In this study, differential substance use between American and Australian college students was assessed through administration of a survey concerning recent use of six commonly used psychoactive substances (cigarettes, chewing tobacco, alcohol, marijuana, cocaine, and caffeine). Situational contexts associated with the use of each particular…

This paper outlines the background of an early years training program being implemented in inner city and rural settings in the United Kingdom. The paper is based on 5 years of observations, interviews, meetings, and training initiatives with educators and parents. In their comments, educators and parents often attributed their lack of…

This book aims to motivate children to learn about history and social studies by beginning with what they already know--from home life, family life, ethnic/cultural life--and then building on that personal knowledge by adding information from family and community resources. The book includes activities that can help the teacher show students that…

This paper concerns itself indirectly with the, as yet, unfounded fear held by many instructors: that relative to their students, they are computer illiterate. To the contrary, faculty teaching information technology designated classes in the Department of Health Sciences at East Tennessee State University have found that they are pacing…

Middle school students should be involved in seeking and selecting reading materials that ensure the attention of the learner. A wide variety of topics for learners to select from in choosing sequential trade books is a must. Sequential books selected by the middle school student should harmonize with his/her present level of achievement in…

The effects of a learner-centered approach on self-regulated learning were studied, and a cluster analysis was used to categorize students based on their goal orientation and to relate goal orientation to the self-regulated learning strategies used by the learner. Participants were 114 sixth and seventh graders from 2 multiage classrooms in an…

Although in-depth, long-term group psychotherapy is a beneficial therapeutic experience for adolescent females suffering from anorexia nervosa, these clients are notoriously resistant to treatment and to long-term, open-ended group settings. This dissidence may stem from a motivational deficiency toward changing their eating patterns and…

This study explored how some aspects of achievement goals theory can be integrated into the education of gifted and/or academically talented students. Specifically, the study addressed whether teachers of gifted students utilized task-focused instructional practices more often than performance-focused instructional practices, whether teachers of…

This volume contains the following articles: "Orthography and Identity in Cameroon" (Steven Bird); "Literacy Evaluation Tool" (Becky Feldpausch, Jean Nichols, Robin Rempel); "Kenyang Literacy Program" (Tanyi Eyong Mbuagbaw); "Monitoring and Evaluation (M&E): A Brief Overview" (Ian Mowatt);…

This paper discusses motivation of adult learners. The first section discusses the adult learner, including the concepts of andragogy and pedagogy, as well as student-centered learning. The second section summarizes changing student demographics and predictions. The third section presents principles of adult learning. The fourth section covers…

This literature review assesses where higher education is in relation to faculty development and where faculty development efforts need to go. Literature on faculty development has addressed the nature of faculty development in light of faculty needs at various stages of their professional careers. Results suggest that career stage affects…

This study examined relationships between college students' (n=94) recall of important school-related events and the students' current academic engagement. Autobiographical narratives were coded for time period (e.g., middle school), theme (e.g., achievement), context (e.g., academics, sports), and the presence of goal-directed content (e.g.,…

This Digest argues that a well designed course of instruction can utilize motion pictures, television, and video tapes to channel a student's enthusiasm and route it to an academically useful goal. Sections of the Digest discuss what films and television offer to educators; potential applications in language arts classrooms; some other…

Harvard Family Research Project's (HFRP) Issues and Opportunities in Out-of-School Time Evaluation briefs highlight current research and evaluation work in the out-of-school time field. These documents draw on HFRP's research work in out-of-school time in order to provide practitioners, funders, evaluators, and policymakers with information to…

Colleges and universities face financial and educational challenges in educating low-income students. The challenges arise not only from the students' more limited financial resources, but also from often related factors that affect students' preparation for and motivation to pursue higher education. To address this problem in keeping with…