The purpose of this study was to determine if a high school graduation examination influences instructional practices. Data were obtained from a survey instrument given to a stratified random sample of Tennessee science teachers who teach the content that is tested on their state's high school graduation examination. An analysis showed teachers…

Practicing clinicians frequently offer judgments about aspects of swallowing physiology rather than performing actual measurements. Little is known about the accuracy of those judgments. The purpose of this preliminary study was to explore agreement of clinicians' judgments of pharyngeal swallow response time (PSRT) with temporal measurements of…

This paper utilizes the findings of a small research project into academics' perceptions of the value of formal qualifications in university teaching and learning to reflect upon the current status of teaching and tertiary teaching qualifications in Australia. The findings are based upon a survey of and interviews with participants and…

Scripted curriculum materials are becoming more and more commonplace throughout schools in the United States. Scripted curriculum materials are instructional materials that have been commercially prepared and require the teacher to read from script while delivering the lesson. They reflect a focus on explicit, direct, systematic skills instruction…

This study examines the classroom experiences of 192 children followed longitudinally from kindergarten to 1st grade. Time-sampled observations of children were conducted to compare learning formats, teaching activities, and children's engagement in activities between kindergarten and 1st grade. Classroom observations also were conducted to…

This study was about a single case of educational innovation and excellence in educational technology in a secondary school in Ontario. The researcher explored the question of how the innovation resulted from an individual effort and attainment remained a "contained entity" after its decade-long existence. From the lenses of multiple…

Using data from Achieving the Dream: Community Colleges Count, this issue of "Data Notes" looks at who receives aid, how much they receive and how financial aid relates to persistence. The data show that among full-time students in the 2003 Achieving the Dream cohort, students of color were more likely to receive grants to fund their postsecondary…

Secondary vocational-technical education programs in Mississippi are faced with many challenges resulting from sweeping educational reforms at the national and state levels. Schools and teachers are increasingly being held accountable for providing true learning activities to every student in the classroom. This accountability is measured through…

Remediation programs have helped some struggling children learn to read and write. However, they have not been helpful to all students. Educators need to search for more effective ways of reaching even more learners. Recently there has been more focus on preventing early school failure. Researchers agree that if instruction for struggling students…

This report presents findings from the third and final year of the Reading First Impact Study (RFIS), a congressionally mandated evaluation of the federal government's initiative to help all children read at or above grade level by the end of third grade. The No Child Left Behind Act of 2001 established Reading First (RF) and mandated its…

Over the last generation, the instructional staffing system in American higher education has experienced a significant reduction in the proportion of jobs for full-time tenured and tenure-track faculty members and a dramatic growth in fixed-term full- and part-time instructional jobs without tenure. About 70 percent of the people teaching in…

To help inform policymakers and the public about the progress of education in the United States, Congress has mandated that the National Center for Education Statistics (NCES) produce an annual report, "The Condition of Education." This year's report presents 42 indicators on important topics and trends in U.S. education. These…

Criminal justice programs at community colleges have often been used to subsidize other programs and often have only one full-time faculty member. To examine issues confronting programs with only one full-time faculty member, surveys were conducted of faculty in one-person programs at 11 community colleges in New Jersey. Completed questionnaires…

One hundred and sixteen test administrators in Job Service offices throughout the United States who are currently using the automated typing test software were contacted by telephone about the software. Sixty-nine percent have used the software less than 1 year, and 21 percent have used it more than 1 year. In 78 percent of the offices, there is…

This study sought to identify variables related to higher levels of elementary and secondary school teacher use of wait-time I and whether knowledge and skill can be increased by focused staff development. Wait-time I is the time a teacher pauses after asking a question before acknowledging a student's response. The study used research on QUILT…