Examined relationship between personal assistance and level of productivity, using sample of 30 Japanese adults with severe physical disabilities. Found that married individuals who used nonfamily, paid assistants were among most satisfied; and married, older, and less educated individuals were among most productive. (Author/NB)

Examined children's visual self-recognition. Lower-SES maltreated children did not differ from lower- or middle-SES comparison children in the development of self-recognition. Differences between the samples in the quality of affective reactions to mirror self-images were observed. (BC)

Criteria for social status among adolescent females are studied for 627 female high school students (77.5 percent White) in upstate New York, focusing on participation in interscholastic athletics. Subjects exhibit multidimensional identities that differ in relation to their involvement in sports and social groups used as their points of…

Researchers interviewed 40 midwestern low-income adolescents to determine their perceptions of social class related peer affiliations in school. Subjects gave more negative descriptions of low-income than high-income student groups and described a social-class biased schooling. Their reluctance to identify with low-status groups obstructed social…

Compared low-birthweight children in experimental (LBWE) intervention and no-treatment (LBWC) conditions, and normal birthweight (NBW) children. At age seven, and after SES adjustment, LBWE scored higher than LBWC and similar to NBW on cognitive tests. (BC)

Examined the effects of age at entrance to first grade on success in elementary school, using a set of demographic, social, and early experience variables as covariates. Concluded that entrance age was a far less powerful predictor of academic achievement than were socioeconomic factors. (Author/GR)

Examined relationship of familial, demographic, and individual characteristics to pregnancy probability among 124 sexually active adolescent females. Found pregnancy was function of combination of demographic and familial variables. Pregnant adolescents perceived families as having low strength and closed communication, came from homes with…

Adolescents (n=173) rated the academic and social characteristics of a male peer who was videotaped as a highly competent student and as an average student. Students judged the competent target as likely to be more successful in academic subjects, more socially acceptable, and a better leader than the less competent peer. (Author/JDD)

Among 500 students surveyed at the University of Ife (Nigeria), female students represented an elite segment of Nigerian society but held equal or lower educational and career expectations than did the more socially and economically diverse male student sample. Male students' lower-SES background did not appear to limit university access,…

The rapidly increasing Latino population indicates that Hispanics represent a significant segment of future U.S. workers and taxpayers. Increasing the educational attainment and other human capital characteristics of Hispanics is critical for their integration into the workforce and for the nation's social welfare. Contains 76 references.…

This study examined the effects on, and contribution of, input and process factors on student achievement in Louisiana public schools. Socioeconomic and minority status strongly predicted school achievement. Discrepancy between white and African-American students' achievement increased with grade level. Student attendance substantially affected…

This study investigated teachers' sense of efficacy and bias in decisions to refer students to special education. Teachers read a case study (under different conditions with varying student socioeconomic status and etiology of learning program) then judged student placement. Teachers' decisions were biased by variables unrelated to the student's…

Examines high school students' (N=500) values and attitudes toward work and employment. Assesses participants' status on two mental health measures and discusses the practical implications of the findings. Students with low confidence in finding work had more mental health problems than students with high confidence. (MKA)

Presents research findings, based on current national data, regarding the differences and similarities between public and Catholic schools. Focuses on fourth graders. (YKH)

Examines the relationship between level of schooling and literacy attainment in four rural communities in Guatemala. The authors first identify the grade at which most children become literate and then estimate the net contribution of schooling to literacy. They found that most children became literate with between three and four years of…