This report, the second in a series published by the National Council on Teacher Quality, examines states' progress in meeting the new federal requirement that by the end of the 2005-2006 school year there will be a "highly qualified teacher" in every classroom in the nation. This new requirement has led to some discomfort in more than a…

Children's exposure to family violence may lead to increased school difficulties, as shown in studies demonstrating the relationship between children's adjustment disorders and stressful family events. To examine the unique effects of violence on children's cognition, this study compared the academic performance and conflict levels of two groups…

A study evaluated the Alabama Direct Assessment of Writing Program. The comprehensive evaluation examined the background literature, the psychometric characteristics, and the impact of the writing assessment both quantitatively and qualitatively. Results indicated that: (1) the majority of fifth- and seventh-grade students in Alabama do not…

This study examined the effects of course level, class size, and instructor gender on student ratings of teacher performance at the National Hualien Teachers College in Taiwan. A total of 9,843 usable evaluation forms were completed for 440 courses (96 freshmen-level, 142 sophomore-level, 119 junior-level, and 83 senior-level) taught by 132…

Assessing literacy strategies through collected works, reading logs, journal writings, other language activities, and informal testing, this book provides preservice teachers a firm grounding in the theory of literacy portfolios as part of authentic assessment strategies and provides guidelines of creating and using literacy portfolios…

This book aims to introduce teachers and other educational practitioners to the concepts, operating principles, and teaching strategies of the adventure in the classroom (AITC) model. Adventure involves more than equipment, risk taking, or the outdoors. Adventure is a matter of significance, support, stimulation, and satisfaction--characteristics…

A study examined the relationship among instructor socio-communicative style, argumentativeness, and verbal aggressiveness in the college classroom. Participants were 139 undergraduate students enrolled at a small southern university who completed the Assertiveness-Responsiveness Measure (Richmond and McCroskey, 1995), as well as modified versions…

The relationship between basic skills support, dropout rates, retention, and achievement in further education colleges was examined in a study of the 15,579 full-time students who were assessed at the time of their entry into 15 English and 3 Welsh general further education and tertiary colleges. On average, just under one-third of the students…

Until recently, fathers were the hidden parents in research on children's well-being. Research stimulated by the new interest in fathers suggests that fathers' involvement in their children's schools does make a difference in their children's education. Using data from the 1996 National Household Education Survey (NHES:96), this Digest looks at…

Changing views about learning and schooling affect teacher preparation programs. The paper examines how Kentucky's standards for new teachers relate to addressing learner diversity, explaining how the Kentucky Education Reform Act is a model for affecting statewide change, particularly regarding methods of assessment and examination of learner…

This guide explores the multitude of purposes and types of student portfolios as well as practical ideas for implementing them in classrooms. Following an introductory chapter discussing a rationale for portfolio use and the concept of authentic assessment, the first chapter of the guide explores the different purposes portfolios may serve and…

Issues in alternative assessment for accountability purposes are discussed. Most new forms of performance assessment are linked in the literature, but all alternative forms of assessment do not have the same attributes in terms of technical and feasibility criteria. Tradeoffs in the validity of inferences that can be drawn from alternative…

This report discusses the outcomes of a study that investigated the relationship between student scores on the five sub-scales of the School Attitude Assessment Survey-Revised (SAAS-R) and the academic achievement of known groups of gifted achievers and gifted underachievers. The study examined whether gifted achievers and gifted underachievers…

This paper presents four major teacher education reform thrusts in the United States, touching on several important characteristics of the U.S. context for teacher education: the locus of control for education; both private and public control over teacher education; the loss of faith in education; disagreement over whether teacher education needs…

This digest is concerned with the need to develop standards and infrastructure for improving the employment, placement, preparation, and supervision of paraeducators in inclusive general and special education classrooms, Title I, multilingual/English as a Second Language, and early childhood programs. It discusses teacher responsibilities for…