SREB states were among the first in the nation to set comprehensive state academic standards for K-12 schools. Setting these initial standards was only part of the job. Getting these standards right and keeping them right may be the most important task facing public education today. If state standards are too low, many public school graduates will…

The purpose of this study was to examine in detail the experiences of non-major undergraduate students progressing through an introductory physics course taught in a four-year research university, to discover why the students have these experiences, and to uncover the consequences of those experiences. A theory was developed for relating…

The Iowa-Scope, Sequence, and Coordination (SS&C) Program assists schools with reform of their entire middle school programs, grades 6-8, and features the science, technology, and society (STS) instructional approach. This reform translates to the creation of new frameworks for the school program and aims to produce "constructivist"…

The Utah, Colorado, Arizona, New Mexico-Rural Systemic Initiative (UCAN-RSI) supports systemic reform of mathematics, technology, and science education for rural students in its states, focusing on schools with high enrollments of American Indian and Hispanic students. This performance effectiveness review covers UCAN's progress during its third…

This study examined state and national benchmarks and standards for K-12 science instruction, curricular goals, and objectives for K-12 science, state, and national assessments that measure student achievement in science and student use of computers and technology for science in grades K-12. The study used survey data and student achievement…

The Urban Systemic Initiatives (USI) program is an effort sponsored by the National Science Foundation (NSF) that targets large urban school systems with the goal of sustainable implementation of high-quality, standards-based teaching for the purpose of attaining system-wide increases in students' learning of challenging mathematics and science.…

The purpose of this study was to use secondary analysis of a database known as the Third International Mathematics and Science Study (TIMSS) to examine the differences in a student's opportunity to learn mathematics and science and the differences in classroom teaching practices and delivery of the curriculum, and to investigate those variables…

The purpose of this study was to describe the validation of a new instrument called the Teacher Communication Behavior Questionnaire (TCBQ). This instrument is meant for use in assessing students' perceptions of their interactions with their teacher by focusing on their teachers' communicating behaviors. The study described in this paper occurred…

This report summarizes the 2005-2006 program evaluation results of AISD's Texas Accelerated Science Achievement Program.

Discusses the Project 2061 benchmarks, statements of what all students should know or be able to do in science, mathematics, and technology by the end of grades 2, 5, 8, and 12. (MKR)

Among 238 Canadian high school seniors who took a science achievement test, 15 were interviewed afterward. Girls scored lower than boys and more frequently cited school experiences (rather than informal experiences or common knowledge) as the basis for answers. Some items elicited spontaneous negative reactions from girls but not boys. Contains 55…

Presents a review of trends in student achievement by socioeconomic status and gender within ethnic groups. Suggests that patterns of achievement are alarmingly congruent over time and over studies. Contains 33 references. (DDR)

Investigates the assumption that girls will benefit from performance-based or hands-on science classrooms, by examining changes in students' attitudes toward science over the school year. Contains 46 references. (DDR)

Comparison of teaching practices of grade 7-8 science teachers in Ontario, Alberta, and Singapore found an implicit "formula for success" related to high scores on the Third International Mathematics and Science Study (TIMSS). Recent Ontario curriculum guidelines aimed at boosting TIMSS scores ignore provincial educational values that…

Results for students in England in the Third International Mathematics and Science Study (TIMSS) are quite good, but some weaknesses in the performance of Year 9 students on the practical tasks in science and mathematics of the TIMSS that are not apparent when overall results are examined are discussed. (SLD)