Investigated whether reform in Israel's teacher education admission standards has attracted better students than in the past. Data on students who were freshmen before, during, and after the academization indicated that students who are accepted now have a higher entry level than in previous years, but they represent a similar social and…

Seven intensive interviews with female college students at Roseworthy College, a rural agricultural college in South Australia, revealed that the college's historic rural masculine tradition and misogynist social environment restrict women to narrow sexual-subject positions: acting like a male; tutor/cleaner/mother/cook; "slut" versus…

Describes a meta-analysis conducted on six studies that attempted to ascertain the effect of academic and social integration on student persistence in community colleges. Indicates that both academic and social integration significantly impacts persistence, which is consistent with Tinto's model of student retention. Contains four data tables and…

Investigates differences in the rhetorical organization of research article introductions between Korean academic writing and English academic writing based on Swales' Create a Research Space model (1990). Twelve published articles written by Korean national scholars and American scholars are compared, and eight term papers by Korean…

Discusses a survey of college students who studied abroad in a Russian-speaking country and were asked questions concerning program content and motivational factors. Students indicated that they were not prepared well enough for the year abroad and have definite ideas about how to improve the content and orientation of Russian-language courses.…

Examines differences in oral narrative discourse of adult second-language learners of English on narrative tasks simulating the ability to describe events in the Here-and-Now versus the There-and-Then. Results indicate that complex tasks elicit less fluent, but more accurate and complex narration than do simpler tasks. (90 references) (Author/CK)

Studies learners' second-language (L2) oral proficiency, incorporating an interview, a narration, and a read-aloud. Results show that the nature of the L2 oral construct is not constant. The article concludes that proficiency researchers should use dimensions empirically derived according to the specific elicitation task and audience. (53…

Analyzes the interaction during peer response occurring in a writing class. The article identifies four categories of reader stances--authoritative, interpretive, probing, and collaborative--and examines language functions and topics discussed during the response sessions. It is concluded that interactive peer response is beneficial to students.…

The evolution of the student tracking system at Amarillo College, a Texas community college, is chronicled for three stages: (1) early efforts; (2) participation in the development of a consortium-based longitudinal student tracking project beginning in 1986; and (3) more recent developments. Tools and techniques used at each stage are discussed…

Development, structure, and uses of multi-institutional and statewide student databases at the state level are examined, based on results of a national survey of state higher education agencies. The issue of confidentiality is also discussed. Construction and uses of a multi-institutional system in Colorado are then described, and its advantages…

Describes programs aimed at reducing the harmful effects of culture shock. Strategies adopted include information giving, cultural sensitization, isomorphic attribution, learning by doing, and social skills training (SST). It is argued that SST is most effective. (Contains 47 references.) (Author)

Presents four misconceptions surrounding communicative language teaching (CLT) and discusses the reasons for their existence. These misconceptions are: (1) CLT means not teaching grammar; (2) CLT means teaching only speaking; (3) CLT means pair work, which means role play; and (4) CLT means expecting too much from the teacher. (13 references)…

Discusses ways to interpret student silence, highlighting a black professor's experiences teaching white students. Student silence is likened to political situations in which people who feel disenfranchised by the process do not vote, which is a political statement in itself. The importance of not ignoring student silence is emphasized. (SM)

Investigated the relationship among childhood sexual abuse and parental alcoholism, retrospective reports of family functioning, and having had a history of either suicidal ideation or suicide attempts. Subjects (n=420) were drawn from a sample of undergraduate college women. Results indicate the experiences of childhood sexual abuse and parental…

Briefly presents the results of a study comparing the responses of Asian Canadian students and European Canadian students for evidence of social responsibility bias. Using the Balanced Inventory of Desirable Responding, the study found little evidence of bias. Discusses implications and weaknesses of the experiment. (MJP)