Describes a successful paper exchange program between eighth-grade students and high school seniors. States that the peer evaluations created audience awareness and motivated students' writing efforts. (MM)

The failure to ensure that the nation's classrooms are all staffed with qualified teachers is one of the most important problems in contemporary American education. Over the past decade, many panels, commissions, and studies have focused attention on this problem and, in turn, numerous reforms have been initiated to upgrade the quality and…

This study examined the conceptions of teacher evaluation criteria of 9th- and 12th-grade teachers and administrators. Four representative members of each group (n=12) were interviewed and asked to identify and define indicators of instructional practice based on the context of their allocated roles and experiences. It was hypothesized that…

This curriculum unit is designed to meet the course objective of analyzing how social, economic, and political changes impact work and family dynamics by examining issues from Hungary, a country in transition. The unit can be used in family relations or sociology courses for grades 11-12 in high school or at the undergraduate college level. The…

Aligned with its 1998 standards for first- and second-language learning, Alberta Learning has published lesson plans that aim for a closer relationship between learning and evaluation. Each volume in this series presents a specific task for students that involves planning, carrying out, and evaluating their work. The task for twelfth grade…

Results from Biology Cognitive Preference Inventory taken by grade 12 Jewish (N=406) and Arab (N=297) biology majors revealed similarities between cognitive preferences, achievement, and background variables. Reports that, in spite of substantial cultural and home differences, both groups became oriented toward principles/questioning rather than…

Among 492 rural Ohio high school students surveyed in 1979, 78.3% had used alcohol at least once and 51.3% had used marijuana at least once, contrasting previous research reporting low substance use among rural youth. Socio-demographic and family variables had only limited utility for understanding drug or alcohol abuse. (SB)

This study determined that there is a positive and significant relationship between the quality of supervised occupational experience, as measured by labor income and the scope of the student's program, and the level of achievement in technical knowledge for students in production agriculture. (SK)

So far, results from the massive Third International Mathematics and Science Study indicate that American students have not yet achieved national goal number 5--to be first in the world in math and science achievement by 2000. Although fourth graders' results were surprisingly stronger than eighth graders' scores, American students' overall…

This study of 90 academically gifted 12th graders found positive relationships among actual leadership, past leadership, and leadership skills; between peer and teacher rankings of leadership; and between IQ and leadership skills. Males scored significantly higher than females on past leadership behavior and task orientation leadership style. (CR)

Discusses a project to transform a short story into a play and perform it on stage in order to enhance student understanding of the Japanese cult of obedience and of the political events that led Japan to join the Germans in World War II. The article emphasizes that students become more motivated when they are exposed to subject matter in an…

Examines gender stereotyping, homonegativity, and erroneous beliefs about sexual coercion among adolescents. Responses from 1,045 questionnaires from tenth- and twelfth-grade students show males are more homonegative, gender stereotypic, and supportive of erroneous beliefs about sexual coercion than are female adolescents. Additionally, findings…

Construct validity findings from Campbell-Fiske and LISREL confirmatory factor analyses of a multitrait-multimethod matrix were compared for 252 low-track and 588 high-track eleventh- and twelfth-grade students. The manner in which construct validity varies across groups is also discussed. (SLD)

A study involving 697 male and 765 female ninth and twelfth graders was undertaken to assess learned helplessness in attribution patterns associated with personal failure. Although significant gender differences were identified, little evidence was obtained supporting the learned helplessness model for adolescent female achievement motivation.…

Outlines a procedure used to develop a written diagnostic instrument to identify misconceptions and misunderstandings of the chemistry topic. Reports the characteristic data for the instrument, and student understanding of covalent bonding and structure. (Author/YP)