Noting that multiage classes during the elementary school years have been an option of educational practice in the United States since the introduction of graded education in the 19th century, this digest discusses the research on multiage education and its impact on academic achievement. Despite inconsistencies in research findings, those studies…

Research suggests that teacher quality is the single most important factor in determining student achievement and that the impact of a teacher is cumulative. Students with less exposure to qualified teachers are far less likely to achieve academic success than students with more exposure. Research also shows that teachers majoring in the subject…

Noting that multiage classes during the elementary school years have been an option of educational practice in the United States since the introduction of graded education in the 19th century, this digest, written in Spanish, discusses the research on multiage education and its impact on academic achievement. The digest points out that despite…

Since the 1980s, shared decision making (SDM) has become a significant part of school-reform efforts. Advocates say that SDM will improve student learning, create teacher satisfaction, and develop new forms of leadership. This digest presents an overview of research that investigated whether SDM delivers on these promises. Studies indicate that so…

Since the 1980s, shared decision making (SDM) has become a significant part of school-reform efforts. Advocates say that SDM will improve student learning, create teacher satisfaction, and develop new forms of leadership. This digest in Spanish presents an overview of research that investigated whether SDM delivers on these promises. Studies…

Career education is moving away from addressing careers as a single choice in time, or as one unit or course in a curriculum. This digest discusses the infusion of skills (research, thinking, questioning) into the regular school curriculum and describes one such infusion program. Research indicates that instilling these skills into education…

This digest provides a brief overview of the work of several influential standards-setting bodies established during the last decade and summarizes the primary ways in which classroom teachers participate in deriving, testing, implementing, and evaluating standards. The federal government is helping to shape the movement to develop rigorous…

Perfectionist students are not satisfied with merely doing well or even with doing better than their peers. They are satisfied only if they have done a job perfectly. Problems associated with forms of perfectionism that focus on seeking success are relatively minor, but problems associated with forms of perfectionism that focus on avoiding failure…

This ERIC digest focuses on students who are commonly described as shy (inhibited, lacking in confidence, socially anxious) or withdrawn (unresponsive, uncommunicative, or daydreaming). Symptoms of shyness or withdrawal may appear as part of the student's overall personality or as a situation-specific response to a particular stress factor.…