This study tested Tinto's theoretical model of attrition. After controlling for student sex, academic aptitude, and personality attributes, freshman persisters were found to have a significantly higher frequency of interactions along six dimensions than were voluntary leavers. (Editor/LBH)

This article reviews a suit brought by a high school graduate against a public school district alleging negligence and misrepresentation in academic instruction. The complaint alleged that the plaintiff was unable to read or write above fifth grade level because of the school's failure to educate him. The case was dismissed. (Author/GC)

Peer and adult evaluators were used to examine sex differences in responses of 108 fifth graders to failure feedback. Performance in boys improved with feedback from adult agents but did not change with peer feedback. Performance in girls improved with peer feedback but showed little improvement with adult feedback. (GO)

Black (n=63) and White (n=74) infants, aged 6-13 months, were screened by tympanometry for middle-ear dysfunction. More White infants than Black failed initial screening. Retest of initial failures after a 6-week interval showed an overall reduction in failure rates, but the significant racial effect was still obtained. (Author/JDD)

In a school district of 54,000 students, 106 students were identified as having unilateral hearing loss. A review of their academic performance provided evidence that a unilateral hearing loss can place a child at risk for academic failure, especially when in the severe-to-profound range and/or involving the right ear. (Author/VW)

Eighty-seven children relinquished at birth and adopted before the age of three years into different social classes were assessed in late adolescence. Findings indicated that the school failure of adoptees varies as a function of the social class of the adopive parents: the higher the social class, the lower the number of repeated grades. (RH)

Explanations of minority school failure incorporate native definitions of failure and minority group membership. They are limited by their starting assumptions and they are apologies for our present system. Minority school failure and its explanations by social scientists are two levels of the same process that we need to confront. (Author/VM)

Reviews other articles in this special issue. The two traditional explanations of school failure by minority children do not conflict, yet neither is a complete explanation by itself. A more holistic picture of school success and failure is emerging as educators and social scientists view schools, children, and the community in a more complex and…

Although some of the Boston public schools enjoy good reputations, students at more typical Boston public schools, such as English High School, receive deficient educations. Boston must take actions to overcome the issues of equity that are crippling the achievement of its public high school students. (BJV)

Good grades on a report card do not necessarily mean the material has been comprehended. This article examines the relative worth of grades; extra credit assignments; categorizing students into A, B, or C boxes; and the role of parental pressures for higher grades. Grading systems should be subordinate to true learning motivation. (MLH)

Describes how a Connecticut school learned to work with a ninth-grade student who was terminally ill. The school developed a plan of action through the help of a private counselor paid from special funds approved by the superintendent. (MD)

Examined failure to graduate from high school as a function of grade point average and substance abuse among Phildelphia high school students (N=427). Results of multiple regression analyses indicated that the gradepoint averages are more powerful predictors to eventual failure to graduate than are "Drug Severity Index" scores. (BL)

The Supreme Court in December 1985 voted 9-0 reversing a lower court decision in the case of "Ewing vs. Board of Regents." Ewing, a medical student, appealed the medical school's decision to dismiss him. The Supreme Court found that "the decision was made conscientiously and with careful deliberation." This decision maintains…

Outlines the problems of students with dyslexia and the history of the recognition of the problem. Includes a detailed list of symptoms that may indicate dyslexia is a problem for a student. (MD)

The paper reviews research on the effects of motivation on performance of learning disabled children and presents a treatment approach (attribution retraining) designed to help children link their difficulties to factors under their own control. (CL)