The instructionally effective school is a function of six factors: teacher characteristics and behavior, administrator characteristics and behavior, student body composition, school learning climate, pupil evaluation, and curriculum material. This article discusses these factors, how their relative importance can be measured, and some of their…

Factors contributing to achievement were investigated as part of Hungary's Curriculum Theory Department (CTD-80) national assessment. Parent's education and occupation and student's sex predicted achievement results. School characteristics did not predict achievement or attitudes. (Author/GDC)

Describes a study which examined the relationship between age and achievement of adults in an instructional setting. Older (25 to 41) and younger (17 to 24) French-speaking students were compared with respect to short-term development in aural comprehension. Results suggest that achievement rate decreases with increasing age. (SED)

This research study examined 25 economic, demographic and social, financial, governance, and geographic variables in 39 large urban school districts in order to measure the variables' ability to (1) distinguish between school districts that were fiscally stressed and those which were not and (2) predict bond ratings of large urban school…

Verbal intelligence, English-language skills, personality, and attitude scales were used as predictors of academic performance in students at the University of Hong Kong. A series of bivariate, multiple, and canonical correlation analyses were performed. Results indicate that verbal intelligence and attitudes, except study orientation, were not…

Siblings of handicapped children may have adjustment problems associated with increased family responsibilities, increased parental expectations, and perceived parental neglect in favor of the disabled sibling. Problems may be related to socioeconomic status; family size; age, sex, and birth order of the sibling; and severity of the handicap. (GDC)

This investigation attempted to ascertain longitudinally whether diffuseness about academic goals and plans would predict subsequent underachievement. Identity-status interviews were administered to 98 first-semester college students. Evidence for the hypothesized relationship between diffusion and academic underachievement was not found.…

Describes recent research attempts to draw inferences about the relative standing of the states on the basis of mean SAT scores. This paper identifies five serious errors that call into question the validity of such inferences. Some plausible ways to avoid the errors are described. (Author/LMO)

An investigation to address the issue of which objective factor would predict performance during the postgraduate year residency and to determine whether the performance of applicants from honors-pass-fail schools was predictable is reported. (MLW)

Examines the concept of "pediatric social illness" (child abuse, neglect, accidents, ingestions, and failure to thrive) in a sample of 94 Black families whose children were admitted to Children's Hospital Medical Center (Boston). Explores economic, social, and environmental causes of the phenomenon. (GC)

During their freshman year, 219 high-risk students at Eastern Michigan University attended special small classes, visited tutors, and participated in a reading and study skills program. Hours spent using the support services and number of tutor contacts correlated positively with college grade point average. (Author/BW)

Examined the aspirations of adolescent women for combining marriage, motherhood, and employment, and the aspiratons of adolescent males for their future wives' roles (N=948). Path models suggested that, for both males and females, sex-role variables are the most important predictors, but background, significant other, and achievement also are…

Addresses the use of data sources and multivariate data analysis methods for modeling naturally occurring data. Two studies in this special section deal with longitudinal perspectives on drug use and emotional adjustment and an application of log-linear model to examine the stress-buffering function of alcohol. (LLL)

Grades which professors gave their students were related with ratings those students gave their professors. Students' grades were found to influence their ratings of faculty, accounting for approximately 9 percent of the total variance. (MV)

Intrinsic motivation can be predicted from participants' perceptions of the social environment and the task environment (Ryan & Deci, 2000)in terms of control, relatedness and competence. To determine the degree of independence of these factors 251 students in higher vocational education (physiotherapy and hotel management) indicated the…