This paper reports a study on elementary students' ideas regarding changes in mass associated with melting. An open-ended probe was designed and distributed to fifth-grade students (n = 230). In addition, 50 students were asked their reasons behind predictions on mass change. The written responses indicate that, despite conventional teaching,…

This study uses administrative data linking students and teachers at the classroom level to estimate teacher value-added to student test scores. We find that variation in teacher quality is an important contributor to student achievement--more important than has been implied by previous work. This result is attributable, at least in part, to the…

Responsiveness to intervention (RTI) is proposed as a valuable construct for schools because of its potential utility in providing appropriate learning experiences for all students as well as the early identification of students as being at risk for academic failure. RTI can be conceptualized as providing a framework for systemic reform directed…

This article considers the practical, conceptual, and empirical foundations of an early identification and intervention system for middle-grades schools to combat student disengagement and increase graduation rates in our nation's cities. Many students in urban schools become disengaged at the start of the middle grades, which greatly reduces the…

One of the major findings in previous research on reflexive coreference in a second language is that learners of English violate the locality requirement of the reflexive form "x-self" more readily when it appears in the subordinate infinitival clause than when included in the subordinate tensed clause (a phenomenon called the…

"How much popcorn will our classroom hold?" This intriguing question sparked a terrific integrated science and math exploration that the author conducted with fifth-and sixth-grade students. In the process of finding the classroom's volume, students developed science-process skills (e.g., developing a plan, measurement, collecting and interpreting…

Turkish science teachers' in-service needs and the effects of teacher and school demographic variables on these needs are examined in this study. In addition, major barriers that prevented science teachers from attending in-service programmes are investigated. The data for the research were gathered through a survey. This study shows that Turkish…

This study investigated the technical adequacy of 3 simple, 1-min curriculum-based measurements (CBM) for predicting third (n = 35) and fifth (n = 49) graders' performance on a state standards test of mathematics. Measures included 2 numeric CBMs: a traditional basic facts measure and a new "cloze" math facts measure, designed to require deeper…

A study examined the predictive efficiency of the Scholastic Aptitude Test (SAT) for adult learners in the University System of Georgia (USGA). Also investigated during the study were the effects of variables such as age, sex, and race on the performance of adult learners on the SAT and in college and the relative academic performance of adult…

A study followed freshman students entering Indiana University in 1971, 1973, and 1974 to establish the rate and variables related to dropping out of the university. Students were labeled academic drops if they were achieving below a 2.0 grade point average (GPA) at the time of withdrawal, and nonacademic drops if not below 2.0. Students entering…

Satisfaction is a construct that is important to the development of intrinsic motivation and the continuing effort to learn. Research that helps to identify those factors that contribute to satisfaction is useful in the design of electronic support systems for individuals and groups. This paper investigates the impact of "need for…

Approaches used by linguists to examine the way in which speakers or writers modify their commitment to the propositional content of their utterances are discussed, and it is noted that a frequent criticism is the failure of inexperienced speakers or writers to modulate their utterances properly. This paper considers economic reports and in…

The overall purpose of this research project was to examine the effects of prediction activities on instructional outcomes in a high school genetics unit. The researcher-developed prediction activities were designed to stimulate student interest and critical thinking prior to formal instruction on the concepts. Enhanced levels of classroom…

Professional requirements for physicians specializing in allergy were estimated to assist policymakers in developing guidelines for graduate medical education. In estimating service requirements for allergy, an allergy Delphi panel reviewed reference and incidence-prevalence and utilization data for 21 conditions that affect the ambulatory care…

Professional requirements for physicians specializing in pediatrics were estimated to assist policymakers in developing guidelines for graduate medical education. In estimating service requirements for pediatrics, the pediatrics Delphi panel reviewed reference and incidence-prevalence and utilization data for 230 conditions that affect the…