Some common questions that state legislators have about how distance learning can work in their states are explored. Distance learning, once considered strictly a rural education strategy, is now recognized to have the potential to provide solutions to some of the problems states face in delivering quality education to all students. A distance…

This instructor's guide is one of the five books developed during a 21-month cooperative project to develop instructional materials that enhance skills in a workplace context. Partners in the project included the University of Texas at Austin, consultants, the Austin/Travis County Private Industry Council, Hart Graphics, IBM, and Texas…

This student edition of learning modules in communications is one of the five books developed during a 21-month cooperative project to develop instructional materials that enhance skills in a workplace context. Partners in the project included the University of Texas at Austin, consultants, the Austin/Travis County Private Industry Council, Hart…

A central premise of the discovery-learning and progressive education movements was that the child's own questions are the most appropriate starting point for instruction. Recent advances present new opportunities for discovery-oriented learning. This project has been attempting to create a classroom environment which affords students the…

This practicum was designed to provide 237 elementary school students with strategies to improve their social interactions with adults and peers. The professional staff included 12 full-time teachers and 8 itinerant teachers who traveled to schools within the district. Workshops in conflict resolution strategies were presented for teachers to…

This guide explores the key issues in the development, sustainability, and effectiveness of after-school programs including before school, weekends, and summers, and identifies federal strategies to promote effective programs. The first part of the booklet presents the core elements of an effective after-school program, noting that programs…

A program was implemented in an elementary school to improve students' social skills, thereby reducing physically and verbally aggressive behavior and reducing off-task behavior. The targeted population consisted of second, third, and sixth graders in two northern Illinois elementary schools, one situated in a low socioeconomic neighborhood, the…

The need to acknowledge and overcome classroom problems arising by students' difficult behavior is the central issue addressed in this book. The aim of the articles presented is to consider ways in which both student and teacher achievements in the resolution of challenging behavior can be encouraged, supported, and valued. A major emphasis is…

These curriculum materials were designed to assist sixth grade teachers in the delivery of the world regions component of the grade six social studies. Activities engage students in thinking, analysis, and speculation with a blend of process and product exercises. The book is divided into five sections. "Introductory Activities" include:…

A series of three studies was conducted to determine the effects of testing time above or below the recommended time on results of standardized achievement tests with a sample across all three experiments of 1,219 fifth graders in 59 classrooms in Lansing, Michigan. The first two studies considered the effects of increased time; the third explored…

Written for parents, this book discusses the socialization of boys into men. The book takes the perspective that socialization should not lead to an exclusive and rigid masculinization. The books is divided into 5 sections, discussing: (1) the need for power as it affects boys and men; (2) the development of boys and the unseen messages provided…

The response of law enforcement agencies to runaway and homeless youth varies by community and individual officer. Some police departments perceive runaways as criminals while others recognize runaways as victims of family conflict or uncaring institutions who need to be helped. But in many cases police do not "see" runaways at all. This guidebook…

This book argues that a paradigmatic change of emphasis is needed from treatment to prevention in order to promote the well being of children and to reverse many of the social problems children face today. Written for an interdisciplinary audience, the book is divided into three sections. The first section provides a framework and overview of…

Since educational statistics, which are relatively easy to obtain, can only attempt to measure "quality," this paper asks how quality in higher education is assessed and how educational rankings, which are defined as benchmarks or attempts to measure, contribute to this process. The paper notes that while attempts to rank institutions of…

Research concerning the effects of television violence on children--particularly young children under the age of six--has found that it tends to desensitize them to aggressive behavior and, in some children, promotes aggressive behavior in their play and other interactions with children and adults. This guide is designed to assist early childhood…