This paper presents new experimental estimates of the impact of low-ability peers on own outcomes using nationally representative data from China. We exploit the random assignment of students to junior high school classrooms and find that the proportion of low-ability peers, defined as having been retained during primary school…

Studied the effect of homelessness on cognitive and academic functioning of children 6 to 11 years old in comparison to a control group of housed children in the same classroom. Found no differences in cognitive functioning between homeless and housed children, but did find that homeless children performed significantly more poorly than housed…

A study examined the performance on the Kaufman Assessment Battery for Children (K-ABC) for first grade students from a rural northwestern school who had received reading instruction via a structured, phonics-based reading program. Specifically, the study compared the performance of (1) three students scheduled for retention because of poor…

This collection of abstracts is part of a continuing series providing information on recent doctoral dissertations. The 38 titles deal with a variety of topics, including the following: (1) the effect of phrase-segmented, antiphrase segmented, and standard text on the free recall and probed recall of third and fourth grade developmental readers;…