The purpose of this study was to examine the influence of students' seating location in a large, lecture-style university course on student engagement, attention, classroom learning experience, and course performance. Participants (N = 407) were students in two cohorts of an undergraduate financial accounting course at a large university in the…

A meta-analysis of findings from 31 separate studies showed that ability grouping has significant positive effects on the academic performance of elementary school children. The benefits of grouping tended to be small in the typical study of achievement --an increase from the 50th to the 58th percentile for the typical student in a grouped class.…

Within the Caribbean context, the island of Montserrat included, ability grouping has been employed as the major organizational strategy to address academic deficiencies among high school students. Although no sound philosophical basis for this type of class/group organization has been enunciated, recent research has shown that students with poor…

This study focused on social and cooperative behavior in traditional science classrooms. Students in 30 junior and senior high school science classes were observed in terms of the amount of time spent on task, or time spent concentrating on the lesson. The physical organization of the classroom, the instructional style of the teacher, and the…

Three conclusions were drawn about within-class grouping after reviewing the work of several researchers on the following topics: teacher and student behavior, academic achievement, perceptions about reading groups, social class membership and reading group assignment, and the role of group cohesiveness. The conclusions were that: (1) although the…

The extent of variety in structure and format of teaching mathematics in fifth grade classrooms and its relation to student attention was studied. The data for this study consisted of observations made in eighteen math classes for a period of six to ten days with a mean of over eight days. Seatwork and recitation accounted for over 95 percent of…

The present study drew on existing theories and research to further uncover the mysteries of the college teaching/learning paradigm, particularly the causal links between effective instruction and student learning of novel lecture material. The experimental design involved 380 introductory psychology students and consisted of a Lecture…

A study was conducted at Bunker Hill Community College to assess the impact of the use of learning groups on student absenteeism and academic performance. The study involved four sections of a Biology 1 class. Two sections were designated as the control group and were taught using the traditional course format, which involved a 2-hour session in…

To facilitate cost effective bus schedules, middle school classes begin one hour later than high school classes in the Fort Worth Independent School District, Texas. This study investigated whether middle school students were adversely affected, in terms of grades and classroom performance, by having the class day extended to 4 p.m. High schools…

This study investigated interaction and achievement in cooperative small groups in four junior high school mathematics classrooms. Ninety-six students learned a one-week unit on consumer mathematics in mixed-ability or uniform-ability groups. Students in mixed-ability groups scored higher on a problem-solving test than students in uniform-ability…

Recent research by Smith and Glass indicates that academic achievement is often correlated with class size. Findings from the Beginning Teacher Evaluation Study suggest that teachers can do a better job with smaller classes partly because they are able to individualize instruction. Yet the possibility of reducing class size significantly is…

With new knowledge and tools at their disposal, educators at all levels are exploring alternatives to ability grouping in order to improve schooling for all students. Bringing about positive results requires the development and utilization of knowledge about how ability grouping affects schools, exploration of beliefs that support grouping, and…

The Copernican Plan is a way to organize high schools on the basis of research and experience concerning more effective and efficient instruction. Research indicates that large-block scheduling has proven to be very successful. In the plan, each student will enroll in one class at a time for about 4 hours each day for a period of 30 days. An…

This paper argues that the structure of activities provides the basis for a model of school organization and its effects on student outcomes. The observation is presented that it is within the context of daily activities that teachers and students make judgments about themselves and others, interact and form social ties, and experience social…

The 12 papers presented at the Research Symposium of the National Middle School Association's 1980 Annual Conference are reproduced in this document. Topics covered are teachers', principals', and national leaders' perceptions of the middle school; priorities of needs, competencies, and training of middle grade teachers; a case study of the…