Offering differentiated courses to cater for a wide range of ability can lead to "dumbing down" when brighter students choose easier courses, which they can handle well without undue effort. This occurred when differentiated English courses were introduced in the senior secondary certificate in the state of New South Wales (NSW) in…

The purpose of this study was to find out whether: (1) truancy, drop-out and failure rates was as a result of the teacher teaching strategy in Secondary Schools in Osun State, (2) If skill in instructional design has any relationship with failure rate; and (3) whether teachers that studied Educational Technology would perform significantly better…

This report describes patterns of continuity and change among spring 2004 high school seniors from the Education Longitudinal Study of 2002 (ELS:2002) first follow-up study, spring 1992 seniors from the National Education Longitudinal Study of 1988 (NELS:88) second follow-up study, spring 1980 seniors from the High School and Beyond (HS&B)…

Faculty are pressured to provide high-quality advising for undergraduate psychology majors, but lack the time and resources. One efficient solution provides comprehensive advising information via a departmental handbook that helps students solve the problem of graduating with a degree in psychology, prepared for employment or graduate school. A…

This study analyzed data to identify courses which have been associated with improved mathematics and quantitative reasoning ability among students who enter college with high verbal skills but low math skills. The study used the Coursework Cluster Analytic Model (CCAM) to analyze the course sequences of students with high verbal and low math…

A study, the first comprehensive survey of its kind in Australia, gathered information on the state of Communication Studies in tertiary institutions in Australia. Conducted in May-June 1990, the study received 48 responses from 33 institutions (a 72% return rate). Extensive results included that: (1) of approximately 600 full-time staff teaching…

Two basic questions provide the focus for this report: (1) What is the distribution of education and non-education majors among public and private school teachers, and within certain subgroups? and (2) Does the distribution of bachelor's degree fields differ between public and private school teachers? Some key findings are: (1) public and private…

In response to criticism aimed at the quality and effectiveness of American schools, especially in the areas of mathematics and science where American students were found to take considerably fewer courses than their foreign counterparts, most states raised course work requirements for high school graduation. To examine the effects of the state…

This report summarizes the findings of a 1985 study of the Albuquerque Public Schools (APS) summer school program. Statistics, charts and survey results provide a picture of the student population, school financial situation, course offerings, participant attitudes, etc. The APS summer school is self-supporting, but tuition is rising rapidly and…

To examine whether a professor's reputation affects course selection, a survey was conducted of about 280 students in a junior level marketing class required of all business students at Bowling Green State University (Ohio). The questionnaire listed 25 economics professors and asked what the students had heard about the professors in five…

Several factors have been involved in elevating education as a prime issue of national concern. One such factor has been the advent of new technologies; another has been the report by the National Commission on Excellence which found a steady decline in Scholastic Aptitude Test Scores, an increase in adult illiteracy, selection of nonrigorous…

Undergraduate engineering students and their advisors are provided with a handbook to help improve the quality and coherence of the humanities and social sciences (H&SS) component of undergraduate engineering education (fostering more purposeful H&SS course selection). The first of this handbook's three sections has an engineering major…

Tested hypotheses regarding importance of various factors on students' decision to enroll in a food service-related course. Findings include (1) interests and persons close to students were most influential and (2) teachers and students perceived similarly the order but not degree of importance of factors. (Author/CH)

A personality construct, preference for course difficulty, was related to test anxiety in a sample of 62 graduate students. Path analysis indicated that trait anxiety directly affects test anxiety and that preference for course difficulty affects test anxiety. The preference for course structure construct was validated. (LMO)

Explores the reactions of third-year pupils to their science lessons. Discusses the extent to which these boys' and girls' reactions can be used to predict enrollment in the different branches of science in their fourth year. Describes ways to encourage students to continue in science. (CW)