This book examines the conditions for learning from the perspective of those students for whom schools are not productive and satisfying settings. Both current and desired characteristics of school environments are examined from the standpoint of their effect on marginal students. Questions probed include how difficulties begin and why individuals…

In 1985-86, after five years of implementation, the New York City (New York) Public Schools transferred responsibility for the Promotional Policy Program to the community school district. This report provides information about the success of the remedial reading program under this new organization in terms of student outcomes. Promotional…

Replication of the Second International Mathematics Study (SIMS) in Ontario, Canada, is described and assessed. The curriculum and testing program covers numerical methods, geometry, and algebra. Whereas classical studies focused on mean scores of a system's students and on percentages of teachers for opportunity to learn (OTL), SIMS aggregates…

Presented are abstracts and abstractors' analyses of 10 studies related to one or more aspects of teacher education and 2 studies in a "miscellaneous" category. Analyses in the first section (teacher education) are on studies of: the use of wait-time and its effect on science achievement; teacher competencies; the influence of teacher…

First presented as papers in a symposium on literacy conducted at the University of Alabama, essays in this volume explore three areas of human literacy--law, linguistics, and the English language; testing; and literacy's relation with culture and human consciousness. Following an introduction examining literacy as a human problem, the following…

Intended for use with students preparing for careers in school psychology, the text assumes little familiarity with special education and focuses on those aspects of special education of greatest relevance for the assessment process. The book is divided into two major parts: Part I, "General Considerations," includes a brief description of the…

This manual contains a work sample intended to assess a handicapped student's interest in and potential to enter a training program in electronics assembly or in a similar program. Section 1 describes the assessment, correlates the work performed and worker traits required for completing the work sample, and lists related occupations and DOT…

The guide provides strategies for regular teachers to use with visually impaired (VI) students in the province of Alberta, Canada. After an introduction, definitions of terms such as "adventitiously blind" are presented. Next addressed are effects of visual impairment on cognitive development, emotional and social aspects, and…

The 11th annual report from the New Jersey Basic Skills Council provides information on the level of basic skills (verbal, computation, and elementary algebra) among freshmen admitted to New Jersey's public colleges and universities. Proficiency levels are estimated from performance on the New Jersey College Basic Skills Placement Test (NJCBSPT).…

This report on the educational concerns of blacks is part of a four-part study of minority education in the United States by the National Education Association (NEA). Data were gathered from four site visits to urban schools and from the testimony of 40 representatives of community and civil rights organizations, the business community, black…

This paper describes teacher usage of the microcomputer programs Test Analysis Package (TAP) and Student Problem Package (SPP) to analyze students' test item responses. These methods of organizing, analyzing, and reporting test results have proven useful to classroom teachers. The TAP consists of four integrated microcomputer programs to edit,…

This report covers the levels of basic skills (verbal and computational skills and elementary algebra skills) among freshmen admitted to New Jersey's public colleges and universities during 1988. These levels of proficiency are estimated from results of the New Jersey College Basic Skills Placement Test. Designed both to assist colleges in the…

The Commonwealth of Massachusetts has had a competency-based vocational instructor approval process for more than two and one-half decades. Perhaps the most important element in this process has been the vocational competency testing. Although some say that Massachusetts is out of step, others feel that Massachusetts has a well-established testing…

A self-instructional program in German for undergraduate students of engineering at Trinity College, Dublin, was developed based on a questionnaire of student needs, language experience, and preferred instructional methods. The course design and instructional materials for the program emphasized oral/aural skills; moreover, counseling and academic…

This review covers approximately 300 studies, including journal articles, dissertations, and papers presented at conferences. The studies are organized under these major headings: status surveys; scientific reasoning; elementary school science (student achievement, student conceptions/misconceptions, student curiosity/attitudes, teaching methods,…