If classroom teachers are among the greatest determinant of student learning, then teacher preparation programs have a role to play improving educational outcomes for struggling learners. There are currently three established teacher preparation program models: (1) "discrete"; (2) "integrated"; and (3) "merged." In the "discrete" model, which is…

A study involving two vocational-technical high schools, four high schools, and an alternative program for middle and high school students, investigated factors affecting implementation and sustainability of self-determination activities within the schools. The importance of engaging general educators in dialogue about the self-determination…

The 14 Job Training Partnership Act (JTPA)-funded youth employment programs to which the Academy for Educational Development (AED) has delivered technical assistance for the past 5 years illustrate several important conditions for effective programming and "best practices" in the field of youth employment and training. Four of the JTPA…

One of a set of twelve documents describing the Career Planning Support System (CPSS) and its use, this guide is designed to help the CPSS coordinator become familiar with CPSS and his or her role. (The Career Planning Support System is a comprehensive guidance program management system which (1) provides techniques to improve a high school's…

Several decades of studies evaluating youth employment programs funded through the nation's second-chance system have demonstrated the shortcomings of programs that concentrate on work experience alone and try to reverse years of inadequate education, discrimination, and alienation in a few weeks or months. The School-to-Work Opportunities Act…

The central theme of the 10-day National Leadership Conference (NLC), sponsored by the American Youth Foundation at Camp Miniwanca (Michigan), is to train high school students in leadership for service; its goal is to sharpen service-learning leadership skills of young people and teachers and to encourage their application to transform and serve…

Reports research on a pilot project in Western Australia in which single-sex science and mathematics classes were begun in 10 coeducational secondary schools. The program involved professional development for participating teachers and systematic monitoring. Analyzes teachers' reactions to the program and major issues concerning student outcomes,…

A party of vocational educators from the United Kingdom (UK) traveled to the Federal Republic of Germany (FRG) to observe the nature and scope of vocational counseling and guidance in that country. During their study, the observers focused their attention on the problems of the transition from school to working life; arbeitslehre, or education…

The problem of social exclusion in Poland was examined along with possible strategies for combating social exclusion through vocational education and training (VET). The examination began with an analysis of the special needs of individuals who have reduced opportunities within the labor market and/or are members of national and ethnic minorities.…