Intended for teachers, this book on beginning literacy examines questions and solutions concerning literacy theories and practices. Chapter 1, "An Open Approach to Literacy," explores some assumptions about literacy and characteristics of a model for language learning. Chapter 2 presents historical viewpoints and current practices,…

Achievement tests that are maximally sensitive to effective instruction in reading and mathematics for grades 2 and 5 were developed and refined. Important considerations regarding the tests' validity were: its coverage of instructional content (opportunity to learn), and its reactivity to instruction. Student ability must be minimally related to…

Materials contained in this career guidance unit focus on individual assessment of seventh grade students in relation to future school and vocational goals. The unit is made up of four individualized learning packets: Packet 1 deals with the learner's abilities and interests; Packet 2 explores values; Packet 3 looks at physical traits; and Packet…

The Project TALENT Data Base described in this paper provides a source of information on the personal characteristics, educational experiences, and subsequent career outcomes of a representative sample of 400,000 individuals who were in high school in 1960. (These data provide a basis for analysis and development of policies relating to the…

This curriculum for developmentally disabled adolescents and adults contains assessment conditions and performance criteria for evaluating client acquisition of a total of 646 independent living skills in five areas. While the content of the curriculum is in an area known as independent living, it is also prevocational in as much as it covers a…

Three related studies reflecting three perspectives on children's interpersonal relationships, playground games, and social cognitive skills are reported. Subjects for each of the studies were children enrolled in third and sixth grades at three elementary schools in Cincinnati during the 1979-1980 school year. The first study documents the…

A research study examined differences in cooperative education work activities and situations as varied with the students' experience and career maturity. Experience was indicated by the number of prior work placements; occupational maturity was defined in terms of values, future plans and expectations, and scores on an inventory of career…

It was hypothesized that a positive improvement in Hispanic junior high school students' Spanish and English reading abilities, reading attitudes and academic self-concepts would result after being provided special reading time with a wide variety of reading materials in Spanish. An experimental (E) group of approximately 200 grade 7 and 8…

Illinois Central College's Development of Operational Reasoning Skills (DOORS) project, which is based on Piaget's developmental theory and learning cycle strategy, is described. The project provides a multidisciplinary freshman core program focusing on the improvement of student reasoning abilities. For each of the six DOORS courses--English,…

A study examined the varied procedures and approaches utilized in identifying, assessing, and placing limited English proficiency (LEP) students in vocational education programs in Illinois high schools, area vocational centers, and community colleges. Utilized in the study were data from the following survey instruments: (1) a mail questionnaire…

The overall objective of this project was to produce a guidebook to help vocational educators gain skills in working with handicapped students in regular classrooms. The first step in the project was to assess barriers and identify ways to overcome them. Barriers were classified into the following categories: attitudinal, architectural, work…

A longitudinal study designed to test hypotheses about the relationships between academic achievement, cognitive styles, and verbal competence is described. One entire class of 1,548 students of a large municipal college was followed from college entry in 1967 through entry into postgraduate and occupational training. Data were taken from tests,…

Data from the college Board's Admissions Test Program (ATP) Summary Reports are used to analyze the student market attraction for ATP report designations, the application rate, the acceptance rate, the enrollment yield, and the dropout rate for 254 different student groups for 25l colleges. Student groups are defined in terms of their College…

This essay reports the results of a preliminary evaluation of the effects of Matthew Lipman's Philosophy for Children program on fifth and sixth graders in the first year of the program's use in two settings. The program, which involves the use of a novel about children to promote discussion, attempts to engage elementary students in philosophical…

The literature on factors influencing nontraditional enrollment choices may be approached in this order: background information on the labor force and vocational education, factors influencing nontraditional enrollments, and strategies for increasing nontraditional enrollments. Despite an increase of women in nontraditional occupations, research…