Advocates extra time between kindergarten and the first grade for academically and socially immature children to acquire learning skills and develop positive self-esteem. Includes three case studies of former transitional class students. (PKP)

Defines self-efficacy as personal judgments of performance capabilities in a given domain of activity and discusses the role of self-efficacy during classroom learning of cognitive skills. Research findings are presented showing how different educational practices affect self-efficacy. (NRB)

In America without excuse every child should start first grade ready to learn. This goal will require that we make high quality preschool available to all 3 and 4 year olds who are at risk of starting first grade behind. Otherwise, gaps in academic achievement between at risk and more affluent children will widen in the first, critically…

Gifted children learn to underachieve as they struggle to cope with discomforting psychological conflicts in the classroom. Using the underachieving gifted program in Cupertino, California as an example, the article provides basic information to guide intervention efforts aimed at preventing or reversing patterns of academic underachievement…

Increases in the number of older students are prompting some colleges to reconsider the purpose of undergraduate liberal education and adjust curricula and teaching methods to accommodate the more eager, active learners. Adult students may be more directly motivated by rising job requirements and a readiness for liberal arts. (MSE)

The key to developmentally appropriate practices is to let a child construct his or her own knowledge through interactions with the social and physical environment. Because the child is viewed as intrinsically motivated and self-directed, effective teaching capitalizes on the child's motivation to explore, experiment, and to make sense of his or…