"Contemporary Perspectives on Girls' Educational Achievement: What About the Girls?" offers fresh insights into girls' perceptions and experiences of educational achievement in the contemporary context. 'What about the boys?' is a common exclamation in debates which centre around young people's educational achievements. But what about…

Study abroad programs have proven beneficial for both the international student as well as the domestic community and school population interacting with the student. In an effort to promote cultural awareness, intercultural communications as well as opportunities for future study abroad program success, universities must take care to provide…

Using data from the National Education Longitudinal Study of 1988 (NELS:88), the authors investigate whether four groups of Asian Americans (Chinese, Korean, Filipino, and South East Asian) show comparable scores on variables that past studies have found to be related to academic achievement and whether these variables similarly predict academic…

In a recent issue of "Educational Action Research," Stephen Kemmis argued that action research should be participative in nature and involve "open communication" by engaging the voices and perspectives of others besides teachers, such as students, parents/caregivers and other community members. This article explores the…

Cross-cultural differences in creative thinking were assessed for 51 American and 54 Japanese college students. The American students showed significantly higher scores on the Torrance Tests of Creative Thinking (TTCT) figural test than the Japanese students. No gender differences were found in either culture. TTCT performance did not correlate…

Family-school partnerships are increasingly touted as a means of improving both student and school improvement. This recognition has led to an increase in policies and initiatives that offer the following benefits: improved communication between parents and educators; home and school goals that are mutually supportive and shared; better…

This paper presents an empirical positivist approach to an educational research problem: what factors influence the educational achievement of Maltese-Australian children in Melbourne Schools? The research tested the hypothesis that Maltese-Australian students were more field dependent than Anglo-Celtic Australians and what the role of cognitive…

This book elucidates the amazing life journeys of academically successful migrant students. Most literature on Hispanic students--especially the children of migrant farm workers who have been referred to as the "invisible children," or the children of "ghost workers"--has focused on the sociocultural factors that have contributed to their low…

Investigates whether Black and White first-grade students' cognitive growth as marked by teachers is affected by the same factors as those that affect their growth as gauged by the California Achievement Test. Finds that factors are much more closely matched for White children than for Black. (SKC)

Harter's Perceived Competence Scale for Children was administered to 714 Taiwanese fifth graders; results were compared with those from American samples. Cultural differences were found. Results among Chinese replicate the measures' factorial validity and, across the two groups, indicate a high correlation between perceived cognitive competence…

Based on intensive interviews and observations in a scientifically selected sample of over 100 Israeli schools, this study presents a detailed picture of the characteristics of school curricula and cultures, and the attitudes and expectations of students, teachers, principals, and parents with regard to curriculum and school culture in the…

Using 1980 census data, examines incomes of females entering the United States between 1970 and 1980 who represented diverse cultures from 59 countries. Determines that educational attainment and English proficiency reflect positively in higher incomes. Finds female immigrant incomes are inversely proportionate to male labor force participation.…

Chinese, Japanese, and American children at grades 1 and 5 were given a battery of 10 cognitive tasks and tests of achievement in reading and mathematics. Goals were to determine (1) possible differences in cognitive abilities and (2) the possible differential relation of scores on cognitive tasks to reading by children of the three cultures.…

Demonstrates how structural equation modeling can be used to translate a verbal theory into a mathematical model that can be estimated and tested, and from which inferences can be drawn. Data used was taken from a previous study of the effects of family socialization on the formation of achievement values and self-concept. (Author/RH)

Investigates age, sex, and cultural differences in achievement motivation. Subjects were 764 male and female British high school and Chinese students aged 13-55. Results revealed that Chinese students tested highest for achievement motivation. Discusses the entire range of results in terms of sociocultural and situational factors. (MJP)