The study examines how social and cultural factors mediate the teaching and learning of science in an Australian high school. Grade 10 students, many of them new migrants, often transient and from circumstances of economic hardship, were taught a 5-week unit on chemistry by a teacher with social and cultural histories similar to those of most of…

This evaluation study investigated the effects of a teacher-centered versus student-centered computer-assisted instruction (CAI) on 10th graders' earth science student learning outcomes. This study also explored whether the effects of different forms of computer-assisted instruction (CAI) on student learning outcomes were influenced by student…

We address the telling/not-telling dilemma in mathematics education. Telling is instructionally important, but has been downplayed because of (a) perceived inconsistencies between telling and constructivism, (b) increased awareness of the negative consequences of relying too heavily on telling, and (c) a focus on "non-telling" actions as…

This investigation explores how underrepresented urban students made sense of their first experience with high school science. The study sought to identify how students' assimilation into the science classroom reflected their interpretation of science itself in relation to their academic identities. The primary objectives were to examine students'…

The literature suggests that administering drug surveys to public school students is best done by persons outside of the school system (or at least unfamiliar to the students). This is the approach used by the long-time "Monitoring the Future" project. Because of the increased costs that administration by outside research associates requires (both…

This article summarises a doctoral thesis entitled "Learning algebra in a computer algebra environment, design research on the understanding of the concept of parameter" (Drijvers, 2003). It describes the research questions, the theoretical framework, the methodology and the results of the study. The focus of the study is on the…

Asthma education interventions primarily target young children and adults, and a few target adolescents. Several constructs of the social cognitive theory were used to design a classroom-based high school asthma education curriculum and to determine if the curriculum would improve asthma knowledge and attitudes among 10th grade students, as well…

Service learning aims to promote academic learning and meet community needs. When students interview elderly residents in a nursing home about their experiences during World War II, they gain eyewitness historical information and provide company to persons who otherwise may have few visitors. Such situations are designed to be "win-win." Students…

The purpose of this study is to investigate the effects of the cooperative learning approach based on conceptual change conditions over traditional instruction on 10th grade students' conceptual understanding and achievement of computational problems related to chemical equilibrium concepts. The subjects of this study consisted of 87 tenth grade…

This study aimed to identify the types of arguments promoted in various contexts common to a high school chemistry classroom, including lecture-discussion and laboratory activities. The study was guided by the following research question: What types of argument structures and schemes, if any, are promoted and engaged by students within various…

The interest inventory of the Harrington-O'Shea Career Decision-Making System (T. F. Harrington & A. J. O'Shea, 1980, 1992, 2003) had hit rates of occupational status substantially exceeding chance expectations in the literature's 1st long-term predictive validity study since 1991. No significant gender differences were found for the Grade 10…

At the request of the Hawaii Department of Education, Achieve conducted a study of Hawaii's 2005 grade 10 State Assessment in reading and mathematics. The study compared the content, rigor and passing (meets proficiency) scores on Hawaii's assessment with those of the six states that participated in Achieve's earlier study, "Do Graduation…

Risk and protective factor indices were developed to examine vulnerability to drug use among Latino high school students. Survey data was collected from 516 Latino 9th and 10th grade youth in the Los Angeles (California) area. Frequency and quantity of use data were collected for a range of drugs including inhalants, cocaine, and other hard drugs.…

The effects of a "school within a school" on the academic achievement of high school sophomores were studied in a Chicago (Illinois) inner-city public school, the Tilden Community Academy and its Junior Reserve Officers Training Corps (JROTC) program (school within the school). Of the 228 tenth graders, 49 were enrolled in the JROTC…

The more that educators understand about student motivation, the better that teachers can tailor their pedagogy to prepare students for the job market. The purpose of this study was to acquire a more complete understanding of what drives secondary students and how student motivation and development relate to effective teaching. It is hoped that an…