Dominant discourses promote El Sistema and Sistema-inspired music education programmes as positively transforming young lives through social inclusion and musical excellence. However, critics have raised concerns that the El Sistema model has little support from objective, evidence-based research. To address this issue, the authors conducted a…

Assessment is a crucial component of gifted education. Not only does it facilitate the recognition of the potential and specific needs of gifted students, it also monitors the progress and growth of gifted students, and allows for the evaluation of gifted education programs. In the present review, we synthesize the literature on assessment in…

Students with autism spectrum disorders (ASD) are being included more frequently in the general educational setting, and are therefore increasingly expected to access and master core curricular content, including mathematics. However, mathematics often presents challenges to students with ASD. Interventions to improve the mathematics skills of…

Reviews twelve experimentally-designed longitudinal studies of infant education programs. Suggests that the more intense programs, those that had more hours of contact with children and included parents and children, had more positive intellectual effects on the children, parent behaviors, and family life circumstances. (KH)

Discusses results relating to student achievement with the Science Curriculum Improvement Study program based on Piaget's research on cognitive development. Also discusses results of research relating to social studies curriculum programs and Piagetian-based research studies. Outlines how social studies education would benefit from Piagetian-based…

Research on testing, use of intelligence scales, and use of personality scales is a major part of educational psychological research in Greece. A great deal of research has also been done in Greece on the problem of evaluating current educational practice. (BW)

Discusses how educating children to use maps for navigation may enhance wayfinding skills as well as general representation and spatial skills. Documents need for innovative educational curricula to meet challenges of teaching map navigation. Describes development and evaluation of "Where Are We?" curriculum to simulate real-world…

This review draws on research literature concerning preschool programs for at-risk children in the United States. Studies cited are those that meet relatively high standards of research quality. The term "at-risk" refers to children who are considered liable to develop behavioral problems and experience school failure because of their…

Focusing on spelling as an integral part of the writing process, this annotated bibliography addresses the problem of developing individualized, focused, and relevant methods for teaching spelling to elementary students. The annotations are organized around two specific questions: What strategies do children use to spell words and what…

Preliminary findings of an analysis of Head Start research evidence amassed from 1965 to the present are reported in this document, along with a summary of conclusions from related studies of preschool programs. Specifically presented are long-term findings of the Consortium for Longitudinal Studies concerning the lasting benefits of preschool…

The need for ongoing evaluation of physical education programs in the context of the total school curriculum is discussed, and the following objectives of physical education are identified: 1) development of attitudes toward physical activity based on individual student needs; 2) experience in physical ability; 3) knowledge about physical ability;…

Although it is generally believed that early intervention programmes are an effective means to stimulate children's cognitive development, many questions remain concerning programme design and delivery. This article reviews 19 studies into the effectiveness of early intervention programmes published from 1985 onward. The database comprised 85…

Reported in this document are proceedings of a forum on the relationships between the child and the family. Held March 1981 in Melbourne, Australia, the forum was jointly sponsored by the Institute of Family Studies and the Victorian Child Development and Family Services Council (CDFSC). Specifically, the purpose of the forum was to enable…

Reviews research on three issues related to the first edition of the developmentally appropriate practice (DAP) guidelines of the National Association for the Education of Young Children: (1) the prevalence of DAP; (2) teachers and parents beliefs about DAP and influence of beliefs on practice; and (3) how appropriate and inappropriate practice…

To make Head Start studies more accessible and to inform concerned audiences about major findings in the research, this volume provides a review of 124 Head Start studies published since 1970 and presents an annotated bibliography containing 1,448 entries on Head Start research undertaken since 1965. The literature review summarizes findings…