This paper provides an overview on ways of thinking about young children's respect for diversity. It maps sources of knowledge about four different sorts of diversity in young children's lives: cultural and racial diversity, developmental diversity (including "special needs'), gender diversity and socio-economic diversity. It sketches this…

Arizona's Instrument to Measure Standards (AIMS), a Standards-Based test, provides educators and the public with valuable information regarding the progress of Arizona's students toward mastering Arizona's reading, writing and mathematics Standards. This specific test, Arizona's Instrument to Measure Standards Dual Purpose Assessment (AIMS DPA) is…

With the launch of the U.S. Department of Education's Early Childhood Longitudinal Study, Kindergarten Class of 1998-99, measures of knowledge, skills, health, and behavior of a large and nationally representative sample of American Kindergartners are available. Drawing on data from the study, this report provides a portrait of kindergarten…

This study investigated the effects of a video-based training program on the quantity and quality of family involvement in special education, perceptions of both family members and educators concerning parental competence as team members, and family members' satisfaction with their own involvement, team processes, and decisions made by the team.…

The hypothesis that enhanced knowledge of assessment rubrics by teachers and thus by students results in improved student achievement was studied in the context of the development of mandatory high school assessments for the Maryland State Department of Education. Rubrics were under development to score constructed-response items in the content…

A case study of a Chinese teacher educator illustrates one method of researching the development and expression of teachers' personal practical knowledge by collecting fieldnotes, interviews, conversations, journals, autobiographies, stories, personal artifacts, oral histories, letters, and chronicles. Analyzing this information involves…

Describes a classroom exercise designed to illustrate the economic aspects of common ownership, individual ownership, government regulation and to examine how these relate to conservation. The exercise involves the incremental distribution (via a turkey baster) of water between buckets marked "now" and "future." Different rules replicate different…

A taxonomy for assessing development of speech-language clinicians based upon cognitive learning theory was applied in the analysis of videotaped clinical sessions involving three student clinicians. Developmental profiles in three areas of clinical problem solving (perspective taking, variables considered, and solutions generated) were derived.…

On-site visits and staff interviews at four elementary schools in British Columbia (Canada) found that many computers were underutilized. Most teachers lacked the expertise to maximize the potential of computers, did not have time to fully master software programs, and could not explain how software programs supported their curriculum goals. (LP)

Describes a model for exploring the multidimensional relationship between staff development and improvements in student learning. The model is based on the premise that the quality of staff development is influenced by many factors, including content characteristics, process variables, and context characteristics. (SM)

Administered an anonymous questionnaire to pregnant adolescents living at a residential facility in a southwestern city while they were in the process of deciding whether to keep their infant or place it for adoption. Found that contextual variables influenced the choice of placing for adoption, including family background and interaction…

Provides an overview of the recent research concerning the application, benefits, and deficiencies regarding critical-reading skills and college instruction. Discusses how reading skills support cognitive processes necessary for acquiring psychological knowledge. Delineates the differences between narrative (story-like, believable) reading and…

This study used interview transcripts, videotape recordings of classroom sessions, field notes, and classroom photographs to examine the theoretical and pedagogical stances of three preschool teachers concerning language and literacy development of deaf and hard-of-hearing children. Teachers held differing theories which influenced their…

This paper summarized contributors' ideas about evaluation as a field and where it is going. Topics discussed were qualitative versus quantitative debate; evaluation's purpose; professionalization; program failure; program development; evaluators as advocates; evaluation knowledge; evaluation expansion; and methodology and design. (SLD)

In a collaborative learning situation, the college teacher must learn to use knowledge and authority differently, using new forms of classroom control to promote internal leadership and drawing on discipline knowledge primarily to guide group inquiry. (MSE)