This year's report examines the critical role community plays in education. Integrating learning that takes place inside and outside of school has always been a powerful strategy to support student success, but it gained special relevance this year, as school closures made family and community members integral parts of students' daily learning.…

This article briefly describes the central tenets of a program several low-income middle schools implemented to remove failure as a choice students could make in completing their assignments. Instead of doling out Fs for poor and nonexistent work, teachers devised a variety of options students had to follow to demonstrate eventual mastery of…

Several studies conducted by the European Union (e.g., Eurostat 2004, Implementation of "education & training 2010" work programme) demonstrate that women and girls are consistently significantly underrepresented in technological education, areas, and jobs. This is highlighted in the Joint Interim Report "Education and Training…

Describes a program based on student-teacher discussion groups that resulted in improved student conduct and increased student participation. (IRT)

Describes and evaluates a 9-week after-school, small group, activities-based intervention focused on enhancing youth's abilities to imagine themselves as successful adults and connecting these future imagines to current school involvement. By the end of the school year, intervention youth reported more bonding to school, concern about doing well…

Described a project designed to help students improve upon their reading ability. (RK)

With the energy crisis still very much with us, here is a program that is getting New Jersey's students involved in energy conservation. (Editor)

A peer tutoring program in which tutors were taught behavioral techniques as well as background information through a board game format was successful in promoting integration of a class of autistic adolescents in a middle school. Peer tutors helped to promote positive attitudes among students and teachers. (CL)

Describes the organizational framework and implementation of a literature-based reading program with basal themes for a combination of students in grades five and six. Discusses students' attitudes towards the program, which were very positive. (SR)

Describes a home reading intervention program for students with real reading difficulties, which has turned many students on to reading, by giving students book bags with three books (at different levels) in each bag for home reading. Discusses developing parent support, outlines contents of 30 book bags, and notes challenges and successes of the…

The paper describes three programs--elementary, middle school, and secondary--that have been successful in mainstreaming handicapped students. Initial information is devoted to a discussion of the knowledge, skills, and attitudes needed by teachers and students regarding mainstreaming. The elementary setting described focuses on preparation of the…

Involving middle school students in decision making is an important way to make them feel that they are part of the educational process in their school, that they are part of the "school team." A key way to involve students is through the creation of a Student Advisory Board (SAB), such as the one in place at Schmucker Middle School in…

Notes that teachers see the computer as a tool to help them teach better, while students use computers to play games, chat, and design Web sites. Describes the after-school program Kids Learning In Computer Klubhouses (KLICK!) that operates clubhouses within local middle schools. Discusses what participants have accomplished for themselves, their…

Suitable for those contemplating a program alternative to school suspension, this student handbook describes a special class for middle school students who have been removed from their regular classes because of serious behavior problems. Separate sections describe the nature of the class, reasons for the students' placement in the class, the…

Adolescence is a tumultuous stage in human development. As teenagers enter high school, they face the emotional changes that come with the challenges and pressures of approaching adulthood. This paper presents an overview of comprehensive counseling programs that provide support for students entering high school. The paper opens with a review of…