As the publication of picture books that contain meta-fictive or postmodern elements increases, research concerning how intermediate grade readers respond and construct meaning in transaction with these texts is important. This study explores readers' responses and discussions focusing on the picture book Voices in the Park by Anthony Browne.…

In this article, the author stresses that teachers need to teach their students to think critically and to reason their way. One prerequisite for teaching critical thinking is a classroom climate of high expectations, teacher warmth and encouragement, and pleasant physical surroundings. Schools should see to it that students become progressively…

Although lightness perception is clearly influenced by contextual factors, it is not known whether knowledge about the reflectance of specific objects also affects their lightness. Recent research by O. H. MacLin and R. Malpass (2003) suggests that subjects label Black faces as darker than White faces, so in the current experiments, an adjustment…

Although conservative Christians have been shown to have rates of mental health problems comparable with the general population (King, 1978), research has found that conservative Christians hesitate to seek counseling from a counselor who does not label him- or herself a "Christian counselor" and often drop out of counseling early when…

Examines factors affecting teacher expectancy through hierarchical linear modeling of data from two large-scale surveys of teachers working in schools with high-stakes accountability programs. Finds following significant predictors of teacher expectancy: Teacher perceptions of program fairness, student performance feedback, lack of goal conflict,…

Working within a methodological framework that identified four focus groups, high-achieving boys and girls and underachieving boys and girls, this article presents teachers' perceptions of how gender identity is seen to influence achievement levels. Beliefs about gender identity informed the teachers' perceptions in relation to each of the four…

The impact of childhood on success in adulthood has been much researched. This paper discusses how parental expectations, social class, childhood experiences and gender influenced the career success of disabled people. For respondents with congenital disabilities, disability was perceived as a primary factor influencing parental expectations, but…

The research literature documents the different approaches to learning that students in Higher Education (HE) can adopt, e.g. deep, surface and strategic. Stage 1 of a longitudinal study aimed to determine the students' approach to learning, and to assess whether this was related to previous learning experiences, initial expectations of HE and…

The present research examined alternative accounts of prior violation-of-expectation (VOE) reports that young infants can represent and reason about hidden objects. According to these accounts, young infants' apparent success in these VOE tasks reflects only novelty and familiarity preferences induced by the habituation or familiarization trials…

Research with anxious and depressed adults has suggested that anxiety is related to an increased anticipation of both negative memories and negative expectancies whereas depression is related to a reduction in positive memories and expectancies. The present study examined whether anxiety and depression in 123 school-aged adolescents would show the…

In 2000, the New South Wales Board of Studies introduced new syllabi for Junior Science (years 7-10) and Senior Science subjects (years 11 and 12), i.e. Physics, Chemistry, Biology, and Earth and Environmental Science (Geology). The structure of these courses is similar: it is based on a contextual perspective and is underpinned by a number of…

Previous research suggests that an eventual information technology (IT) success depend on both its initial adoption (acceptance) and subsequent continued usage (continuance). Expectancy disconfirmation theory (EDT) has been successfully used to predict users' intention to continue using information technologies. This study proposed a decomposed…

Critique of the current order of things is a necessary starting point for any project for radical change. Without an analysis of what is wrong, it is hard to convince anyone that change is necessary. And yet critique alone rarely inspires people to act. We need something to fight for as well as against. The article looks at the centrality of hope…

Perfectionism, which the author defines as beliefs and behaviors associated with high expectations for one's performance, is not necessarily detrimental. Many successful people demonstrate perfectionism that the author labels "functional." They set goals that are attainable, based on realistic self-knowledge. When planning a new venture they focus…

Current literature focuses on traditional student attrition and on transfer transition, but little information is available on the non-traditional transfer student experience. The following study explores the process of non-traditional transfer student attrition through an investigation that illustrates the importance of past student experiences,…