Discusses personal and societal effects of automobile-centered landscapes and development. Recommends fundamental reexamination of community development and beliefs regarding desirable human settlement. Suggests greenways and trails as a multifunctional means for revitalizing communities in a more ecological fashion. Presents the Niagara region of…

Identified factors related to the recruitment, training, and retention of family child care (FCC) providers in two rural communities who participated in an FCC training program. Findings point to the relative success of efforts to recruit and train high quality family child care providers and the relative difficulty of retaining these providers…

The paper addresses placement of students with severe disabilities in regular or special classes within home schools, describes Vermont's Homecoming Model Project, and identifies best educational practices. The roles of state-level support and school leadership are stressed. Instructional strategies including data-based methods, partner learning…

Presents strategies to make planning-through-play activities a fun and integral part of the preschool developmental curriculum. Strategies are influenced by a Piagetian approach and an information processing approach that focuses on development of decision making. Specific suggestions are based on a model preschool program in Brookline,…

A Javits grant implemented statewide in Kentucky used innovative curriculum and team teaching to identify and serve middle school gifted students. Project components included interdisciplinary curriculum development, staff development, expanded provision of services, alternative methods for identifying middle school gifted students, and parent…

Based on the results of a study of conditions in child care centers in North Carolina, a model project to upgrade child caregivers' levels of education and compensation was developed. Describes the implementation, outcomes, and evaluation of this project. (BB)

Proposes that a constructivist approach to learning helps overcome the beliefs that (1) some people cannot learn mathematics; and (2) the truth of mathematical propositions is absolute and predetermined. Describes the Ventures Program in which urban high school students exposed to constructivist learning environments have increased their…

This article addresses the educational need for knowledge about language differences and the role that school-based speech-language pathologists can play in mainstream education about language differences. A pilot language awareness program for fourth and fifth graders, which includes humanistic, scientific, and cultural objectives, is described.…

Offers a report on Visions for Children--an early childhood demonstration program with the goal of facilitating intellectual development and academic achievement and enhancing self-concepts of African-American preschoolers. Base-line data from the first two phases of child testing comparing program participants and control group children is…

East Carolina University's Model Clinical Teaching Program uses a combination of year-long field experiences and focused coursework to help prepare successful elementary educators. Planned collaboratively by university and school personnel, the program expects participants to function more successfully in completing traditional student teaching…

The case for an in-depth evaluation of many federal education programs is argued, particularly those providing site-specific information capable of informing program improvement. The reauthorization of the Office of Educational Research and Improvement (OERI) offers an opportunity for the U.S. Department of Education to play a leadership role in…

This paper reviews difficulties in assessing students from linguistic and ethnic minority groups in Ontario (Canada), noting problems with assessment instruments and disproportionate numbers of minority children referred to special education, and describing alternative approaches used in North York which emphasize capitalizing on the first…

Provides insight into system-level changes needed to support inclusive preschool activities. Recognizes successful outcomes of inclusive programs as highly dependent on attitudes of parents and teachers. Describes a six-step process in developing successful inclusive programs in a rural Iowa community. Stresses the need for everyone affected to…

Outlines effective partnership for promoting student success through the creation of residential learning communities called Freshman Interest Groups (FIGs). Answers questions on how collaboration got started, how the need for such was determined, what form it took, problems encountered, and how the program was evaluated. Recommendations for…

The Bureau of Primary Health Care (BPHC) was developed to increase access to comprehensive primary and preventive health care, to improve the health status of medically underserved populations, and to assist communities to identify populations at risk. The needs of women of racial and ethnic minority populations are BPHC's newest initiative;…