Presented are the results of a survey of 18 to 34 year-old Americans regarding at-risk behaviors. Compares results to educational achievement. Predicts a widening gap between educated and non-educated Americans in terms of health related problems. (CW)

Reports on a study investigating the importance of audio and textual redundancy in a computer-based, multimedia training program with identical content that undergraduate students used under one of the following conditions: full-text and totally redundant audio delivery; partial-text with full audio delivery; or graphics only with full audio…

Asserts that new student assessment methods incorporate more direct assessment of student knowledge and performance. Describes changes in student assessment in California as a result of state and federal reform efforts. Discusses classroom implications and the role of teachers using the new assessment techniques. (CFR)

The paper presents an overview of a two-year program called PETOM (Preservice Education for Teachers of Minorities), which receives funding from the Kamehameha Schools and the University of Hawaii to prepare teachers of underachieving minority children. The program educates teachers who can make school successful for Hawaii's minority students.…

The importance of cognitive internal state words in skilled reading comprehension was studied with 31 5th graders, 32 7th graders, and 10th graders. Positive correlations with cognitive word knowledge were significantly higher for verbal than quantitative achievement percentiles. The order of cognitive word acquisition depends on complex factors.…

Discussion of computer literacy, database technology, and higher-order thinking skills focuses on a study that compared the problem-solving performance of fourth-grade students receiving search strategy training during computer-assisted instruction with students who did not receive training. Time spent on problems and the number of correct answers…

Recent meta-analysis of studies of computer-based education (CBE) assessed effects on student cognitive skills, academic achievement, and attitudes. CBE methods include drill-and-practice, simulation, and tutorials. Program guides and evaluation criteria are listed. Effectiveness of CBE varied with age, ability, and program type, and basic…

Examines effects of socioeconomic status, school funding, English proficiency, and Latino population concentration on achievement scores of students in grades 3, 6, and 12 in 66 rural California school districts. Performance on the California Assessment Program was predicted primarily by parental socioeconomic status, and, unexpectedly, improved…

A survey of 2,000 Western Australia high school seniors indicates that, although most are unlikely to qualify for university, most would prefer it to vocational training. Institutional preferences are linked to their own perceived level of academic achievement and overall image of the institution. Implications for university marketing are…

The relationships among attributional beliefs, self-perception of competence, knowledge, and reported use of learning and reading strategies were investigated with 104 fifth graders, 133 seventh graders, and 101 ninth graders with and without learning difficulties. Mediating effects of strategic learning and implications for instruction are…

Reports a study that examined headteachers' perspectives on England's 1993 teacher boycott of government-imposed standard assessment tasks (SATs) for elementary students together with teachers' attitudes toward the tasks, their management, and the boycott. Findings confirmed that, by 1993, resistance to national testing at that age was firmly…

Maintains that the past two decades have seen a remarkable growth in alternative education options, particularly home schooling. Asserts that the parents' religious and moral beliefs are primary reasons for the home schooling movement. Reviews research on home schooling and calls for more relevant lines of inquiry. (CFR)

A case study of one female middle school student examined her tendency toward learned helplessness. Observations and interviews with the student and her teachers indicated that she lacked confidence; her belief that she could not change her intellectual and social situation was pervasive. Approaches to intervention are discussed. (SM)

Maintains that to prepare students for the next century, music teachers must prepare them to be technologically literate in music. Describes the technology-based music education program at Ortega Elementary School in Austin, Texas. (CFR)

Kindergartners and first-graders in regular classrooms were compared to students in nongraded, continuous-progress settings. Comparisons on academic achievement and school attitudes indicated differences favoring nongraded, continuous-progress settings for various academic and citizenship skills. Girls in the nongraded, continuous-progress group…