Examines some of the intentions that guided research into story structure, considers some of the validity problems inherent in the research, and outlines some flaws in instructional practices resulting from misinterpretations of it. Concludes with some suggestions for using story structures as a teaching tool. (FL)

Takes issue with the High/Scope Educational Research Foundation report (Schweinhart, Weikart and Larner, 1986) indicating that preschoolers taught by direct instruction end up with twice the rate of delinquency of children who participated in High/Scope's own kind of preschool education. Argues that self-report methodology invalidates High/Scope…

Considers possible contributions of developmental psychology to analysis and solution of practical problems by proposing a practical action model comprising the following: nature of the phenomenon or problem; existence of the phenomenon or problem; outcome in case of no intervention; goals for intervention; achievement of goals; and assessing…

Revolutionary developments in collecting and analyzing data for use in improving curriculum and instruction at the local level are now possible with the advent of low-cost computers. The basic purposes and approaches of assessment methodologies must be refocused for local application. (LMO)

Analyzes professional and methodological problems facing Black scholars in the communications field. Calls for the development of new rhetorical tools that would be more applicable to the Black experience than existing, traditional methods. Considers ways of meeting both community and personal goals, and presents a Black communication impact…

The influences of class size and the number of students completing surveys on faculty and course ratings were studied. For classes of 30 or more, a 50 percent response rate gives an acceptable indication of rating, while for a class of less than 30, about 80 percent return is needed. (Author/SW)

Using observational data on classroom teachers, statistical procedures are presented for studying two questions on the stability of teacher behavior over time: (1) Is the individual teacher's behavior consistent? and (2) Are individual differences among teachers consistent? Approaches and methods of previous temporal stability studies are…

Criticizes Dorval and Eckerman (included in this issue) for their findings' lack of generality due to the artificial nature of the conversational groups studied. Also both age changes in the ability to plan large conversational units and the functions of particular kinds of turns within these larger units are left unexplored. (CB)

Twenty-one studies that reported mean score differences between the Woodcock-Johnson Tests of Cognitive Ability (WJTCA) and the Wechsler Intelligence Scale for Children-Revised (WISC-R) Full Scale are summarized. The differences are found to be minimal and are attributed to data bias and WJTCA's higher correlation with achievement. (EGS)

Within-class regression is a method, developed in this paper, of comparing a large number of nonequivalent groups. This study indicated that within-class regression was a less biased method of data analysis and will yield more accurate estimates of treatment effects than analysis of covariance. (PN)

Studies addressing the efficacy of specific procedures for training teachers in behavior modification are reviewed. Didactic training is an ineffective method when used alone but may be a necessary component when used with other methods. Support was found for using role playing alone and combined with modeling, feedback, and reinforcement.…

Critiqued is the article, "Teacher as Shaman: An Educational Criticism," (Studies in Art Education, v25 n1), containing a case study of an art teacher who employs performance-based ritual to stimulate thinking about art's meaning and history. The problem that ethnographic researchers have conveying credibility when summarizing…

Three British studies recently compared the examination results of pupils from comprehensive schools with those of selective schools. Each study reached somewhat contrasting conclusions. Major differences among the studies are discussed in order to clarify reasons for the contrasting interpretations and to illustrate the major difficulties in…

Presents an inventory of social science published reports about the elderly in Mexican, Puerto Rican, and Cuban subnationalities in the United States. Assesses information on service availability and utilization, extended family support, migration, and also research problems. Indicates that Cuban and Puerto Rican elderly have been disregarded by…

A review of the literature before 1966 on racial preference among black children showed that black children, in a variety of geographical, social and methodological settings, prefer to play with white dolls and white playmates. However, since 1966, black children have indicated a preference for black dolls and black models, across geographical,…