The central concept of this review underscores the fact that the development of a feeling of belonging at school occurs because of different interactions between developing students and the school's ecological environment over time. This review argues that Bronfenbrenner's Bio-ecological Systems Theory can best explain the development of school…

Explores the issues that arise when development of personal attributes is identified as one of the goals of a new undergraduate medical program. Concludes that such personal learning should be assessed, but that the purpose should not be to certify competence but to harness the powerful effects of assessment onto an important aspect of practice…

Examines encouragement and ethnicity in 112 African American college students attending two historically Black colleges and universities (HBCUs) and a predominantly White institution (PWI). Results indicate a positive relationship between Ethnic Pride and View of Others for the HBCU group and positive relationships between Ethnic Pride and the…

A literature review summarizes research on the demography, development, and persistence of nontraditional adult students in higher education. Educational strategies are recommended: developing nontraditional communities on campus, providing appropriate counseling and orientation, training staff to be aware of student backgrounds and needs, and…

Psychometric problems and potential design flaws must be considered as institutions attempt to document the influence of the college experience on student development. Problems related to conceptual issues, psychometric questions, or research designs are analyzed. (MLW)

Argues that models of college student development have demonstrated an insensitivity to the differences that exist among various students. Presents a model based on the Dakota Inventory of Student Orientations, which may be useful for program development that fosters reflection, self-discovery, perspective-taking, and collaboration among students…

Study is a validation of the two proposed subscales for the Salubrious Lifestyle (SL) Scale of the Student Developmental Task and Lifestyle Assessment (SDTLA). The two subscales, Drug/Alcohol and Exercise/Nutrition, were determined from factor analysis of the original SL scale of the SDTLA. Findings support validation of both subscales. (Contains…

Examines the relationships between student characteristics, student use of computers and other information technologies (C&IT), the amount of effort devoted to college activities, and self-reported gains in a range of college outcomes. Results reveal that students appear to benefit more from C&IT when used frequently and in a variety of…

Investigates the nature of social beliefs and commitments during the college years in relation to developmental orientations as measured by the Dakota Inventory of Student Orientations. Results support Creative-Reflective scale scores as predictive of commitment to the more humanitarian issues such as race and women's rights, whereas…

This paper argues that neither of two views of post-baccalaureate training of professionals is adequate for understanding socialization into the learned professions and offers an alternative model. Both the idea of professional education as the transmission of professional knowledge and skills and the idea of professional education as a sorting or…

This paper examines characteristics of resilience and compares characteristics of giftedness and resilience. It discusses cognitive appraisal as a mechanism used by gifted children as they develop resilience. Applications for working with gifted students and areas for future research are noted. (JDD)

This report investigates the relationship between child care quality and children's transition into kindergarten. It focuses on four issues: (1) the definition and measurement of child care quality in group settings; (2) the relationship between child care quality and child development; (3) the relationship between child care quality and…

This first part of a two-part paper discusses how the conception of giftedness has been changing, the influences of home and school, characteristics of very able learners, and the understanding and support needed from parents and teachers. (DB)

The current status of research on experiential learning (primarily at the postsecondary level) is discussed, based in part on responses from a seven-member panel. Methodological considerations and proposed research agendas are also covered. Current research on experiential learning, which focuses on program design and impacts on the learner, falls…

The basic design of the National Longitudinal Study of the High School Class of 1972 (NLS) called for repeated surveys of a statistical sample of the Class of 1972. Each sample member was followed so as to build a historical database that would allow the investigation of the complex developmental paths that occur in the transition years from high…