This paper uses data from the Schools and Staffing Survey (SASS) to examine two main facets of teacher qualifications: teacher certification and degree level. After noting the importance of teacher qualifications to student achievement and to public confidence in the educational system, Section 1 looks at sources of partly certified teachers. One…

A survey was conducted of 55 regular classroom teachers who referred students to special education in three Connecticut school systems to determine their predictions of the results of psycho-educational assessment and their perceptions of the instructional relevance of standardized psychological and educational test results. The findings of this…

This experimental study investigated internal (psychological characteristics) and external (World Wide Web site features) factors influencing learning and disorientation in Web navigation. The research design was a two-factors ANOVA (ANalysis Of VAriance) with mode of navigation (linear, nonlinear) and distracters (i.e., the presence of…

In a study to determine appropriate research course content, differences between undergraduate and graduate social work students' achievement in an introductory research course were examined. The best predictors of achievement were undergraduate grade point average, interest in the class, and for graduate students, prior experience in research.…

Studied high school students' (N=31) perceptions of significant adults as well as possible relationships between facets of alienation. Results showed parents were the adults most frequently named as significant. Teachers were not often chosen. There were no differences in adult relationship patterns between alienated and nonalienated students.…

A study attempting to disambiguate earlier research on personality orientations and second language learning assessed the influence of ethnicity (English v. French), milieu (unicultural v. multicultural), and target second language (French, English, or Spanish) on the emergence of eighth graders' orientations toward the second language learning…

A statistical analysis of the predictive potential of academic and nonacademic student characteristics in an architecture school provides a model for other institutions to make their admissions processes and programs for retention more effective. The study was of 10 freshman architecture classes at the University of Kansas. (MSE)

Examined association between Life Satisfaction Ratings at age 70 and cognitive, personality, interpersonal, and family characteristics at age 30. Predictive characteristics of life satisfaction at 70 were, for women, a buoyant, responsive attitude toward life; for men, emotional and physical health. (Author/RC)

Comparisons of graduate student couples indicated lower levels of marital adjustment (consensus and affection) for couples where only the husband was a student. Suggests variables other than student status may relate to marital adjustment. When only the wife was a student, family income was higher and couples were older. (Author)

Reviews several potential problems that often invalidate statistical tests of social theories. Discusses how there may be very serious identification problems in the estimation of the relationship between executions and homicides, and that serious questions may be raised regarding the validity of any particular estimation of this relationship.…

The transcripts of 154 adult graduates of a nontraditional Bachelor of Arts program were compared to those of 103 adults who became inactive. The results indicate that both the background of the adult learner and the type of courses chosen for degree completion are predictors of success. (Author/MLW)

The predictive ability of five characteristics of elementary school teachers on curriculum implementation was studied. The variables were dogmatism, knowledge, seniority, attitudes, and locus of control. Dogmatism was the best predictor; attitude was the poorest. Locus of control, as hypothesized, was related to the attribution of success or…

Using National Opinion Research Center Social Survey data, predictors of stance on sex education were identified as: attitude toward premarital sex; attitude toward race integration of schools; and the interaction of farm/small town origins, being supervised at work, and having a low educational level. (Author/JAC)

This study tested six propositions for which empirical support is expected if an IQ meritocracy governs the process of socioeconomic achievement. Results indicated that the model of an IQ meritocracy is only partially supported. (Author/DB)

A 27-item measure assessed college peer environments in terms of friends' interests as perceived by individual students. Four dimensions of interests were identified in cluster analyses: collegiate activities, intellectual pursuits, apathy or alienation, and traditional adult orientation. These dimensions were related to social, psychological, and…