The motivation to learn of African American high school students was examined by asking them about their favorite and least favorite classes. Two hundred and seventy-five students attending three urban high schools were randomly selected from their history classes to respond to a questionnaire on their perceptions of ability, goals, and reasons…

This book, which is intended to assist human resource professionals and line managers in the United Kingdom, is a practical guide to retaining key employees. Discussed in the introduction are the relationship between downsizing and retention, problems that retention difficulties pose for human resource management, and the effects of retention…

The Division of Adult Education in the Arizona Department of Education and the Arizona Adult Literacy and Technology Resource Center contracted with the Morrison Institute for Public Policy to develop an evaluation system for Arizona's adult education program. During phase I, the institute analyzed existing program data on Arizona's adult…

This study examined the academic experience of college freshmen during their first semester (Fall, 1997) at Champlain-St. Lawrence College (Quebec, Canada) a two-year college in the Quebec Cegep system. Students completed a motivational questionnaire before and after the semester. Analysis was aimed at examining reasons for the 42 percent…

A study examined the negative impacts of forensics upon primary relationships and family life. The study was designed to assess the professional and personal concerns of active forensics coaches. Subjects were seven males and four females, nine of whom were married, five of whom have children, and only one of whom reported having a spouse or…

This paper asserts that any intellectually responsible program to instruct young children in math, science, and technology must overcome at least three seemingly insurmountable obstacles: (1) adults' inability to discover, either by reflection or analysis, the means by which children acquire science and technology concepts; (2) the fact that young…

A study was conducted in Sweden to gain an understanding of the learning conditions for educationally disadvantaged female distance education students. The research methodology included questionnaires on background and attitudes distributed to the 280 students who had enrolled in a television course on child psychology in 1993 (83% responded) and…

This report presents the results of a survey at Johnson County Community College (JCCC) (Kansas), conducted to determine new students' educational objectives and what factors influenced their decisions to attend JCCC. Questions were also asked about new students' preferences for various media in order to provide information for the college's…

Students attending high school in a large midwestern metropolitan area participated in a program designed to increase their motivation in a geometry class. Evidence of the problem included teachers' observations of off-task student behavior. Also, teachers reported that homework was not being completed as often as desired, and that students who…

This paper presents results of a 23-day observation of 36 girls in all-girl math and computer classes at a public school's enrichment summer session for at-risk girls. Ages of the students observed ranged from 12 to 18. The students observed came to school with a long history of truancy, from homes where they suffered neglect and abuse. School was…

This paper considers the importance of student housing to the goal of student learning, and suggests ways in which campus residential programs can become strategic partners in student learning. It proposes partnerships between campus housing professionals and faculty colleagues and presents a number of models for consideration: residential…

Part of a series on contemporary school reform and special education, this report discusses how states are building capacity for standards-based reform. An introduction describes seven key areas in which states must build classroom and organizational level capacities, including: (1) teachers' knowledge, skills, and dispositions; (2) students'…

For one educator, "Parents as Writing Partners" has been one of the most rewarding experiences of her teaching career. Her seventh-grade students got closer to their parents' thoughts and feelings through encouragement to reinforce their writing, conferring, and editing skills. When parents are asked to share in an assignment, they get closer to…

This guide features a problem-based learning (PBL) unit specifically designed for student-centered learning of new and meaningful content on diseases. Students grapple with a complex and changing problem that requires higher level thinking skills in an environment in which students work both individually and in collaboration with others. Includes…

Noting that few would dispute the essential role of motivation in promoting academic engagement and achievement, this book serves as a guide to motivating students in grades K-3. The book presents research-based strategies and techniques that are then illustrated in three extended case studies of highly successful motivators, demonstrating how…