An analysis of elementary social studies textbook series showed that the images presented in the texts do not equate with the reality that most Australians experience. A more realistic approach to teaching about Australia would be to examine the lifestyles of urban Australians. Possible ways of doing this are discussed. (RM)

Reports the findings of a survey that identified the following eight categories of professional needs of substitute teachers: discipline, classroom plans and procedures, knowledge of programs, learner differences, organizing/managing learning experiences, professional role, and school rules/regulations. (HOD)

Analyzes the language of five popular children's shows on public television. Suggests that the public television shows provide a superior language model than that of commercial television. (HOD)

Reports on a study that examined the manuals of sixth-grade basal readers to determine whether the suggested poetry teaching procedures reflected the pedagogical procedures recommended by expert opinion, concluding that they did not. (HOD)

Little scholarly attention has been paid to what aspiring principal are actually reading in the preparation courses or whether the texts prepare them for the demands of accountable management. We examine eleven of the thirteen most commonly assigned educational administration texts in a sample of 210 principal preparation syllabi. In the texts…

There is growing interest in the possibilities of combining research approaches in education and social sciences, as dissatisfaction mounts with the limitations of traditional mono-method studies and with the schism between quantitative and qualitative methods. This book argues the case for combining multiple research methods, and provides…

Kentucky's school reform accountability goal of each school reaching an academic measure of "proficiency" by 2014 illuminated the findings in recent statewide reading test scores: 44.30% of middle and 71.25% of high school students scored below "proficient." The research question for this exploratory, descriptive study was,…

This paper presents a writing exercise that the author uses in his technical writing courses. The purpose of the exercise is to: (1) convince students that their ideas have value; and (2) teach higher order thinking skills--specifically, analysis, synthesis, and evaluation. The author relates his own college experience, noting the fact that only…

The Minorities and Communication Division of the proceedings contains the following 7 papers: "The Race Card and Ethical Reasoning: The Importance of Race to Journalistic Decision Making" (Renita Coleman); "Jesse Owens, A Black Pearl Amidst an Ocean of Fury: A Case Study of Press Coverage on The 1936 Berlin Olympic Games"…

The purpose of this study was to explore and discover whether there are any differences in credentials required or preferred for academic library positions which offer faculty status, compared with those which do not include this designation. A content analysis was done using announcements for 451 nationally publicized openings. In the area of…

At the beginning of the spring 2000 semester, 19 sophomores enrolled in the Principles of Teaching class at Heidelberg College (Ohio) were asked to complete weekly e-mail journal entries about the course. At the end of the semester, they were asked to give their perceptions regarding journal use. Sixteen students completed this particular entry,…

The way in which public examinations influence teaching and learning is commonly described as "washback" or backwash. This study examined the nature and scope of the impact of a public examination on English teaching in Taiwan to add to the existing literature on testing washback in an English-as-a-second-language context. The relational…

Straightforward and engaging in style, this book presents 10 essays that provide concrete, step-by-step examples of how to conduct studies of the impact of television on behavior from quantitative perspectives, qualitative perspectives, and an integrated approach, making the volume useful for both undergraduate and graduate students. Its…

A study examined geography texts to evaluate their adequacy for meeting the diverse needs of students and to recommend modifications that will address specific deficits. Four geography textbooks were selected based on consultations with publishers, teachers, and school administrators to be representative of geography textbooks adopted in the…

Research on popularity during childhood and early adolescence suggests that children who are perceived as popular by peers are not necessarily the same children who are sociometrically popular. This study extended previous research on popularity by examining children's perceptions of popularity. The study used open-ended questions instead of peer…