That students' social and economic characteristics shape their cognitive and behavioral outcomes is well established, yet policymakers typically resist accepting that non-school disadvantages necessarily depress outcomes. Rather, they look to better schools and teachers to close achievement gaps, and consistently come up short. This report…

In a political climate where most public schools have reduced or eliminated P.E. entirely in response to budget cuts and increased pressure to improve academic test scores, Naperville High School in Illinois stands out as an anomaly. The school's already robust daily P.E. program is specifically designed around the notion that physical activity…

Explores the development of intelligence from different perspectives, each of which is relevant for researchers and practitioners interested in children's school performance. Provides information from basic research to better inform prevention and intervention efforts for improving children's school grades and behaviors. (Author/MKA)

Assessed the intellectual development and academic achievement of 87 diabetic children during the first 6 years of their illness. At the initial diagnosis, intellectual performance and school grades were in the average range. Over time, verbal intellectual performance and school grades declined, whereas nonverbal intellectual performance improved…

The relationship between a child's assumption of responsibility for intellectual-academic successes and failures and various performance scores was examined in the present investigation. An expanded version of the Crandall, Katkovsky, and Crandall (1967) Intellectual Achievement Responsibility (IAR) Questionnaire was administered to a total of 138…

The effects of father absence on educational achievement and intellectual development of 6- to 11-year-old children were investigated by employing a nationally representative sample of 5,493 father-present and 616 father-absent children from the Health Examination Survey of the National Center for Health Statistics. (Author/RH)

Examines consequences of family poverty for child development, noting evidence that deep or persistent poverty early in childhood adversely affects children's ability and achievement. Argues that although the 1996 welfare reforms spurred many welfare-to-work transitions, their time limits and sanctions are likely to deepen poverty among some…

To determine whether support systems ameliorated the impact of divorce on family stress and child adjustment, the present study examined the availability to divorced families of various support systems, including the extended family, church, work, and community groups. Specifically, the study addressed the impact of parental support systems on…

Assessed the effects of preschool education on achievement in primary school for 88 impoverished African American children and their families. Found that the positive effects of a preschool intervention program on intellectual development and academic achievement were maintained through age 12 and that school-age intervention alone was less…

Reviews the social-psychological research pertaining to female-headed families published between 1970-1980. Literature indicates that theoretically children do not need the presence of the same-sex/opposite-sex parents in the family to develop sex-role behavior. Suggests children in female-headed families are likely to have good emotional…

A review of literature pertaining to the effects of parental absence on children suggests that various types of absenteeism affect children differently. One-parent homes are examined with reference to effects on sex-role development, academic achievement, intellectual development and delinquency in children. (MS)

Discusses two methods for developing and assessing fluid abilities. In the first method, students are asked to solve increasingly unfamiliar problems in a domain; and in the second, students are required to organize knowledge in new ways or view it from different perspectives. (SLD)

To explain sexually abused children's various degrees of maladjustment, assessed behavior problems, social competence, and cognitive functioning in 53 black girls (5 to 16 years old). Internalizing dysfunction was positively related to three cognition-related variables: intellectual functioning, academic achievement, and age. Anxiety over the…

Multiage settings are alternative educational groupings that promote complexity in young children's thinking. Grouping children across ages and grades encourages interconnectedness in social and intellectual development. This study compared the academic achievement of one group of multiage students to national norms on standardized achievement…