Two recent studies imply that there is a negative selection process at work which systematically attracts and then holds in the teaching profession young people with modest verbal and quantitative abilities. The Vance & Schlecty study compared "recruits"--those who had: (1) majored in education; (2) taught school; or (3) obtained a certificate to…

A causal model of a cycle of student performance is proposed. Two investigations were conducted in Australia, studying individuals and classrooms. Attitudes toward, and achievement in, mathematics and science were measured. The roles of attentiveness and teachers' use of time were also studied. (GDC)

Research which has investigated factors affecting pupils' attitudes toward school subjects is reviewed, examining descriptive, correlational, and experimental research on students' attitudes toward several different school subjects at various grade levels. Although many weaknesses exist in the methodology and theoretical basis of much of the…