Well established as a teaching resource and course text, this guide to the "whats," "how-tos," and "whys" of reading assessment is now in a thoroughly revised fourth edition. Peter Afflerbach succinctly introduces major types of assessments, including formative and summative performance assessments, teacher…

Academic advising has been researched and linked to student retention and completion in numerous studies. New state initiatives, legislative funding pressure, and financial aid changes have increased pressure on accurate, timely, and intrusive advising to increase timely graduation and student success. As academic advising played a vital role in…

I have worked with students at-risk for the greater majority of my career. The term has a number of meanings. Officially, it means they are at-risk of failing, but often the risks are much greater. At one extreme they are at-risk of losing their lives to substance abuse or suicide. Less drastically they are at-risk of making their way through the…

A school's educational objective should include three major types of goals for each individual: (1) Preparation for an appropriate occupational role, (2) preparation for the responsibilities of citizenship, and (3) preparation for enjoying leisure activities. Previous efforts to individualize education have been relatively ineffective. An example…

Describes procedures for writing an effective counseling curriculum guide to meet the individual needs of children, kindergarten through grade 12, based on the guide developed at the Vestavia Hills School System. Focuses on the importance of a developmental guide, special education and career preparation, and selection of appropriate content. (JAC)

This article presents the author's views on the present situation of American high schools. The current American high school system fails in satisfying the demands placed upon it by all sectors of American society in all classes, regions and ethnicities. He further points out several problems. Along with it, he discusses some academic adjustments…

College counselors can expand their role from remedial to primary prevention methods of dealing with students. Intervention can be directed at groups determined to be at risk to reduce onset of emotional distress. (JAC)

Asserts that assessment tools created by instructors or counselors can be effective in exploring students' individual needs and providing a foundation for appropriate interventions. Presents a Student Information Sheet, which elicits basic information, and two measures created to explore academic self-concept and students' self-concept related to…

Guidelines issued by the Ministry of Education suggested a needs assessment model for designing school guidance programs. Subsequently, an instrument was developed to enable school guidance personnel to conduct an assessment of student needs. A 119-item questionnaire reflecting 13 areas of need was administered to 313 secondary students. Students…

In response to concerns about the role of the school counselor in guidance programs, the Maryland State Board of Education appointed a one-year task force to study the guidance programs in Maryland schools and to make recommendations for program improvement. The responsibilities of the task force were to: (1) establish state goals and objectives…