The adversities that today's families face are well-documented and staggering. Even in the midst of tough times, however, many families are able to display resilience. Family resilience refers to the coping mechanisms the family uses as a functional unit to recover from life's setbacks. In this article, the authors present guidelines for creating…

Hierarchical linear modeling is used to assess individual student, family, and school predictors of aggression in 111,662 students in sixth, seventh, and eighth grades. Nine measures of problem-solving strategies, quality of family and peer interaction, and perceptions of school climate are analyzed at the individual student level. Eight measures…

As concern with the level of violence in society increases, this document suggests one approach to reducing violence is to develop nonviolent conflict resolution programs to provide people with the skills to solve problems collaboratively. These programs also may encourage people to refocus the way they experience conflict in their lives. They…

This brief report documents growth in mathematics achievement during the high school years and its relationship to differential course taking in mathematics. Data are taken from the National Education Longitudinal Study of 1988 (NELS:88), which was designed to monitor the transition of the nation's 1988 eighth graders as they progress from junior…

The articles in this annotated bibliography represent holdings of the Test Center in the area of assessment alternatives in mathematics. Presence on the list does not imply endorsement of the practices by the Test Center; rather, articles are made available to stimulate thinking and provide ideas. Some entries present informal assessments intended…

A study investigated the application of Geert Hofstede's theory of cultural dimensions in management to the situation of Malaysian (n=8) and American (n=4) instructors in implementing a new English-as-a-Second-Language curriculum in Malaysia. American and Malaysian cultures are compared on four dimensions: social differentiation by gender; desire…

This study examined ways in which two independent variables, peer collaboration and the use of a specific tool (the TAPS interface), work together and individually to shape students' problem-solving processes. More specifically, the researchers were interested in determining how collaboration and TAPS use cause metacognitive processes to differ…

Problem-based learning (PBL) offers students the opportunity to apply the appropriate knowledge to a well-defined problem, allowing students to apply academic problem-solving skills to their own real-life problems. This paper describes outcomes of a PBL program that was used as a tool for school improvement in three South Carolina schools--one…

Concern for disruptive behavior in the classroom has been an ongoing issue at the local, state, and national level. This report describes a program for improving behavior and academic success through a caring classroom. The targeted population consisted of elementary students in growing rural and urban communities at three different elementary…

Problem-based learning (PBL) uses adult-learning theory to structure the instructional process around presentation of a problem. Learning events emulate real-life situations as closely as possible. This paper describes how two middle schools and one high school implemented a structured staff-development approach aimed at teaching teachers how to…

This keynote address seeks to establish a definition for "instructional technology" that does not emphasize computer hardware and software but instead focuses on human skills, resource management, problem solving, and educational settings. Also discussed are ways in which technology like electronic mail and the world wide web has…

This report describes a program to establish a positive school climate. The targeted population consisted of elementary students in a low socioeconomic area. The problems of poor interpersonal skills and inappropriate social behaviors were documented through structured observations, surveys, and school records. Analysis of probable cause data…

Problem-based learning (PBL), often used in medical education, is an educational approach that organizes curriculum and instruction around carefully crafted "ill-structured" problems, to which students apply knowledge from multiple disciplines and critical thinking. PBL is being investigated as a teaching approach for elementary and middle…

HyperProb is a Hypercard tutoring system designed to help students develop an effective step-by-step schema for solving probability problems. With this program, students are able to select areas they wish to study via hypermedia links and develop an understanding of terminology and procedures at their own pace with continued reinforcement. Nine…

In supervising counselors who are called upon to function as classroom teachers, a solution-focused intervention model can be effectively adapted to the supervision. In general, solution-focused models emphasize strengths and successes over weaknesses and problems. In the context of supervision, a solution-focused model assumes that supervisees…