An after-school fine arts program was developed at J. W. Sexton High School (Lansing, Michigan), based on the premise that participation in the fine arts, particularly by African Americans, would lead to higher grade point averages and a greater commitment to school life. A review of relevant literature revealed a number of reasons for low…

This discussion paper examines the current state of practice of adult literacy education in Washington State as well as initiatives to improve program effectiveness in a number of areas, including staff quality and curriculum. The paper discusses staff and curriculum development being undertaken by the ABLE (Adult Basic and Literacy Educator's)…

Job burnout is a condition observed in recent years among a wide variety of helping professions. In this study, burnout was described as emotional exhaustion, job dissatisfaction, and the desire to leave the job and/or profession. To examine burnout in the profession of school psychology, a random sample of members (N=139) of the Illinois School…

Eighty-five fourth- and eighth-grade learning disabled students whose individualized education plans specified untimed achievement testing were tested with the Reading Comprehension subtest of the Iowa Tests of Basic Skills, either according to the publisher's 40-minute time limit or with an extended time limit of 2 hours, 30 minutes. Results were…

Conversations with and among students in their residential environment illuminate the role of peer subcultures in shaping what students learn and how they define learning. An excerpt from a year-long ethnographic case study examines the ways in which residents of an undergraduate women's residential unit at a state comprehensive university talk…

This study examined how sustained faculty participation produced substantial increases in external funding for a College of Education while the organizational climate of the college collapsed and faculty morale plummeted. The paper first offers a review of the literature on work motivation that provides a rationale for strategies for increasing…

A study examined three examples of classroom reading conferences. Subjects (students and teachers) were in grades 4, 7, and 12. Conversations between the teachers and their students serve to illustrate the different learning environments in each classroom. Results indicated that all three teachers wanted to: (1) provide students an opportunity to…

This study examined the feasibility of a parent-toddler reading program offered as a community-based intervention in one urban and one rural community with widespread poverty and low educational attainment. Fifty-eight families including 61 children, most of whom were 2 or 3 years of age, participated. During the intervention, parents learned an…

When students become actively involved in technology productions they develop learning skills, communication skills, and visual analysis skills, all of which are applied to real-life learning within the classroom curriculum. Students participate in all stages of the production projects, which proves to be motivating for the students and allows the…

The goal theory of achievement motivation maintains that the goals stressed by schools influence children's self-efficacy and willingness to try hard. This paper examines the applicability of goal theory to a Navajo school and community and widens the focus to encompass a range of potential culturally relevant goals. Interviews were conducted at…

The primary purpose of this study was to investigate the nature of the activities, processes, and structures used to link a teacher evaluation program to professional growth and motivation. A total of 52 teachers in the Johnson City (Tennessee) School District were selected by both random and purposeful sampling techniques to participate. Data…

Entrance into the teaching profession is often a situation of disappointment or "reality shock." As shown by previous researchers, teacher burnout is higher in the beginning of the career. Among the causes are inadequate initial teacher training and the lack of initial motivation. In order to study this phenomenon, the transition of 214…

A structured social skills program was developed for young African American males (N=33), in grades one and two in an urban setting. The study was designed to employ social skills to improve reading and mathematics skills. The students selected had demonstrated previous social skill deficits as determined by a pre-assessment instrument. These…

The science of magic is the subject of this book which also examines how to help children experience and describe the world, how to experiment and ask questions about it, and how to make decisions about what is true and what is not. Background information about the relationship between magic and science and the nature of effects and illusions are…

In response to large numbers of returning adult students, Wisconsin's technical college system has placed an increased emphasis on school-to-work transition and innovative forms of distance education (DE). DE began in Europe at least 150 years ago through correspondence programs, expanded to include radio programs in the 1920s and 1930s, and moved…