An action research project integrated violence intervention and prevention into a child development curriculum through a parenting unit fostering confirmatory methods of struggle management between high school and preschool students. Subjects were 45 second- and third-year child development students, 75 first-year child development students, and…

"Action Research" and the "Encyclopedia of Distance Education Research" (1994) are designed as resources for distance education research in Iowa, including information on developing, implementing, and administering distance education systems. This addendum containing an additional seven research studies includes the following…

This paper describes a collaborative research project conducted by two first grade teachers. The project focuses on the use of hands-on science activities and the relationship between a teacher and a mentor teacher. An integrated curriculum with science as the central theme is employed and further developed through the joint efforts of the two…

This project brought together educational theorists and practitioners in Spain to create a model of teacher training based on research by trainees into their own practice and to create a curriculum of Spanish language adapted to the students of the location where it was developed. The project was undertaken in the context of educational policy…

This paper presents a summary of four research projects implemented by teachers who are graduate students and underlines paradoxes faced by each on how to grapple with the difficulty of reconciling the top-down change approach that their university program trains them in with the bottom-up approach called action research. The tensions created by…

This project compared the degree to which additive and transformational approaches to multicultural education increased children's understanding and appreciation of physically challenged children. The additive approach integrates ethnic content to the regular curriculum by adding content, concepts, themes, and perspectives without changing the…

This paper summarizes responses of students in grades K-3 to questions about Native Americans. The paper draws on findings from two studies, both done in a suburban school system deemed "average" on a variety of educational and socioeconomic indicators. In each study, samples of students stratified by gender and achievement level were…

Reflective practice can be beneficial to preservice and inservice teacher professional development. This digest reviews the concept, levels, techniques for, and benefits of reflective practice. Donald Schon introduced the concept in 1987, and since then, many schools, colleges, and departments of education have begun designing teacher education…

This report describes a program that will improve reading comprehension. The targeted population consists of second grade students at a rural northwestern Illinois school. Evidence for the existence of reading problems included daily teacher observations, student reading surveys, and assessments that indicated the level of student reading…

Inappropriate social skills exhibited early in elementary school can interfere with cooperative group work, completion of academic tasks on time, and academic growth. This action research project evaluated the impact of a program for improving social behavior in a cooperative group setting to reduce inappropriate interactions and increase positive…

This action research paper describes a program initiated by teacher researchers to improve academic achievement and interest in social studies. The targeted group consisted of fifth graders in a lower middle class community in the Midwest. Analysis of the problem-causes data show three main factors: curriculum, attitude, and effect. In regard to…

Hidden messages are part of the culture of reading at any school, particularly at the secondary level. In many schools, the overt message that reading is essential to success on state-mandated tests and in society is jeopardized due to hidden messages about the nature of the reading process and the place of reading in everyday life. A qualitative…

An action research project was designed to enhance the creativity and thinking skills of students in a studio art class at the secondary level. The project was conducted between September and December 2002 at a Catholic high school near an urban center. Data were collected using observations, surveys, and document analysis. The targeted population…

A study examined the effectiveness of specific teaching strategies in the reading curriculum that would help underachieving first-grade students meet reading standards by the end of the school year. Subjects, 6 underachieving students, were given the Basic Phonics Skills Test (BPST), the Results high frequency word list, and the Results reading…

This document contains three papers from a symposium on research methods in human resource development (HRD) that was conducted as part of a conference on HRD. "Utilizing Electronic Mail To Survey Human Resource Development Practitioners: A Comparison between Electronic Mail and the U.S. Postal Service for the Purpose of Data Collection:…