Only by examining the way teachers actually use instructional time and engage students in the teaching-learning process can educators gain a clearer understanding of student learning. A critical examination of students' opportunity to learn should include the goals a teacher holds for students and the tasks assigned, the teaching methods utilized,…

As a precursor to making recommendations for more effective assessment methods for teacher certification, an examination is made of the professions of law and medicine. Specifically, the examination covers the relationship between training programs and the methods employed for evaluating prospective lawyers and doctors to ensure that they have the…

Data from a national survey of principals in public schools with a 7th grade were used in this study of schools that serve disadvantaged, advantaged, and other populations. Differences in the schools' course-taking opportunities, organizational structures, extracurricular programs, remedial activities, instructional approaches, staffing needs, and…

The role influx of underprepared students has challenged community colleges to develop effective ways to improve teaching and learning strategies in the classroom. In 1990, a study was conducted by the Mississippi State University Educational Media Center to compare the effects of traditional versus Computer Assisted Instruction (CAI) on the…

Annual use of fuel oil for heating schools and other facilities of the Montgomery County (Maryland) Public Schools, Montgomery County Government, and Montgomery College exceeds four-million gallons. This report examines the processes by which purchases and distributions of fuel oil are made, makes recommendations based on the examination, and…

To help teachers develop an awareness of how they structure a discussion, an instrument was constructed called the Assessment of Classroom Interaction Dynamics (ACID). Two expert judges and 26 trainees then participated in a study (1) to estimate interrater reliability between expert judges in the use of the ACID, (2) to assess the validity of the…

Contrastive rhetoric theory, an extension of contrastive grammar, holds that the rhetorical predispositions of a student's native language will interfere with attempts to learn the rhetoric of a second language; and that because speakers of different languages think differently, they organize paragraphs differently, a situation which influences…

Drawing on information from 15 sources, this literature review discusses advantages/disadvantages of small schools and summarizes practices for both rural and urban small schools to follow to maintain educational quality despite dwindling enrollments and resources. Small school disadvantages in the areas of staff, instructional program, and…

These four case studies examine the introduction of interactive videodisc technology into three classroom settings by two art and two science teachers at the elementary school level. Five models of videodisc use were employed: (1) teacher presentation or teacher-led class discussion; (2) activity stimulus; (3) programmed disc-based environments…

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…

A study compared the effects of two instructional strategies on ninth grade students' reading comprehension, retention, and attitude. Students in 15 ninth-grade classes were randomly assigned to one of three treatments: summary writing (SW), writing short answers to questions (QA), and rereading (RR), (control). The dependent measures were good…

This research review examines the effects of instructional variables on the learning of handicapped and nonhandicapped individuals. The research review begins with an historical look at learning disabilities research. An overall analysis of the differential effects of instructional variables on learning-disabled and nonhandicapped individuals…

The reading skill development of anglophone kindergarten children in French immersion programs in Canada is the subject of the two papers included in this document. The first paper describes a study that examined the English reading ability of both kindergarten and first grade children in immersion programs and compared the results with those of…

Intended to engage students in a comparative look at local history in two upper Mississippi river towns (Winona, Minnesota and Dubuque, Iowa), this paper describes the computer-assisted component of an upper-level American Studies course. With emphasis on the 19th century, students examine the transition made by the United States from a…

The role of different types of testing instruments in second language programs is discussed. Knowledge-based tests, including discrete-point and integrative tests are contrasted with direct tests, including the Foreign Service Institute Scale and the Australian Second Language Proficiency Ratings (ASLPR). The ASLPR is described in detail in terms…