There has been a serious decline in academic achievement in both the general and special populations and what we have found is that these students are not doing as well as they should be. Less than one-third of American students are doing well in reading, writing, math, science, and other important subjects. The National Assessment of Education…

Students who attend schools with environmental hazards that impact indoor air quality are more likely to miss class, and therefore lose learning opportunities. Yet school environmental health and safety remains largely unregulated and there is no state or federal agency in charge of protecting children's environmental health in schools. This…

"Straight A's: Public Education Policy and Progress" is a biweekly newsletter that focuses on education news and events both in Washington, DC and around the country. The following articles are included in this issue: (1) Senate Approves $5.4 Billion Increase for Education Budget: Large Differences in House and Senate Budget Resolution…

The higher education community searches ceaselessly for ways to recruit and retain students whose presence on the campus more accurately represents the demographics of the United States. However, many selective private institutions continue to struggle with the recruitment and retention of students of color--often because of the discrepancy in…

The results of the SAT 9 tests administered to Guam students in grades 1, 3, 5, 7, 9, 10, and 11 have consistently indicated below average academic performance in the subjects of reading, math and language arts over the past decade of testing. To ensure that students attain the necessary skills and knowledge in reading, math, and language arts,…

Background: Over the past twenty years, many investigations have been carried out to identify factors influencing second language (L2) learning. Specifically, investigations of the relationship among first language (L1) reading skills, L2 reading skills, and L2 proficiency have been variously conducted, to contribute to the overall growth of L1-L2…

The purpose of this study was to develop an instrument to examine students' behaviors in physical education classes that might have an impact on classroom management and student learning. The study was conducted in multiple phases, including instrument development, preliminary study, content validity study, and a reliability and validity study.…

The purpose of the study was to determine the characteristics of the 10 best school districts in Arkansas for 1992-93. State legislation (Act 688) of 1989 established an Office of Accountability within the State Department of Education that would provide, among other things, an annual school report card. The school report card assesses the…

This paper reports on a 3-year computer initiative implemented by a school district in a metropolitan area. The initiative began in 1996 and continued through 1998. The school district of 44,000 students funded 5 computers and an ink jet color printer in each elementary classroom in 34 schools. The purpose of this study was to determine the impact…

Extensive testing data from federal, state, and private sources indicate that Indiana students underperform their peers in most other states. Contrary to conventional wisdom, the shortcomings of Indiana students relative to students elsewhere are most severe among students from middle- and upper-income families. Forty percent of 3rd-graders, 52…

This study establishes the link between the presence of adequate school library staffing and higher academic achievement as indicated by PSSA (Pennsylvania System of School Assessment) reading scores. School library staffing is correlated with such scores; as library staffing rises, reading scores rise. This correlation is not explained away by…

This document reports on a project that examined the impact of school library media centers on academic achievement in Pennsylvania. The project also determined the impact on academic achievement of: specific activities of certified school librarians; principal and teacher support of school library programs; and information technology,…

This report presents the validity of the SAT for predicting two third-year college outcomes: (1) third-year cumulative GPA (3rd Yr Cum GPA), and (2) third-year grade point average (3rd Yr GPA). Similar to the results for first- and second-year outcomes (1st Yr GPA, 2nd Yr GPA, 2nd Yr Cum GPA), the SAT is strongly correlated with third year…

Utilizing "Social Indicators" (1979), discusses growth and distribution of schooling in the U.S., trends in student test performance, and major organizational changes in elementary/secondary education. Comments on quality of available data and suggests improvements for future reporting of educational indicators. (Reprint of article is available…

Describes an empirical study that suggests using a cutoff score of 75 instead of the currently used score of 80 for the CPT Reading Comprehension Test (CPT-Read), which is used to place students in remedial coursework at Suffolk Community College. Also reviews the policy implications of establishing a lower cutoff score. Includes six data tables.…