Following the 1990 census, which determined that 12.3% of West Virginia's citizens over 25 years old were college graduates while the national average was 23.6 percent, several initiatives were undertaken to raise standards for education. This paper reports on a study designed to elicit the opinions of students, educators, and parents about…

The role individual psychological motives play in failure in learning was studied through a survey of students of English as a Second Language at a Saudi Arabian university. Students who scored about 80% and those who scored lower than 60% (the passing grade) on an English language examination were interviewed about their previous experiences and…

This study examined the perceptions of college students at Boise State University (Idaho) regarding advising, especially at the junior and senior levels where advising is a departmental responsibility. Students in upper and lower division courses completed a survey examining their perceptions of adviser characteristics, problems with their…

The spring 1999 student withdrawal survey was made available for approximately two weeks before the final withdrawal deadline to all students who formally dropped a class through the admissions office at either the North County or San Luis Obsipo campus of Cuesta College in California. A total of 438 useable surveys were collected. The identical…

This document presents the 1999 annual follow-up survey by Cabrillo College (California), which explores the reasons students chose Cabrillo, why they left if they did not complete the program, their satisfaction with the program and ideas for improvements, and comparisons of employment and wage level between completers of a program and leavers,…

This paper reports findings from a study of Finnish academic Olympians of different ages who participated in Olympiad Studies in mathematics, physics, or chemistry during the years 1965-1997. The study focused special interest on the influences of home and school in contributing to the development of academic talent. The results of the Finnish…

This study examined the relationship between the learning style profile of students enrolled in the service module courses offered by the Computer Science department at Calvin College (Michigan) and their general attitudes toward computers. Data were gathered using the VARK (Visual, Aural, Read/write, and Kinesthetic) learning style inventory and…

The "We the People... The Citizen and the Constitution" program is an instructional program on the history and principles of U.S. constitutional democracy for elementary, middle, and high school students. The program is based on curricular materials developed by the Center for Civic Education. At the high school level, classes may choose…

This study explores the motives, barriers, and enablers that affect adult students in their decision to enroll in community college distance learning credit classes. Three methodologies were utilized: (1) an online focus group of adult distance learning and adult education experts to identify the main issues and questions to be used in interviews…

Based on research indicating successful readers have several common characteristics (student choice and availability of reading materials, time for reading, and time to talk about their reading), a study explored research findings about each characteristic and surveyed middle grade teachers' reading practices in the classroom. Seventh-grade…

This research examined the effects of teaching metacognitive strategies on performance in a self-directed learning situation. All participants, 60 university students enrolled in a beginning photography course for non-art majors, were subject to the same conditions. The treatment was embedded instruction and practice in reflection, planning, and…

Case-based instruction (CBI) is used in a variety of professional schools. Studies indicate that CBI can have promising results, but they do not provide insights into the theoretical justification for using CBI. An earlier paper (Risko and Kinzer, 1994) identified five theoretical constructs for CBI: anchored instruction; reflective thinking;…

Presents results of a questionnaire filled out by international students regarding years of English study, length of residence in the United States, free reading habits in the first and second language, and television watching. Reading in English, English study in the home country, and length of residence in the United States affected students'…

To realize NASSP's reform goals in "Breaking Ranks," educators must first personalize high schools. This means every student should have a personal adult advocate and a personal progress plan; teachers must teach to students' learning styles; and no school should be larger than 600 students. A 1996 national student survey underlines the…

Studied factors and characteristics that influence students' likelihood of pursuing postsecondary education through a survey completed by 1,372 high school seniors. Findings show that of the top 10 factors influencing college choice, four were related to cost. (SLD)