Because college admission has become much more competitive, parents and students need to know that excellent grades and test scores may not be enough to gain placement, especially in highly selective schools. Keep in mind that there are more than 25,000 class valedictorians every year, most with nearly perfect standardized test scores. Also, the…

The University of Western Australia is the latest of a half-dozen Australian institutions to drastically overhaul its academic programs, in a move to bring its degrees more in line with global standards, as well as ensure it remains attractive to prospective students. The universities are essentially parting ways with the British system and moving…

"Straight A's: Public Education Policy and Progress" is a biweekly newsletter that focuses on education news and events both in Washington, DC and around the country. The following articles are included in this issue: (1) "Nation's Report Card": Reading Scores Flat for Fourth Graders; Eighth Graders Improve by One Point; (2)…

Exposure to novel stimuli increases one's liking for such stimuli. Response competition is one theory attempting to account for this effect: as a stimulus becomes more familiar, competing responses drop out in favor of one dominant response and the stimulus becomes better liked. Imagery ability refers to the regeneration of responses during…

Developing an effective school or district academic competition program that highlights as many academic areas as possible while showcasing the achievements of individual students requires thoughtful assessment and planning. The School Academic Competition Inventory provides a way to determine the potential for such a program. If the potential…

Psychoanalysis, a favorite method for studying personality and motivation, cannot be used on the dead. Instead, biographical analysis must be employed. This study examines Mark Twain's aggression by analyzing his writings, social behavior, and environmental aspects of his life. In viewing Mark Twain's novels as representing fantasy, 17 categories…

Focusing on variables controlled by the newspaper but with emphasis on basic priorities for success rather than specific changes within a department, a study examined intracity battles between newspapers in several cities. A saturation sample of 58 newspapers that competed in various cities with no joint operating agreement or joint ownership was…

A study examined the effect of news values, source types, and competition on coverage of a 1988 urban riot in Shreveport, Louisiana. The final editions of "The Times" of Shreveport and the "Shreveport Journal" which appeared over the four-day period of a riot were analyzed and the content of each story was categorized. Results…

To eliminate the rapid pace, heavy reliance on evidence cards, and professional jargon associated with the debate style of the National Debate Topic (NDT), the Cross Examination Debate Association (CEDA) proposed the use of a value topic--instead of a policy topic--to restore balance among argument, analysis, and evidence in debate. Initial…

Love of competition must never be degraded by a passion for winning the game. This is especially true when teaching elementary age children who do not possess adult values of winning or losing. (MJB)

This investigation addressed whether there were significant sport competition anxiety differences among sex-typed, androgynous, and cross sex-typed subjects. Findings are presented and analyzed in terms of gender schema theory. (Author/MT)

Reviews transaction-cost approaches to organizational analysis, examines their use in microeconomic theory, and identifies some important flaws in the study. Advocates transaction-cost theory as a powerful tool for organizational and strategic analysis when set within the famework of more general organizational theory. Includes 61 references. (MLH)

This study described and compared attitudes toward competition of current 4-H members versus 4-H dropouts. Results indicated that dropouts had a more positive attitude. Age, sex, and the length of 4-H membership did not make a significant difference in attitudes. Girls tended to become more negative as they grew older. (JOW)

Children's Type A behaviors remained moderately stable over time. The magnitude of the stability did not differ as a function of two versus five years of follow-up, or because of the sex, grade, or community in which the child lived. (PCB)

The notion that blue ribbons serve to increase the motivation and performance of 4-H youth may not always be true. Studies of the effect of such incentives give cause for reevaluation of the present reward structure in light of current 4-H philosophy. (SK)