Teachers must learn to navigate an increasingly polluted ocean of educational hype. During his second year of teaching English, the author was handed a compass. Discussing her underachieving daughter, a black mother advised this teacher to drop the "relevant" units on gangs and give her daughter everything he knew (about Shakespeare and…

Case studies of four Australian apprentices and four trainees illustrate the following: their growing appreciation for the value of off-the-job training; preference for face-to-face training; centrality of relationships with off-the-job trainers; the implicit contract of expectations of the parties to the training contract; and dissatisfaction…

Underachievers generally lack internal locus of control, compete poorly, and undervalue effort. Many underachieving children who have adopted dependent or dominant defense mechanisms can be reached using the Family Achievement Clinic's Trifocal method. This multi-step process features assessment, parent-child communication, identification of the…

Observations of and interviews with a class of adult learners using an organizational behavior simulation explored how they applied difficult concepts within an ill-structured environment. Group competition inhibited communication and application of knowledge; in an atmosphere of trust, learners empower themselves, enabling articulation of…

Building, maintaining, and strengthening the board/superintendent relationship requires clear mutual expectations, consistent communication, and trust. Improvement-minded superintendents should develop six good habits: removing surprises from meetings, following up on routine assignments, developing and following guidelines for contacting board…

Identification of the training and development needs of administrative support staff is not aided by conventional performance appraisal, which measures summary or comparative effectiveness. Meaningful diagnostic evaluation integrates three levels of analysis (organization, task, and individual), using behavioral expectation scales. (SK)

Explores the relationship between alcohol-induced blackouts and alcohol expectancies in 123 college students. Found significant correlations between students' alcohol expectancies, level of alcohol abuse, and blackout history. Students who experienced blackouts had higher positive alcohol expectancies than those without blackouts. Other findings…

A study of 291 students at varying stages of training for law (45%), accounting (40%), or human resource management (15%) found that those in traditional professions had greater exposure to employers, more engagement in recruiting, and more experience of selection processes. This greater activity was associated with career expectations and…

Content analysis of peer reviews of 42 diversity-focused journal submissions (majority rejected) resulted in four themes: (1) reviewers often requested clarification of terms; (2) they cited what they considered author biases; (3) they applied instrumental and disciplinary constraints; and (4) they displayed goodwill, discomfort, or biases on…

Examines the connection between future outlook and school achievement among low-income, urban African American adolescents. Findings suggest gender and achievement differences in adolescents' goals and expectations. Highlights the importance of understanding the historical and cultural contexts that may shape adolescents' perceptions of the…

Investigates the long-term educational development of African American adolescents. The dependent variable was the highest level of education that participants ever expected to receive. Path models revealed differing processes for women and men. Overall, effects of early academic performance variables were strongest, followed by effects of family…

Italian high school students (n=796) completed measures related to Social Cognitive Career Theory and Holland's personality types. Findings supported hypotheses that self-efficacy and outcome expectations predict interests. Whether the mediation effect of interests was full or partial varied across types. Social supports/barriers related to career…

Examined predictors of coping styles, depression, and somatic symptoms in 472 college students. Found expectancy to be able to alter one's mood state added significantly to prediction of coping. Mood-regulation expectancies also predicted dysphoria and somatic symptoms, even with effects of coping behavior and other variables partialed out.…

Chairman of board of IBM, John F. Akers recalls experiences landing at night on aircraft carrier and compares this to running a large corporation. Akers says to meet challenges in any endeavor, set your expectations high; find men and women whose integrity and values you respect; get their agreement on course of action; and give them your ultimate…

The ways in which admissions and orientation policies and practices help undergraduates form appropriate expectations for college are examined through examples of 14 colleges and universities, whose recruitment materials communicate the institution's educational purposes and orientation activities affirm institutional values and make students feel…