The chairman of the board of regents of a small, church-affiliated college discusses the need for and satisfaction derived from introducing potential donors to the college and the best of its campus life, particularly when the college is small, little known, and/or has a religious affiliation unfamiliar to prospective gift givers. (MSE)

Although the literature has suggested a variety of helpful ways to deal with international students, academic librarians should become more aware of pronunciation differences, more attuned to meanings, and more tactful and sensitive to differing cultural perspectives. Formal coursework in foreign language and culture is suggested. (EA)

Advocates teaching social skills and nurturing moral development to guide children toward positive social behavior and moral understanding. Recommends applying the same patience to teaching the social process as is applied to the teaching of the writing process. Argues against isolating children through the overuse of punishment. (SM)

This study, based on observation of 28 children with autism in an integrated preschool, explored whether differing levels of autistic behavior were associated with the presence of nondisabled children or with the presence of other children with autism. Results indicated significantly decreased levels of autistic behavior corresponding to the close…

Aggressive unpopular, withdrawn unpopular, aggressive-withdrawn unpopular, and average status children were identified by peer evaluation and compared in terms of peer and self-perceptions of competence in various social and nonsocial domains. Results indicated that the three groups of unpopular children exhibited distinct profiles according to…

Using ethnographic methods and taking a sociocultural perspective, examined preschoolers' social competence. Focused on the interactions of two children who were members of a peer group and one who sought membership in the group but was rejected. Discusses the importance of the sociocultural perspective to understanding children's social…

Kindergartners and third and sixth graders chose classmates whom they would and would not like to have as teammates for an academic contest and as playmates; they also rated their classmates on likability and academic ability. At all ages, children's choices for academic competition and play were associated with their ratings of their classmates'…

Examined perceptions of social competence and family dynamics among adolescent participants in school-sponsored and independent sports (baseball and skateboarding). Findings from 271 adolescents revealed that perceptions of social competence were differentially related to degree of sports involvement and perceived skill but were not related to…

This study compared scores on several indices of empathy and social competence in 39 adolescent males with behavioral disorders and 39 age-matched peers without behavioral disorders. The adolescents with behavioral disorders reported lower levels of empathy, participated in fewer extracurricular activities, had less frequent contacts with friends,…

Special education teachers (n=158) of students with severe disabilities indicated that they believed that friendships between their students and nondisabled peers are possible and beneficial to both and that such friendships are more likely when students are partially mainstreamed. However, teachers felt that functional skills are better developed…

Eighteen maltreated children were paired with nonmaltreated children (ages 3-7 years) for play sessions involving a single desirable object, resulting in generally successful negotiation and approximately equal sharing, though maltreated children appeared somewhat hesitant to engage their partners and were more responsive to partners' indication…

Teachers need to be trained in skills for coping with increasing conflict and aggression in the classroom. Specifically, they need to be able to (1) teach social problem solving and conflict resolution skills; (2) implement verbal and nonverbal intervention techniques; and (3) physically intervene, when necessary, to protect all concerned.…

Suggests that teachers who take time to discuss the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) with students send more sensitive and understanding graduates into the community. Provides a brief overview of the legislation and explains its relevance both within the business community and society as a whole. (MAB)

To empower teachers, school administrators must be effective communicators adept at matching style to purpose, recognizing the content and relational aspects of verbal messages, and realizing the importance of perceptions, positive reinforcement, active listening, flexible speaking styles, and nonverbal messages. Creating a positive communication…

Children's automatic and reflective responses to social problems were examined. With immediate response, aggressive and nonaggressive rejected boys generated fewer verbal assertion and more conflict-escalating responses than did nonrejected boys. Similar status-related differences were not found for girls. (BC)