This study compared the relative prestige career choices of college men and women and described the differences between black and white men's and women's occupational aspirations. Students' career aspirations were assessed upon college entry and 4-5 years later. Students were asked to report their top career choice from a list of 44 career and…

A detailed analysis was conducted of the difficulty over time of the essay prompts for the English Composition Achievement Test (ECT) with Essay of the College Board. Differential difficulty was explored by considering whether the relationship between the reference groups of male and white students and the focal groups (female, American Indian,…

As an introduction to a series on the array of issues in the implementation and evaluation of substance abuse prevention programs, this volume attempts to integrate two types of competence for alcohol and other drug abuse prevention program practitioners: program evaluation competence and cultural competence. The chapters in this document provide…

This report examines minority undergraduate enrollment and completion trends at American colleges and universities. Chapter 1 focuses on general undergraduate enrollment trends, finding that between 1976 and 1990 the number of minority undergraduates grew faster than total enrollment, with Blacks as the only minority group whose percentage…

A study of legal and illegal drug use rates among working class adolescents in Georgia was conducted in a small city of 16,000 residents. Students at the local high school completed a questionnaire administered by their classroom teacher. Of the 296 female and 283 male participants, 102 were black and 477 were white. The results indicate that…

This paper discusses the Supplemental Instruction (SI) model of student academic assistance, a program recognized as exemplary by the U.S. Department of Education and developed at the University of Missouri-Kansas City (UMKC) to help students in difficult postsecondary courses master course content while they acquire and integrate effective…

This study sought to examine American College Test (ACT) and basic skills placement test score patterns; the use of these test scores in academic advising; student performance in freshman level reading, English, and mathematics courses; relationships among these factors and their power to predict or account for placement and performance; and…

This study compares the academic preparation of American Indian, Black, and Hispanic American students with that of White students in the Omaha (Nebraska) Public Schools (OPS). The following measures were examined: (1) racial composition, indicating the school's social and academic atmosphere; (2) student-teacher ratios, indicating educational…

This is the first of a series of reports providing information and statistics on subjects of interest to educational policymakers and practitioners. Based on a research paper, "Course-Taking Patterns in the 1980s," by Margaret E. Goertz, the report's focus is on what is being studied and how this has changed over time (generally between 1982 and…

Single parent families, usually headed by women, are transitional in two important senses: they frequently represent a transitional stage between marriages; and they are a symptom of the transition from a "distributive" family structure, in which a man provides resources for financially dependent women and children, to a form characterized by less…

This document contains the final report on a study of factors associated with dropping out of high school. The analyses presented are based on data from the initial and first follow-up rounds of the High School and Beyond survey of the sophomore class of 1980. The introductory chapter discusses the background of the dropout problem and influences…

Since elementary school counselors frequently provide or interpret achievement test scores for academic placement decisions, they must be vigilant for invalid data. Standardized norm-referenced achievement tests can underestimate achievement or potential of low-income black children because of different learning styles and test bias. Recent…

The relationships among psychological differentiation, cognitive style, and body concept were investigated in 94 five- and six-year olds from the Houston, Texas Independent School District. The sample included males and females, and Blacks, Whites, and Mexican Americans. The Embedded Figure Test Preschool (EFT) was administered to determine field…

This paper examines the racial attitudes of 5,770 black and white Georgia high school students, comparing the attitudes of students in desegregated and segregated schools. It was found that generally positive racial attitudes exist among all groups of students. On all but one question used in the racial attitudes scale at least 60 percent of the…

This document presents statistics on black income, employment, and poverty in 1987. The black poverty rate rose significantly in 1987, from 31.1 percent to 33.1 percent; the white poverty rate fell from 11 percent to 10.5 percent. The poverty rate for black children under age 18 reached 45.6 percent; for those under age six the poverty rate…