Since 1996, our research team has conducted 15 focus groups with 169 middle-school youth in small communities as formative research for campaigns against alcohol, tobacco, drugs, and violence. Some key findings of a synthesis of focus-group results are that girls and boys perceive different risks to alcohol and tobacco use; peer relationships are…

Traditional instructional methodology in the Information System Design (ISD) environment lacks explicit strategies for promoting the cognitive skills of prospective system designers. This contributes to the fragmented knowledge and low motivational and creative involvement of learners in system design tasks. In addition, present ISD methodologies,…

In Hawaii, state agencies and foundations are poised to support readiness efforts to improve educational outcomes for children. Developing a shared understanding of the construct of readiness is key to these efforts. The purposes of this research were to (a) discover the perceptions and beliefs held by Hawaii parents, teachers and administrators…

A focus group with nine university professionals from two large Midwestern universities was conducted to investigate their perceptions regarding the unexpected impact of increasing numbers of students with learning disabilities attending college. Participants consisted of six faculty members, two directors of Offices of Student Disability…

This compendium is a companion document to the Maryland Sailor Online Public Information Network assessment final report, and contains detailed study findings, study data collection activity write-ups, detailed methodologies, data collection tools, and consultant notes on the uses of the study's data collection instruments. The purpose of the…

This project analyzed results of 16 focus group interviews with 144 special and regular education teachers concerning inclusive education of students with disabilities, including their concerns, obstacles they had encountered, effective strategies, inservice training they found helpful, suggestions for addressing inclusion in teacher preparation…

This monograph describes results of focus group interviews with 53 regular and special education teachers in Tennessee concerning their experience with inclusion of students with disabilities in regular education classrooms. An introduction notes the trend toward inclusion of students with disabilities in regular programs while providing needed…

White, Black, and Hispanic students were studied during their transition from school or work to a community college. Students (N=71) at the College of Lake County (CLC) in Illinois attended focus groups formed according to race or ethnic group (White, Black, or Hispanic) in the spring and fall semesters to discuss their goals, experience, and…

The 18-month Skills Today for Advancement Tomorrow (STAT) program, a partnership among St. Louis Community College, the St. Louis Public Schools' Adult Basic Education Program, and Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Missouri, had the following objectives: (1) provide counseling and training for 370 current Blue Cross and Blue Shield workers; (2)…

This report summarizes several group discussions with parents of high school students, high school students, and nursing students regarding the world of work and the advantages and disadvantages of a youth apprenticeship program. Section I is an executive summary that describes the methodology, summarizes key attitudes toward youth apprenticeships…

An exploration of health professionals' perceptions of the concept of shared learning and of the belief that shared learning can improve professional relationships in practice. A shared learning event was arranged as a forum for information exchange within an NHS trust. Ten per cent of total staff (87 people) attended. Questionnaires were…

Creighton University, a private Jesuit institution in the Midwest, included a Health Professions Partnership Initiative (HPPI) to increase the pool of qualified underrepresented minority applicants by identifying students early and encouraging their progress through elementary and middle school, high school, college, and professional schools.…

This is an action research to investigate and argue the Turkish teachers' experiences on online communications to build a democratic and multicultural knowledge network. This study utilized both qualitative and quantitative data collected from different sources. This helped the author generate new perspectives and stimulate new directions in the…

Assessing students' language needs is the indispensable first step in EAP (English for Academic Purposes) curriculum development. In this article, we report a portion of the results from a needs assessment study whose ultimate purpose was to inform curriculum development in EAP contexts. We used the focus group methodology to examine learner needs…

National teacher shortages have driven the market for alternative means of teacher certification. This study sought to understand what mentorship means to 27 beginning teachers in a university-district partnership Alternative Certification Program (ACP) in an effort to understand the participants' perceptions. The process included administering…