This article discusses how schools can best meet the needs of precocious children by giving them access to higher level and more challenging instructional materials. Findings from a study of 40 precocious third and fourth graders are described and the benefits of acceleration are highlighted, particularly grade advancement and advanced placement…

Examines the use of advanced placement programs (AP) in Broward County, Florida, as an intervention strategy to narrow the achievement gap among student groups. Found that AP coursework can be extended to a wider range of students than previously thought, including minority students. (Contains 16 references, 7 tables, and 4 figures.) (Author/MLF)

Colleges have three types of admissions criteria: challenging course work, grades, and college admission test scores. Staff at a huge North Carolina high school found that offering challenging advanced-placement courses helped students get into selective colleges and graduate from them. The program benefited the entire school population. (MLH)

A problem with the construction of an inclusive definition of international education is that the word 'international' has a variety of connotations. It is proposed that the term 'international education' is ambiguous because it appears to refer to contrasting usages in educational studies. International education is frequently discussed in the…

When the author started as a geography teacher in an International Baccalaureate School (IB world school) 10 years ago she noticed more than a few analogies with the so-called "McWorld"--a term invented by Ritzer (1993, 1998) to refer to the global invasion of McDonald's Restaurants--and the IB world. More recently, geographers and…

This article examines the issue of fostering vocational knowledge from an international perspective. It is based on the belief that 21 st-century students would benefit from a study of human endeavour that has an intercultural foundation. It identifies the aspects of knowledge that may be seen to comprise vocational knowledge and uses one…

School-within-a-school programs are an alternative school choice that can provide differentiated learning opportunities for academically gifted students, but they are often politically contentious. In a recent study, we interviewed 530 students and teachers in gifted and regular streams in three publicly funded secondary schools with different…

The authors conduct open-ended surveys of 530 students and teachers in three publicly funded schools with different approaches to providing a high-ability "school-within-a-school:" a gifted program, an international baccalaureate program, and a high-ability program with a science focus. Overall, the authors find that teachers and students in all…

Providing high school students access to advanced coursework has long been considered an important means of preparing students for success after high school. This study merges data from College Board's Advanced Placement (AP) program for the 2003-2004 school year with data from the U.S. Department of Education for all U.S. public high schools to…

In a more consistent and viable manner than ever before, education in Alabama is moving toward its ultimate goal of providing every student with a quality education, thereby preparing them for work, college, and life after high school. Alabama's graduation rates from 2002 to 2008 increased significantly, tripling the national average increase and…

This study reports the outcome of an initial implementation of a California law permitting mentally gifted high school students to attend a junior college part time. The program procedure is described in terms of (1) selection and enrollment, (2) discipline, (3) books, (4) matters relating to high school graduation, (5) information for parents,…

The policies and procedures for granting advanced standing at Empire State College are based on three requirements. First, the learnings for which recognition is requested must be articulated. Second, the learnings must be pertinent to the student's goals and consistent with the educational goals of the college. Third, evidence must be generated…

Implementation of an honors program is carefully explained, including course content, evaluation, and helpful suggestions for administrators contemplating similar programs. The need for such programs is apparent as high schools are sending to college students who have been involved in advanced, accelerated, or enriched classes and who are…

Three schools of moral thought are presented to illustrate differences in moral reasoning and the assignment of value claims. Several educational program alternatives are used as illustrations of moral reasoning within, and across, the schools of thought. (Author/DWH)

To help explain the relationship between board activities and mathematics education today, the creation and evolution of the College Board are described. The development of the Advanced Placement computer science course description and examination are noted particularly. (MNS)