Attempting to capture the complexity of learning on standardized state assessments severely limits student knowledge and expression. Inevitably, schools reduce the curriculum to what is covered on tests. Students control their learning. Constructivist teachers structure lessons around big ideas, value relevance, and strive to challenge students'…

Explains that problem students will have an opportunity to succeed in their education if they are given a chance to attend a rehabilitation institution where they will interact with a community of their peers who all suffer from similar predicaments. Provides three examples of rehabilitation institutions in Russia. (CMK)

Examines college students' attributions to failure in an introductory biology course. Determines how males and females viewed the attributions of ability, effort, and learning strategy use. Concludes that collectively, results indicate differences in patterns of responses between future goal and emotional items. Notes the importance for…

Many studies have identified factors that contribute to success in economics principles courses, but few have examined the causes and effects of student drops and failure. The author follows 239 students through their economic principles course and tracks the students in the year after the course. The author constructs a model predicting student…

This study examines the effectiveness of a one-on-one reading intervention using trained tutors. Participants were 49 first-grade students at risk for reading failure. The three-step tutoring model included repeated reading of familiar text, explicit coaching in decoding and word-solving strategies, and reading new books during each 15-minute…

Evidence for the superiority of guided instruction is explained in the context of our knowledge of human cognitive architecture, expert-novice differences, and cognitive load. Although unguided or minimally guided instructional approaches are very popular and intuitively appealing, the point is made that these approaches ignore both the structures…

To improve achievement among African American students, education professionals must pay special attention to African American male achievement and reframe the academic achievement gap as a treatment gap. Engagement studies suggest that African American students, and African American boys in particular, are susceptible to academic disengagement.…

American children spend an average of 6 hours and 32 minutes each day using various forms of media. Research has suggested that this high level of exposure has a negative impact on children's attitudes and behaviors. For example, media violence increases aggression in children, especially video games which allows children to be the aggressor and…

Relationships among attributions for success and failure and depression were investigated for 63 5th-grade students. Significant relationships were found among school-based attributions, as measured by global scale scores from the Student Academic Attribution Scale (SAAS) and the Student Social Attribution Scale (SSAS), general attributions as…

This study examined the factor structure of the parent and teacher versions of the Strengths and Difficulties Questionnaire (SDQ; R. Goodman, 1997) with a sample of first-grade children at risk for educational failure. The 5-factor model previously found in studies using exploratory factor analysis was fit to the data for both parent and teacher…

A legislative mandate requires the Texas Central Education Agency to submit a report each odd-numbered year that includes data collected on students retained in grade, including the reason for retention. This report presents current summary data on the retention rates of Texas students by grade level, age, gender, and ethnicity for 1992-93;…

Retention has been the answer to the problem of what to do with students who are unprepared for the academic and social demands of the next grade. Studies contend that children view retention as punishment and experience emotions such as fear, anger, and sadness when not promoted. Retention or nonpromotion can be defined as the practice of…

This paper argues that chaos theory may be a an appropriate framework for strategic planing in higher education and presents a brief case study of a strategic planning process underway at Blue Ridge Community College (BRCC) in Virginia where chaos theory is in use. Chaos theory holds that many seemingly random activities and systems evidence…

This book provides readers with an introduction to economics and cost-benefit analysis and will be particularly valuable to individuals who are, or plan to be, managers of information services in academic, public, or special libraries. Part 1 provides a rational for economic studies in librarianship, specifically, gaining understanding of consumer…

A report of retention rates is produced at the end of each school year in the Austin Independent School District (AISD), Texas. Information is gathered after the beginning of the school year to reflect counts of actual retainees from the previous year. Overall retention rates for the beginning of the 1993-94 school year are: (1) elementary, 0.5%;…