This Research in Brief describes the scientific methodologies used to perform a review of crime prevention programs and then discusses what research has shown to work, what it has shown not to work, and what approaches seem promising for crime prevention. The first step was to identify and review reports evaluating the effectiveness of crime…

A consistent lesson from the literature on school change is that no single method exists for improving schools. In that spirit, this book presents a collection of short articles that address a wide sampling of ideas and trends in educational change. All the articles were originally published in "Education Update," the official member…

This guide offers practical guidance for parents and practitioners working directly with children who have autism or Asperger's Syndrome. Chapter 1 distinguishes between the two conditions, offers a practical definition of autism, and stresses the importance of individual differences. Chapter 2 is on identifying special needs in autism and notes…

This tip sheet outlines the steps academic and vocational educators can take to document the skills needed in the workplace, the skills their students will need in the future, and those currently being taught in the curriculum. Step 1, visit a workplace, includes these activities: choosing the workplace to visit and calling to make arrangements,…

This manual is intended to guide the development of a primary grade gifted and talented program called Project EAGLE. The program focuses on lateral enrichment, higher level cognitive domain skills, creative thinking, self-directed learning, self-awareness and acceptance, and interpersonal relationships. Students complete assignments in…

An instructional activity is educational only when students understand its meaning and apply their understanding to future situations. Outdoor educators seek to improve teaching and learning through direct experience but, if such experiences are to be meaningful and applied to life situations, teachers must help students learn from carefully…

A recent change in classroom (K-12) instruction is the rediscovery of writing's relationship to thinking. Teachers' attitudes about writing can affect their students' attitudes. Positive attitudes have a positive influence; however, many teacher education students and inservice teachers have negative attitudes toward writing. Since improved…

Problem solving is a main topic in mathematics education, and considerable headway has been made in identifying the processes involved in solving well-formed problems like algebra word problems, mathematical algorithms, and logical puzzles like the Tower of Hanoi. The "Mathnet" format of the SQUARE ONE TV program, however, requires…

Mathematics educators have recognized that although basically a cognitive and intellectual enterprise, learning mathematics is related to children's attitudes toward the subject. Proponents of mathematics reform have emphasized that children need to develop more positive attitudes toward mathematics. A pretest/posttest experimental design study…

Emerging research on instructional leadership is examined in this paper, with a focus on the new perspective on strategic thinking. The main theme is that research must address the reasoning that underlies the exercise of leadership rather than describe discrete behaviors of effective leaders. A computer simulation designed to facilitate the…

Certain guiding principles emerged from a century of research on teaching and learning. Many of those principles arise from research and practice in various areas of psychology. Learner-centered psychological principles and a systems perspective for incorporating them are necessary components of a new design for schooling. Among metacognitive and…

A survey, completed by 15 professors of English, indicated a fundamental lack of student critical thinking skills within their department, and a 90 percent discrepancy in teacher training with only 10 percent of teachers having received formal training. This paper describes a workshop designed to educate and motivate the English professors in a…

This report presents the primary papers given at a 1992 workshop to identify specific higher order thinking and communication skills and to develop appropriate indicators of collegiate outcomes as suggested by Goal 5.5 of the National Education Goals formulated in 1990. This goal addressed improvement in college graduates' ability to "think…

The "Clipboard Connection" is a methodology to facilitate the rapid circulation of relevant pre-existing materials from Chapter 1 Technical Assistance Centers (TACs) to their clients, teachers of educationally disadvantaged children in resource centers. Each "Clipboard Connection" consists of a lead sheet summarizing the…

Information is provided about the Delaware Educational Assessment Program and the performance of Delaware public school students as measured by a nationally-normed standardized achievement test. The Stanford Achievement Test, Eighth Edition was administered statewide, allowing comparisons with national performance and with the performance of…