A study of gay men and their experiences of "coming out" to their parents found that both the mother's and father's reported level of education and religious orthodoxy significantly predicted the relationship change between the mother or the father and the self-disclosing son. This study sought to broaden the available database by sampling both…

Issues in the resolution of departmental conflict by university chairs of educational administration departments are discussed in this paper. The need for finding more constructive ways to handle conflict is highlighted by a survey of 808 department chairs at 101 research and doctoral-granting universities, in which chairs identified…

Cost-effectiveness analysis and cost-benefit analysis are two related yet distinct methods to help decision makers choose the best course of action from among competing alternatives. For both types of analysis, costs are computed similarly. Costs may be reduced to present value amounts for multi-year programs, and parameters may be altered to show…

This module on planning skills contains the product development unit in a manufacturing course for grades 10, 11, and 12. The module helps students develop thinking, communication, and problem-solving skills and acquire knowledge relating to creation, retrieval, and use of information found on common project plans. The content outline includes the…

The Family Support Act (FSA) of 1988 provides opportunities for educators to form linkages with other agencies to strengthen families and help them move toward self-sufficiency. The FSA affords professionals chances to forge critical interagency connections and expand the range and capacity of programs for learners at risk. A strategy for forming…

A reading comprehension program was developed and implemented that addressed the needs of sixth-grade students. The program focused on critical thinking skills using a teamwork approach. Each heterogeneous small group used a checklist composed of before, during, and after reading questions and activities. At the conclusion of the 12-week…

This paper discusses an experiment designed to determine the effects of a problem-solving approach to instruction (PSAI) on eighth grade Algebra I students. Comparisons were made of the scores from the 1991 and 1993 Subject Area Testing Program--Algebra I of skills taught via PSAI and skills taught traditionally. In 1991 (n=56) eighth grade…

Using a teacher-researcher perspective, a study assessed a preschool storytelling program designed to promote children's narrative development. The program included workshops, child-teacher conferences, and adult and child performances. A preschool class of 17 four-year-olds listened to adult-told stories, rehearsed their own stories with a…

Reading is a skill that can complement a hands-on approach in learning relevant facts, concepts, and generalizations pertaining to different units of study. Teachers should guide students to have the ability to identify unknown words prior to their actual reading of subject matter in science. Pupils tend to make minimal mistakes in word…

Friedrich Froebel, an early advocate of the use of play in kindergarten teaching, argued that the ultimate goal of education was developing the creative person. According to Froebel, teachers could promote creativity through play by using gifts, occupations, and mother play songs. By contrast, Johann Herbart called for a subject centered…

The incidence of school violence has increased in recent years. In response to the escalation, Deborah Prothrow-Stith developed a violence prevention curriculum to be taught in high schools; it has also been used in middle schools. The first section of this journal issue's report, "Confronting an Epidemic" offers details of Prothrow-Stith's…

This study was designed to investigate the effects of the presence or absence of metacognitive skill tools available in hyperspace environments on field independent and field dependent learners. Learners were engaged in problem solving in an information-rich hyperspace based on a lesson on the attack on Pearl Harbor. Forty undergraduates were…

A study examined conflict resolution strategies employed by a kindergarten teacher with her class of 22 students. Naturalistic observation was used to investigate the strategies in instances of four specific behaviors: being aggressive, blaming, bossing, and tattling. The investigation revealed that, after repeated exposure to and numerous…

Six strategies for using reflective narratives to promote the professional development of school leaders are briefly described in this paper, which is designed to accompany "School Leadership: Reflections on Practice by California's Instructional Leaders." Narratives are characterized by subjective perceptions that are shaped by personal…

This paper presents a three-phase model of how formative evaluation research can inform the design of educational computer software products. Used as an illustrative case is a program of formative research conducted on "The Talking Clock," a computer assisted instructional software product designed to help children in kindergarten through second…