This study examines semester schools, which have elements associated with transformative learning, and an adolescent population, where transformative learning has less commonly been studied. We administered the Learning Activities Survey pre/post semester (n = 173) and followed the survey with semistructured interviews (n = 30) to assess whether…

This study investigated the role of special education administrators in the transition planning process for children with disabilities ages 3-21 in selected Washington school districts. A basic qualitative study was selected to construct meaning from a described phenomenon. The study sought to identify and explain how special education…

Are our current ways of talking about "the problem of adolescence" really that different than those of past generations? For the past decade, Act Your Age! has provided a provocative and now classic analysis of the accepted ways of viewing teens. By employing a groundbreaking "history of the present" methodology that resists traditional…

A qualitative study was undertaken to explore the perceptions of youth regarding their wilderness rites of passage experience and its value for their lives. The researchers operated in an interpretive / constructivist paradigm and employed a qualitative research methodology. Participants were selected through purposive sampling, and individual…

Background: The physical environment influences adolescent health behavior and personal development. This article examines the relationship between level of school disrepair and substance use among students attending regular high school (RHS) and alternative high school (AHS). Methods: Data were collected from students (N = 7058) participating in…

Adolescence is an important time in human development. Teenagers spend much time questioning their core belief structures and developing the foundations of their identity. For students who identify as lesbian, gay, bisexual, or transgender (LGBT), this path of development is difficult in American schools because of strongly held homophobic…

An alternative curriculum model in operation at San Andreas High School, Larkspur, California. (MB)

An interview-based survey of 16 young parents in an urban alternative high school attempted to determine why certain youth remain in school after having children. Questions covered staff, setting, and curriculum. The authors suggest implications for dropout prevention. (CH)

Provides a historical framework for defining peer sexual harassment as a sex discrimination issue and as a potential mental health issue. Reviews the research on teenage-peer sexual harassment. Explores a theoretical context in which to understand sexual harassment and discusses the implications for social work practice in education. (MKA)

Adolescents often pursue learning opportunities both in and outside school once they become interested in a topic. In this paper, a learning ecology framework and an associated empirical research agenda are described. This framework highlights the need to better understand how learning outside school relates to learning within schools or other…

School psychologists engaged in ecological assessment need to measure the degree to which children's behaviors fit the demands of the school environment. Although no standardized instruments serve that purpose, rating scales and simulation/role plays can be adapted to measure the person-environment (PE) fit. Although most behavior rating scales…

Self-realization requires both protection and challenge from the environment. The developmental conditions of home and school are not meeting the needs of different children with their highly diverse and unique potentialities, especially in the provision of a proper balance between protection and challenge. (Author/SJL)

Following several "quality of life" models and a model of schooling, researchers developed a "quality of school life" model with four dimensions, including general satisfaction, positive affect, negative affect, and domains specific to education. The domains relate to students' personal experiences regarding particular school…

This paper examines the skills and competencies which give students the opportunity to act effectively in social situations in relation to a student's view of self as competent, thus enabling him to take advantage of his opportunities. The sample was drawn from all 14 and 15 year olds attending state secondary schools in the State of Victoria,…

Single-sex adventure education programs for adolescent women give them space to challenge traditional feminine roles, relate to other women without the pressures of mixed-sex groups, and examine issues such as personal relationships and health within a safe environment. If there are insufficient women facilitators, male staff should have awareness…