Community attitudes can profoundly reinforce or virtually neutralize the work of teachers and school administrators. Young people's motivation for learning will be weakened if high standards are not valued by classmates, parents, and the community. The community is obligated to provide comfortable school buildings, provide the best teachers…

Examined psychometric properties of self-perception scales of the Berkeley Puppet Interview (BPI) with children at preschool, kindergarten, and first grade. Found that young children have a multidimensional self-concept that can be reliably measured. The BPI was sensitive to normative change and individual differences. Support for validity was…

Examined the etiology of individual differences in literacy, phonological awareness, and language ability in monozygotic and dizygotic twins. Found that there was no genetic link between phonological awareness and literacy independent of general language ability. Individual differences in literacy ability were substantially influenced by genetics…

Through Michael's eyes, this article illustrates personal disconnections between a good, "invisible" kid and his overworked teachers. Anonymity is the curse of the overloaded, specialized American comprehensive high school. Few teachers can be fully effective when teaching five dozen students. Reallocating instructional resources is…

Analysis of questionnaires completed by 715 undergraduate psychology students identified four patterns associated with writing term papers: (1) a minimal-drafting strategy; (2) an outline-and-develop strategy; (3) a detailed-planning strategy; and (4) a "think-then-do" strategy. Detailed-planning and think-then-do strategies appeared to result in…

Examined beliefs and concepts about "good teaching." Fifty-five graduate student teachers completed an inventory of learning approaches, wrote essays on "good teaching," and were interviewed. A second cohort of 55 students completed a modified questionnaire that encouraged student reflection on concepts of good teaching. Individual's concepts…

Discussion of the use of technology to meet the needs of individual student's learning styles in law school explores various learning style theories, considers the pedagogical attributes of Web-based instruction, and then reports on use of learning theory and technology in skills-based courses at Texas Tech Law School. Assessment of student…

Both students and teachers can suffer from anonymity. In a spiritual classroom, redemption means deliverance, or liberation from obligatory suffering. Teaching may be viewed as reclaiming students from anonymity (a powerful form of inertia) and leading them toward deliverance. The teacher is simultaneously liberated by believing in a student's…

Summarizes a series of studies from the Hawaii Family Study of Cognition on possible genetic and social environmental determinants of individual differences in and racial/ethnic differences between groups on intelligence and attainment. These studies, which focused on Japanese and Caucasian Americans, illustrate the complex, interactive, and…

Provides an interview with Russian Academy of Education Academician Vladimir Shadrikov, the first deputy minister. Focuses on topics such as the differentiation of education, the theory of developmental instruction, and the formulation of a state educational standard for the basic schools. (CMK)

Examines two models of educational theory developed by Franz Fischer. One model defines education as a categorical reflection on the difference between a presupposed versus scientifically-explicable world, while the other grounds moral education on awareness of demands of the other person. Applies the models to the problem of otherness. (CMK)

Investigates the interaction between teaching technique (multimedia versus traditional teaching approaches) and student learning styles (verbally- and visually-oriented students) to demonstrate that individual differences moderate the impact of multimedia approaches on student learning. Suggests that multimedia benefits students with a high visual…

The Lawrence Township (Indianapolis, Indiana) school district has shifted from a traditional approach to programming for gifted and talented students to a talent development approach, creating a K-12 Talent Recognition and Development Program (TRAD). The program focuses on four talent areas: academic, visual/performing arts, technical/vocational,…

Examines 410 high school athletes' attitudes toward female coaches, finding that males were more likely than females to believe coaching style was dependent on the coach's gender and that coaching opportunities were more restricted for females. Both male and female athletes had stronger preferences for male coaches than for female coaches. (MDM)

A parent deplores the overemphasis on socialization and collaboration in his son's seventh-grade classroom. He believes cooperative learning limits his son's educational opportunity, intellectual growth, and motivation to achieve. In the wake of corporate downsizing, there's even greater need for individual initiative and expertise. Social…