The introductory article to this special issue, entitled "Architectural Portfolio," forecasts, in the move toward the 21st century, grade organizational changes so that school districts can keep buildings operating; continued emphasis on energy conservation; and more educational funds going into school maintenance, modernization, and additions.…

This report is an accounting of a second case study of large-scale assessment practices in a local educational agency where students with disabilities were administered the state's standards-based tests out of level. The first report (Minnema et al., 2004a) provided the results from the first case study conducted in another school district in…

The introduction of a team term project into a Korean psychometrics class is described. Students developed an item pool of attitude statements regarding the reunification of South Korea and North Korea. Then teams of students used the item pool to develop attitude questionnaires, survey other students, analyze the results, and recommend which…

Grade-span configuration refers to the range of grades within a school. Grade span is an important issue to various factions in public education, including advocates of middle schools and rural educators concerned with the association between grade fragmentation and school consolidation. This digest focuses on research that has examined the…

This paper discusses grouping for instruction in teaching science. Suggestions include grouping students in science experiments and demonstrations, grouping by using videotapes and other audiovisual aids, flexible grouping, committee work, flexible discussion groups, minilessons, activity-centered teaching, modeling, individualized reading, and…

The purpose of this discussion is to state the case for an important alternative educational model and examines the potential for developing necessary revitalization of the educational system. (Author/RK)

Reviews findings on auditory discrimination and reports an experimental finding that children discriminate more easily between meaningful words than between nonsense words. Bibliography. (MD)

Analyzes the recent role of the Federal Government in public education in view of the reported rural bias of the Congress and the urban bias of the Executive. (JM)

Paper presented at the Fifteenth Duke University Conference on Teaching the Social Studies.

Gathered information from 367 high school students on self-report survey about drinking. Results showed statistically positive correlations between parental acceptance and regular drinking, grade level in high school and consumption levels, grade level and frequency of drunkenness, grade level and source patterns, and regular consumption and lower…

Sorting activities for multiplication and division facts are suggested for developing concepts of prime factors. (MP)

Administered three self-concept instruments to 374 students in grades 7, 9, and 11. By using total scores as well as subscale scores, indications were obtained of global self-concept as well as perceptions of various dimensions of self. Data indicated significant sex, race, grade level, and social class differences. (RC)

Case study from the Providence, Rhode Island School District demonstrates how an outside planning group acted as the instrument for organizational change, while the superintendent provided the impetus for change. Reveals how internal and external factors influence decision making. (APM)