Students who drop out of their science, technology, engineering, and math (STEM) majors commonly report that they lack skills critical to STEM learning and career pursuits. Many training programs exist to develop students' learning skills and they typically achieve small to medium effects on behaviors and performance. However, these programs…

"U-Pace" instruction, comprised of concept mastery and amplified assistance, has shown promise in increasing undergraduate success. To evaluate the efficacy of "U-Pace" instruction for students at risk for college noncompletion and students not at risk and to determine whether concept mastery, amplified assistance, or both…

In this quasi-experimental study, we assessed the promise of Word Generation, a research-based academic vocabulary program, on improving the reading achievement outcomes of struggling sixth-grade readers in an after-school small group instructional setting. After 34 hours of academic vocabulary instruction, we compared the performance of a…

This study utilized an experimental pretest-posttest control group design to determine if changing the way academically high-risk college students view intelligence affected their academic effort and achievement when compared to students in a control intervention. Results indicated that students taught to view intelligence as malleable reported…

Close to half of all community college students leave before obtaining their stated goals. In order to determine what student characteristics increase community college student retention, with a heightened interest on the predictive nature of taking a student success course, a post-facto quasi-experimental study was conducted to determine whether…

The purpose of this investigation was to examine the efficacy of repeated readings on the oral reading fluency rate and reading comprehension accuracy of high school students with specific learning disabilities. The participants included three tenth and eleventh grade students with specific learning disabilities in a study skills resource…

Finds that students in a comprehensive developmental studies program (study skills course and required attendance of tutoring sessions) exceeded their predicted grade point average significantly more than the comparison groups, and that instructors reported a greater number of positive behaviors on the part of these students in their classes.…

The goal of the Exemplary Center for Reading Instruction (ECRI) is to improve elementary and secondary students' ability to use their language--to read fluently and with expression, to understand what they read and hear, and to use this understanding so they can communicate effectively. ECRI is a pre- and in-service program for teachers to learn…

A 6-year ex post facto study compared the word study skills, word reading/reading vocabulary, reading comprehension, and total reading achievement of Choctaw Indian first and second grade classes that participated in the Sing, Spell, Read, & Write (SSRW) program and classes that had not participated in the program. Subjects were 84 students in…

In winter 1995, a study was conducted at Rochester Community College (RCC), in Minnesota, to examine the effectiveness of a study skills class (SS198). Specifically, the study sought to determine if the course met established criteria of retaining 50% of completers in good academic standing for 1 year, to compare retention rates to non-enrolled…

These papers are partial fulfillment of the requirements for the Master of Science Degree in Education at Winona State University in Winona, Minnesota. The cohort included a variety of licensure areas that represent most levels and content areas of K-12 education. The students were encouraged to keep their questions and hypothesis directed at…