Why do some students go above and beyond what is asked of them while others do just enough to get by? This "Focus On" debunks common underachievement myths (such as "some students aren't capable of learning" or "underachievers are lazy") and looks at ways to create a motivating classroom by providing teachers with effective strategies for engaging…

Reading difficulties and disabilities present serious and potentially lifelong challenges. Children who do not read well are more likely to be retained a grade in school, drop out of high school, become a teen parent, or enter the juvenile justice system. Building on the extant research and seminal studies, including the National Reading Panel and…

Education reform has been on a new path over the last 15 years; a path that leads to more accountability, more choice for students and parents, highly qualified teachers, as well as, best practices in instruction. In an effort to move along the path of reform and as a result of previous reform, the 2004 reauthorization of IDEA reviewed the field…

This issue focuses on practices that can help improve reading instruction and includes two announcements from Southwest Educational Development Laboratory (SEDL). It begins with a look at study groups, the practice of teachers getting together to focus on instructional practices and student learning. Stacey Joyner, a staff member of SEDL's Texas…

This paper discusses the characteristics of children who are gifted and have attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD). Seven principles to reach and teach gifted learners with ADHD are recommended: (1) remembering that these learners have needs just like other children in their age groups; (2) having realistic expectations in helping these…