The foreign language faculty at College of Saint Scholastica Minnesota) developed and implemented 10-day Spanish and French immersion programs based on Peace Corps methodology as a means of affording students time for intensive study of those languages, improving students' fluency, and instituting a change in teaching methodology. The first…

Second-year results of the Block Plan, initiated in the seventh grade of a large junior high school in Alberta, Canada in 1980, indicate that the program is successful. The Block Plan uses the concept of a pair of teachers being assigned to two classes for the homeroom period plus four academic core courses--language arts/social science and…

Profiles of 14 educational programs and products are presented which focus on competency- and goal-based education. Each report contains a description of the background, goals, and methods of the program or product, as well as the address of a contact person. The programs described are: (1) Project Write, designed to improve composition skills of…

A study assessing the instructional effects of increasing core French instruction in grade 8 from 20 to 40 minutes daily looks at students' acquisition of language skills, attitudes, and cultural awareness. A random sample of two groups of 150 students was chosen and the groups were administered different tests. Subjects were chosen randomly from…

Research studies from different areas of the country are cited to support a favorable view of the effects of FLES instruction and to identify the most effective FLES instructional arrangements. Effects of FLES instruction on language achievement in elementary and high school and on general achievement in elementary school are noted. A study on…

Describes an observational study conducted to determine critical areas of school effectiveness. Notes that quality middle-level education has the components of educational empowerment and involvement and teacher techniques that focus on developmentally appropriate strategies, block scheduling rather than one-period scheduling, and ability grouping…

A preliminary, descriptive overview of the students and their progress in the first year of a new French immersion program looks at the 1982-83 grade 8 cohort of 40 students, most of whom had come from the standard core French program in grades 6 and 7, and compares their progress in other subjects with two grade 8 classes in another school. Data…

The effectiveness of the Block Plan, developed and implemented by the seventh grade students at Edith Rogers Junior High School in Edmonton, Alberta (Canada) was investigated. The Block Plan uses the concept of a pair of teachers assigned to two classes of students for the homeroom period plus a pair of teachers assigned for each of four academic…

The Small House program at Slauson Junior High School, Ann Arbor, Michigan, during the 1971-72 school year was evaluated. Two purposes of the evaluation study were to assess developments in the Small House program and to develop a prototype or model for evaluating innovative educational programs that delineates the evaluation, design, and analytic…

What are the effects of block scheduling? Results of transitioning from traditional to block scheduling are mixed. Some studies indicate no change in achievement results, nor change in teachers' opinions about instructional strategies. Other studies show that block scheduling doesn't work well for Advanced Placement or Music courses, that "hard to…

The authors describe a zone defense schedule (ZDS), a system for organizing the staff and environment of a preschool classroom. Specifically, it is used to organize the roles of adults in the classroom so that transitions between activities are easier for children and provides greater opportunity for teaching (both during the transition and…

The Significant Bilingual Instructional Features (SBIF) study identified, described, and verified features of bilingual instruction of a wide variety of limited English proficient (LEP) students. It collected data on instructional organization, time allocation, classroom language use, active teaching behaviors, academic learning time, student…

Educational programs in learning centers away from a central campus can tap a largely forgotten "market" of community college students, especially in times of higher energy costs when many suburban or rural adults may not wish to drive to a central campus. However, in order for these programs to be effective, sound management is essential. An…

Evaluation of the White Bear Lake Senior High School New Design Program made by the Educational Research and Development Council of the Twin Cities Metropolitan Area, Inc. is presented. Sets of objectives were formulated for students, graduates, staff and community during a three-day workshop. Measurements devices used were questionnaires for…

This document identifies the costs of teen pregnancy in terms of high dropout rates, long-term educational decrements, the increased risks of the children of teen parents, loss of human capital, and increased welfare costs. Prevention and intervention and the features of operationally successful program models are included under the topic of…