Social validation procedures were used to evaluate the extent to which 72 professional staff, 47 nonhandicapped peers, and 47 parents perceived and valued changes in leisure time behavior that occurred with seven severely mentally retarded and multiply handicapped adolescents. (Author/SEW)

Describes one-room country schools in South Dakota--importance of patrons; self-sufficiency and varied skills of teachers; administrators who deal with each school individually; advantages of the students (having several grades taught in one room, small teacher-student ratios, student interdependency, opportunity for creativity, close parental…

Two studies investigated 10th-grade students' health attitudes and practices related to cardiovascular risk. A survey determined students' perceptions of their families' health practices and needs and students' confidence in their ability to modify parents' behavior. The Heart Health Test Telecast (April 1980) was used to stimulate parent-child…

Examines the differences between nuclear and stepfamilies and the effects of stepfamilies on children's behavior. Discusses identification of problem behaviors and suggests appropriate counseling strategies for working with children having adjustment problems in stepfamilies. (Author/RC)

Subtle sexist attitudes are shown to permeate the school environment, including staffing, school groupings, teachers, and counseling. In-service training and efforts of parents, teachers, and other school personnel are suggested to alleviate sexist practices. A bibliography of nonsexist books, their publishers, and distributors of nonsexist…

The validity of a number of criticisms of community colleges' success in extending educational opportunity to students of low socioeconomic status was studied in 15 Florida community colleges. The results of data analysis of former community college students are discussed. (MLW)

This paper highlights four books that examine issues related to public schools: who public schools belong to, why Americans fund public education, and what is public about it. The paper discusses the major themes of the books, noting existence of a general sense that education matters. (SM)

Presents the results of a survey concerning parents' satisfaction with their schools and specific areas that needed improvement. Responses among inner-city blacks and whites were very similar with both groups giving priority to better teachers, more security, and better buildings. Includes statistical and tabular data analyzing the responses (MJP)

Discusses the issue of language ecology, focusing on Polish language maintenance in Victoria, Australia, and reports on a study conducted with Polish students at a Saturday language school. Results indicate that the longer the period of residence in Australia, the less students use Polish. (25 references) (Author/CK)

Discusses how the early childhood program environment can be more sensitive to biracial children of black and white heritage. Considers the history of blacks in the United States; ethnic identity development in biracial children; and planning the early childhood environment, including structuring the curriculum, securing information about the…

Examined whether there is an earlier developmental stage than 2 years of age when bilingual children do not use their languages in pragmatically differentiated ways. Analyses of recordings of four French-English bilingual children in Canada during free play sessions with their mothers and fathers suggest a stage very early in development when…

Models the spread of linguistic change by taking account of the ages of the acquirers and transmitters of change. The article focuses on three interlocutor combinations: parent-infant/young child, peer group-preadolescent and older adolescent/adult-adolescent. Findings suggest that borrowings are the easiest to acquire, while lexically…

Hypothesizes regarding factors that enhance prosociality in children, implying that the quality of childrearing and early companionship have profound impact on toddlers' social behavior. Discusses observation space versus companion space, prosocial behavior across cultures, when toddlers abuse, and the implications of a circular reenactment of…

The relationship between initial school functioning and subsequent mobility was examined among 2,524 low-income elementary students. Data were collected on academic, behavioral, and school adjustment. The students were then trailed for three years; during this time mobility was observed. Most mobile students had poorer initial school behavior and…

Describes the postcourse evaluation of an INSET program for Japanese secondary teachers of English as a Second Language (ESL), which found that the course's communicative approach was not implemented universally. The article suggests that differences between British and Japanese traditions may cause a reluctance to innovate and that INSET courses…