The effect of summer break on mathematics and spelling performance of second through fifth grade students were assessed by comparing aggregated curriculum-based test scores administered in the spring and fall. Results indicated second and third grade students regressed in spelling; not in mathematics. The reverse was true for fourth and fifth…

The study developed an inventory of nonacademic employment competencies and subcompetencies for students with visual impairments. Following validation and rank ordering of 32 competencies, an instrument with 464 subcompetencies was developed and administered to 53 students, ages 3-18. Significant differences were found on 13 competencies based on…

Children's discourse with peers was examined in relation to speaker gender, partner gender, and age level. Girls' and boys' communication patterns were more similar than different, but gender-related differences with medium to large effect sizes were found. Findings are interpreted in terms of developmental and contextual accounts of gender and…

A study of 8 to 35 month olds found that informally employed mothers had more undernourished children than did formally employed or nonworking mothers. With maternal education controlled for, no effects of maternal employment on children's growth patterns were found. Percentage of family income earned by the mother was associated with children's…

Psychometric characteristics and factorial replicability of the factor structure of the adolescent version (grades 7-12) of the Walker-McConnell Scale of Social Competence and School Adjustment were studied in an initial wave (n=266) of the national normative sample. The version studied has substantial utility in assessing adolescent social…

Attitudes of adolescents about the justifiability of sexual coercion under certain circumstances are examined for 118 suburban high school students (65 percent females) who heard a date rape lecture and completed pretest and posttest surveys. Gender is the most salient variable explaining attitude about sexual coercion and rape. (SLD)

Examined behaviors of second and sixth graders during (1) unsupervised free time; (2) unsupervised desk work; (3) supervised free time; and (4) a class lesson. Second graders worked on their assignments whether or not the teacher was present. In the class lesson context, children in both grades exhibited work behaviors and few peer interactions.…

Costs and benefits that adolescents perceive for engaging or not engaging in potentially health-harming behaviors of alcohol use and nonmarital sexual intercourse were studied for over 2,400 seventh through twelfth graders. Perceptions of costs and benefits are related to gender, age, and the behaviors themselves. (SLD)

Two prominent themes are inferred from interviews with four Canadian women educators. One theme is the "competing urgencies" of their dual roles in the family and the profession. The other theme is the idea of "late blooming" as their careers developed after their midthirties. (SLD)

Surveyed 243 students in grades 4 through 7 and 155 parents concerning knowledge and attitudes toward Acquired Immune Deficiency Syndrome (AIDS) and AIDS education. Most children knew what AIDS was; younger children were less knowledgeable about sexual transmission, prevention, and prognosis. Significant age and sex differences in attitudes were…

This study, involving 24 young and elderly normal-hearing adults, addressed the effects of aging on auditory serial-recall performance for natural and synthetic words. Serial recall of monosyllabic words was not affected by age per se or by rate of presentation, but word difficulty affected recall for both groups. (Author/JDD)

Relations among dominance, sociometric preference, and social behavior were examined in groups of unacquainted first and third grade boys meeting in play sessions. Younger groups with high aggression showed less coherent organization than did others. Dominance was associated with social preference in younger groups, and with leadership in older…

A model of the development of prayer is offered. The development of prayer on the part of 89 middle-class adolescents and young adults from Catholic schools was studied. Results supported the model. (Author/BB)

Students (n=190) from a normal primary school in New Zealand were tested on sustained attention, reading ability, and classroom behavior measures. Results showed that the Continuous Performance Test, the Delay Task, and ratings on the Inattention factor on the Conners Teacher Rating Scale were significantly correlated with reading scores.…

Two studies investigated (1) the development of children's implicit theories of self-attributes in the domains of intelligence, sociability, physical skills, and physical appearance; and (2) the degree to which conceptions of ability can be experimentally manipulated to predict achievement cognitions and behaviors. (BB)