the Evaluation of Educational Achievement to investigate crucial issues in reading comprehension. Simultaneous analysis and conjunct analysis are used to examine models as structured combinations of factors in the search for relationships among…

The eight chapters of this theme issue describe studies of learning environments conducted in a variety of conceptual and methodological perspectives by researchers in the United States, Canada, Australia, and the Netherlands. Studies reflect perspectives on conceptualizations of learning environments that range from objectivist to more…

Five papers from the International Seminar on Educational Reform, in Chiba and Kyoto, Japan, 14-17 October 1985, are presented. Trends in educational reforms, goal and structure, and curriculum; and content of secondary education, selection and admission in higher education, and undergraduate education are discussed. Educational reform in Japan…

Eight papers discuss issues comparing public and private education. New studies are included to emphasize the international dimensions of the public school versus private school debate, addressing national policies toward private education; research evidence comparing the effectiveness of public and private schools; and reasons for these…

Ten papers are presented that discuss new developments in school effectiveness research from an international perspective. Three papers discuss factors that determine school effectiveness, and one paper considers the analysis of data. The remainder of the papers report on empirical investigations of school effectiveness. (SLD)

Eight articles on international educational indicators (IEIs) are presented. Topics include functions and limitations of IEIs; science and math indicators and national welfare; higher education indicators; cost and resource indicators; and national perspectives from the United States, Australia, France, and England and Wales. (TJH)

The nine chapters of this theme issue show how, in diverse cultural settings, cooperative learning methods enhance learning and reduce frictions among learners. A second goal of these papers is to indicate how cooperative learning fits or doesn't fit in several societies. (SLD)

The introduction and six chapters of this theme issue highlight phenomena in various ethnic and cultural contexts that illustrate what is really happening in terms of culture, ethnic identity, and the multicultural society. Field studies explore a variety of cultures and educational systems. (SLD)

The 11 chapters of this theme issue explore important issues that relate cognitive style to educational concerns. They link cognitive style with reading comprehension, parental teaching, family qualities, teaching, distance learning, strategic learning, socialization, and athletic performance. (SLD)

The seven chapters of this issue focus on technical qualities of performance assessments and report the findings of systematic empirical inquiries. They add to the body of research that shows that performance assessment, although time consuming and expensive, merits the serious attention of educators. (SLD)

The eight chapters of this theme issue report on studies from 12 countries that focus on the movement toward boundary crossing in education to involve families and communities in education. International studies further the understanding of the effects interventions have in promoting partnerships in education. (SLD)

The eight chapters of this issue focus on the uses, issues, and implications of national and international indicators of educational performance. They explore progress in using indicators to inform policy decisions and describe the progress of selected countries in developing, analyzing, interpreting, and reporting indicators of educational…