To be successful, the instructional design must take the learning environment into consideration. But how is this environment to be analyzed? This book provides readers with the methodology to conduct an environmental analysis and use its findings to promote successful instruction. The book is divided into four parts. Part 1 includes two chapters…

The state of second language acquisition research, particularly that which is classroom-oriented, is examined in a review of 50 empirical investigations undertaken over the last 25 years. The studies were analyzed according to the following dimensions: the environment in which the data were collected (classroom, naturalistic, simulated classroom,…

This research summarizes the results of a study involving 835 inmates in six major correctional facilities within several states and 758 inner-city students from 10 high schools near the facilities, concerning the number and types of firearms juveniles possess as well as where, how, and why juveniles acquire and carry firearms. Research focused on…

To meet accountability challenges from a customer-satisfaction perspective, an urban institution of higher education has developed an integrated approach to studying the freshman year experience in order to develop comprehensive outcomes measures for assessing freshman success. Multiple sources of data (freshman satisfaction survey data,…

This study sought to determine if private colleges and universities are accurately reporting budgetary data to the Integrated Postsecondary Educational Data System (IPEDS) of the U.S. Department of Education following guidelines issued by the American Institute of Certified Public Accountants (AICPA) and the National Association of College and…

This report recommends that reauthorization of Subtitle VII-B of the Stewart B. McKinney Homeless Assistance Act (1987) should include funding for direct services and asks the Federal Government to assume a leadership role in not only counting homeless children but also in ensuring that they receive a free and appropriate public education.…

Each year, from 1982 to 1986, the Library Research Center at the University of Illinois conducted a study called the Index of Quality of Public Library Service. For this study, unobtrusive tests of reference service and book availability were performed annually in Illinois Public Libraries. When the results from rural libraries were compared with…

This report provides data received from postsecondary education/professional accrediting bodies regarding the extent to which outcomes and institutional or program effectiveness are reflected in each of the following: (1) accreditation standards; (2) accreditation guidelines; (3) policy statements; (4) accreditation practices (self-study, visiting…

In February, 1992, the Child Development Programs Advisory Committee and the California State Association of Counties (CSAC) hosted a conference that explored child care planning on a city, county, and state level. Introductory activities included a synopsis of the work of the CSAC, and a talk by California first lady Gayle Wilson, who called for…

The collection of dropout statistics is discussed from the perspective of the National Education Longitudinal Study of 1988 (NELS:88). The NELS:88 follows a cohort of 1988 eighth graders over time and is designed to provide trend data about transitions experienced as students progress through the educational system. Dropout statistics are provided…

Arguing that professional library literature often ignores the problem of evaluating the effectiveness of a library tour or the aids (e.g., audiotape, slides, video, computer programs, handbooks) which may supplement the tour, this article provides a proposed evaluation model for measuring a tour's success. The evaluation of library tours is…

Focusing primarily on the role of educational leaders, this document analyzes what makes a difference in school learning. After a brief review of literature on the relationship between administrative leadership and student learning, aspects of the Far West Laboratory Instructional Leadership Model (the FWL model) used in the current analyses are…

This volume presents solutions, recommendations, and strategies in eleven interrelated areas considered at the Surgeon General's Workshop on Drunk Driving held in Washington, D.C. in December of 1988. Lists of the members of the Workshop Planning Committee and members of the federal advisory group on follow-up activities for the workshop are…

This monograph is intended to guide teachers of water resources, technicians and university students in establishing physical facilities which can introduce learners to methods, techniques, and instruments used in water resources management and assessment. It is not intended to serve as an exhaustive list of equipment and their descriptions or as…

Given the complexity of classroom reading observations, maintenance of measurement reliability is a concern to researchers. Sources of variation contributing to the unreliability of many measurements may be either (1) lasting and specific, (2) lasting and general, (3) temporary and specific, or (4) temporary and general. Lasting-specific sources…