A 20-item double-Q sort was used to measure differences in perceptions of grades 8, 10, and 12 students (N=215) according to letter grades and sex. Differences in perception according to success were found for both ideal and actual student behavior, while sex differences were not noted. (Author/JN)

Examined influence of teaching methods on content achievement of concrete and formal concepts by students differing in level of operational thought and influence of concrete/formal teaching on the intellectural development of students (N=86 grade 9-10 biology students). Methodology, results, conclusions, and implications are discussed. (Author/JN)

A study conducted to determine whether color makes a significant difference in learning from 16mm sound motion pictures by subjects accustomed to the widespread use of color in contemporary media found no significant differences for the groups of first graders, sixth graders, ninth and tenth graders, and college students tested. (RAO)

The Survey of Oceanic Attitudes and Knowledge (SOAK) was conducted to determine levels of marine awareness and participation in marine-related activities among 10th graders in Virginia. Major finding was a fairly low level of knowledge, varying with area of interest and respondent's sex, race, and place of residence. (BW)

Students (Grades 9-11) in two Florida metropolitan high schools rated their interest in 28 topics, such as travel, popular music, religion, the opposite sex, war, and politics. Interests were analyzed by sex, grade, and ability track in English (Honors, Average, Basic). Findings, especially those on romantic interests, are discussed. (SJL)

A collaborative pilot program between Oakland Unified School District (California), University of California at Berkeley, and Cooperative Extension uses the Internet to teach urban teens about insects. Students catch, identify, mount, and photograph insects; photographs are then digitized for inclusion in the "City Bugs" Web site, which…

The agreement of diagnostic classifications from two parallel subtests assessing a mathematics skill with three levels of scoring was studied with 431 Arab Israeli 10th graders. Results indicate that, even when parallel form reliability is high, less agreement is apparent when performance is evaluated at the micro level. (SLD)

Investigates the effects of a role-taking, action-learning program on the cognitive and ego development of African American rural high school students. Main effects were assessed in two related domains: concrete to abstract thinking, and self-concept development. Results indicate significant gains in both abstract thinking and ego stage. (RJM)

A study of 1,004 eighth and tenth grade students from 23 small central Texas communities indicates that violence and drug use are prevalent in rural schools. Because risk taking is the common link between drug use and violence, intervention should identify high-risk behaviors and teach safety skills. (nine references) (MLF)

Using a questionnaire of 60 cognitive items, the general knowledge of Canadian students in grades 7, 10, and 12 about the Canadian political process was assessed. Results from the test's administration to 14,051 French and English students indicate that the subjects possess an adequate level of knowledge about Canada. (TJH)

Verified the efficacy of concept and Vee mapping heuristics under cooperative, cooperative-competitive, and individualistic whole-class learning conditions in improving (n=808) eighth graders' achievement in ecology and genetics. Experimental groups achieved significantly better than the control groups; students in cooperative-competitive…

Interviewers asked (n=10) 6th- and (n=10) 10th-grade students to solve nonroutine number problems. Task analysis of perseverers, those students who continued after reaching "dead-ends," found that students who were ultimately successful were more inclined to be flexible in their strategies. (28 references) (MKR)

Identifies the attitudes of secondary school students toward several science-related topical areas (i.e., nuclear energy, environmental issues, energy concepts, science concepts, space exploration, and metrication) for the purpose of enhancing students' attitudinal development toward science-related topical areas. Discusses respondents attitude…

Examines perceptions of economically disadvantaged youth toward their futures and toward their mentors in a mentoring program. Findings for 27 10th graders demonstrate that those who view mentors as role models outperform their peers. Role modeling makes a difference in student achievement motivation. (SLD)

Investigated the interrelationship between meaning construction and testing tasks in English-as-a-Foreign-Language (EFL) tests written in both Hebrew and English taken by 28 Israeli 10th graders. Results found that the testing task functioned as an additional information source that was used by the students to develop mental models of English…