Research on conceptual change is still a powerful framework for empirical investigations on students' learning of science. During recent years, an increasing body of research has explored students' concepts prior and subsequent to instruction, leading to an extensive documentation of students' concepts including the difficulties and opportunities…

The relationship between bullying or harassment and LGBT youth is examined in this article. Recent research has exposed a relationship between gender-based and sexualized forms of violence and harassment in school, and it's been theorized that heterosexism-- the belief that heterosexuality is superior to other forms of sexuality -- is the…

Contemporary views of literacy as a wide range of sociocultural practices acknowledge a comprehensive account of adolescents' literate lives, which includes previously unrecognised vernacular literacies. Contrasting descriptors such as official/unofficial and sanctioned/unsanctioned have been used to describe adolescent writing from different…

A study was conducted on high school students, comparing those with some music credits to those with none. No statistically significant difference was found in their mean math grade point averages (GPA) or their mean cumulative GPAs. Students were then separated into two groups based on the number of music credits. Students who had earned at least…

This study examined decision making in an urban US high school classroom in which tenth-grade students analyzed scientific evidence about current issues of sustainability, technology and society. A full-year course, called Science and Sustainability, was used in both groups, and a computer program, called "Convince Me", provided scaffolding for…

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…

To examine the effects of implementing standards in classrooms, a study analyzed interviews with teachers and students, student journals, student observations, and student responses on the standards Form. Subjects were 25 sophomore and junior class students participating in an integrated social studies and English curriculum being taught by the…

The Internal/External (I/E) Frame of Reference Model and the structure of students' self-concept in various academic subjects were examined using 195 Grade 10 Chinese students in Hong Kong. Results of structural equation analyses supported the following: (1) the distinction between Chinese and English as two independent academic subjects (rather…

The usefulness of achievement goal theory in explaining motivation in writing classrooms was studied with 14 students interviewed in fifth, sixth, and tenth grades. In the tenth-grade interview, students were asked about their writing experiences and processes. Interview statements were analyzed by three judges regarding mastery and performance…

This unit is one of a series that represents specific moments in history from which students focus on the meanings of landmark events. The purpose of this unit is to study the development and significance of the universities of the Middle Ages and their ties to the university system of the 20th century. The university structure of higher education…

This unit begins by examining the problem of rural poverty in China in the 1940s. A variety of solutions attempted by the Chinese government between the mid 1940s and the present all aimed at the improvement of peasant living standards in the countryside. Because 80 percent of China's people are peasants, the Chinese Communist party saw the…

This unit is one of a series that represents specific moments in history from which students focus on the meanings of landmark events. By studying a crucial turning-point in history, students become aware that choices had to be made by real human beings, that those decisions were the result of specific factors, and that they set in motion a series…

This paper describes a study of students' abilities to read and understand maps that are essential for understanding how geographical factors played in shaping a country's history. The maps help to: (1) relay location of countries; (2) demonstrate changes in the geographical boundaries caused by historical events; and (3) elevate the students'…