A study conducted at one large research university compared electronic mail and telephones as methods for gathering survey data from undergraduate students. Problems associated with electronic-mail use include higher rate of socially undesirable activity among respondents and difficulty in identifying the target population. Implications for campus…

Thirty-eight Latin American mothers with young children tell of their perceptions of school discipline and comportment issues and talk of their children's encounters with "zero tolerance" legislation, and related rules for conduct, implemented by the local school boards. The purpose of this exploratory study is to understand: (a)…

"Voices Literature and Character Education Program" ("Voices LACE"; formerly known as Voices of Love and Freedom and Literacy and Values) is a K-12 program that aims to promote positive character and citizenship values, literacy skills, and social skills. The program contains a curriculum that can be used over any length of…

An impediment to teaching that occurs with many students who have severe disabilities is problem behavior during teaching sessions. This paper describes "preference-based teaching", a recently developed means of reducing problem behavior by making teaching programs enjoyable for students. Preference-based teaching begins with actions taken prior…

This study examined the effects of a video-case presentation on the behavior analytic skills of 45 preservice elementary teachers. Brief video clips of scripted classroom scenes and 20- 30 minute nonscripted videotaped classroom segments were used to assess teachers' behavior analyses prior to and following video instruction. Participant responses…

Using statewide fall enrollment reporting systems, the Maryland Higher Education Commission (MHEC) generates a report each year showing fall-to-fall enrollment patterns of students among Maryland public colleges and universities, resulting in a "transfer matrix" that provides an indicator of transfer volume and destinations. At Prince…

Recent research on middle and senior high school students showed a reversal of previous decline in smoking marijuana and using drugs other than marijuana, a decline in students' personal disapproval of marijuana, and a high prevalence of alcohol use. Student reports of peer approval, availability, and use at school of alcohol, marijuana, and other…

This practicum report describes a 15-day in-room suspension strategy designed to reduce the increasing number of principal-initiated student suspensions resulting from inappropriate conduct. The program's distinguishing features entailed a central figure who predetermined the candidates by means of a pre-suspension interview, parental-student…

A 3-year program was implemented in eight middle schools in the Charleston County School District (South Carolina) in fall 1986 to cope with high rates of student misconduct. The program sought to improve the clarity of school rules and the consistency of rule enforcement, classroom organization and management, frequency of communication to the…

The revised curriculum addresses systematic social skills instruction of mentally retarded students, particularly those with behavioral difficulties. An introductory chapter presents a broad perspective on social competence and the rationale, methods, and content for teaching social skills. Procedures for direct instruction of social skills are…

This volume contains an advice column and five papers on teaching behaviorally disordered youth. The "Grand Rounds" column offers advice on two teaching situations involving extremely disruptive classroom behavior and elective mutism. "The Franklin-Jefferson Program: Demonstration of an Integrated Social Learning Approach to…

Coordinated Vocational Academic Education (CVAE) is offered at three middle schools in the Fort Worth Independent School District, Texas. Courses in automobile mechanics, cosmetology, and home and community services are provided for potential dropout students who meet specific criteria: (1) low achievement; (2) inadequate communication skills;…

The paper describes a study of deviant behavior among students attending a high school in Texas. All students in the study attended a sociology class taught by a very strict teacher whose rules of behavior conflicted with students' peer group behavior expectations. Participant observation of student behavior in class and interviews with individual…

Students, parents, and school authorities are provided information about various laws and regulations pertaining to public school students in this handbook. Fundamental rights and responsibilities of students, including those described in right to education laws and judicial decisions, are discussed. Discipline policies, continuation schools,…

This research is based on two types of analyses. A cultural analysis focuses on the Hawaiian-American family and socialization system and is used to generate and interpret interface analysis findings. The second type of analysis concerns Hawaiian-American behavior in public school classrooms. The goal of the combined analyses is to specify points…