Sorting practices in the public schools place students, especially those from poor and minority families, at risk. The "talent-development" model is based on the assumption that all students, with adequate support, can learn. This report describes outcomes of the first Talent Development High School, which was established in September 1995 at…

This guide shows parents how to help their children develop into skilled and motivated readers. The guide contains sections on (1) how to prepare a child for reading success, long before lessons begin; (2) how to use children's literature to promote learning and enjoyment; (3) why combining book experiences and phonics is better than either…

A study examined a program for increasing reading ability to reduce the academic failure of identified at-risk students. Subjects were 14 second-grade and 18 sixth-grade students in a middle class suburb, southwest of a large metropolitan area. Evidence for the existence of this problem was gathered from teacher observations, assessments,…

Designed for low-level adult learners, this book contains true stories of 20 men and women who have faced and overcome serious challenges in their lives. The book is intended to inspire and motivate developmental students in basic reading and writing classes. The book can be adapted to different instructional approaches--some teachers may wish to…

This paper summarizes the initiatives taken by the Women in Engineering Program at the A. James Clark School of Engineering at the University of Maryland. Two programs are described - the Research Fellows Program and the Teaching Fellows Program. Both are designed to expose women undergraduate students in engineering to the challenges and rewards…

This new edition of a guide which has made reading aloud a special pleasure for millions of people offers a chance for a new generation of parents, teachers, grandparents, and siblings to discover the rewards--and the necessity--of reading aloud. The guide provides an up-to-date annotated bibliography ("treasury") of more than 1200…

This study, conducted at Northeastern Illinois University, examined gender differences in professional goals of 95 degreed, professionally experienced students seeking secondary certification in mathematics and science (50 females and 45 males). An analysis of the stated goals found that all goals could be assigned to the following 10 categories:…

The effectiveness of Mississippi's policy of offering incentives to promote workplace training was examined through phone surveys of a sample of 101 of Mississippi's 2,617 manufacturing firms with 100-350 employees (47 of the 77 plants that have used Mississippi incentive programs and 54 plants that have not) and in-depth case studies of 4 plants.…

This report examines motivational variables and support structures that influenced the success of African American females who graduated with honors from a rural Georgia high school. Case studies focus on the nature of the honor graduates' friendships and the role that friendship may have played in motivating these students to become honor…

This book comprehensively describes the Pac-TEC project which organizes educational reform around the problem statement that mathematics, science, technology, and engineering education is not inclusive of all thinking and learning styles, and therefore is not addressing the present and future needs of the expanding, evolving culture base of the…

Computerized adaptive testing (CAT) has become increasingly common in large-scale testing programs. This paper considers relevant practical issues that are likely to be faced by the developers and managers of a CAT program. The first cluster of issues is that of item pool development and maintenance. It includes such considerations as item pool…

This study investigated learning styles and learning strategies among Japanese university students whose majors are directly related to English. Data were gathered in a survey of 365 students in English literature, language, or linguistics courses at two universities. The survey included questions about study outside class time, study using…

As part of a federal grant to develop an across-the-curriculum ethics program, ethics instruction was integrated into English classes at Colorado's Community College of Aurora (CCA). In the English classes, students were first asked to read case studies from CCA's ethics handbook detailing specific ethical problems. In subsequent classes, students…

The stories and studies that make up this book pursue two intertwining paths of inquiry: (1) how highly engaged adolescent readers produce meaning; and (2) what can be done in the classroom to help reluctant readers perceive reading as a creative and personally meaningful pursuit. Chapter 1 looks at approaches to teaching reading and discusses an…

This book, designed by teachers for teachers, contains activities and assessment ideas for developing a classroom spelling program individualized to meet the needs of each child. The book discusses the traditional methods of teaching spelling versus today's research-based methods. Noting that in the classrooms discussed, spelling has been…