Although every student must take some science courses to graduate, understanding the process of science is important, and some students never seem to really grasp science. The National Science Education Standards stress process as a major component in science instruction. The standards state that scientific inquiry is basic to science education…

This study investigated multiple forms of home and school assessment as predictors of parent-rated behavior problems across a preschool year. Participants were a community sample of 79 preschool children, their parents, and their teachers. Parent ratings of behavior problems were obtained toward the beginning of the school year and approximately 6…

This study explored the relation of children's emotional functioning to children's behavior during individual planning and mother's and children's behaviors during joint planning. Participants were 118 mothers and their second-grade children. Mothers rated children on their emotional intensity and children rated themselves on their use of emotion…

Based on a yearlong critical inquiry project in a central Los Angeles high school, the author discusses the implications of engaging students in dialogue and critique about their experiences with race. The students' voices, through participant observation field notes and their own writing, tell stories of struggle and newfound understandings about…

As prevention programs become disseminated, the most serious threat to effectiveness is maintaining the quality of implementation intended by the developers. This paper proposes a methodology for measuring quality of implementation in school settings and presents data from a pilot study designed to test several of the proposed components. These…

The purpose of this study was to identify common problems students that experience in proof writing. Toward this end, the authors videotaped groups of students in a bridge course as they worked to construct mathematical proofs. They report on their observations and offer suggestions as to how teachers of transition courses might enhance the…

This article considers practitioners' beliefs and practice in relation to play in the literacy curriculum in two early years settings and the impact on the experiences of the children in these settings. Both settings were working with the Curriculum Guidance for the Foundation Stage (QCA/DfEE, 2000). One week was spent in each setting and…

This Commentary supports Gathercole's (2006) proposal on a double deficit in children with specific language impairment (SLI). The author suggests that these children have a limited phonological storage combined with a particular problem of processing novel speech stimuli. According to Gathercole, there are three areas of skill contributing to…

This research study focused on pupil-teacher interactions in kindergarten classrooms in Hong Kong. Classroom observations of the morning or afternoon sessions of nine kindergarten teachers from three schools were carried out. Teachers, in general, exhibited considerable warmth towards their pupils. Teaching consisted largely of intensive…

Semistructured interviews were conducted to explore local, lay perceptions and valuations of native and nonnative flora in order to better understand and anticipate community perceptions of, and potential participation in revegetation or eradication conservation efforts in multiethnic communities of Oahu, Hawai'i. The authors detail the…

Observation is an important component of data collection that forms the basis of a great deal of qualitative research and is also a building block for theorizing in sociology. This dimension of social science research is perhaps the most difficult to teach because there are no fixed guidelines to follow that can enable one to become an effective…

This paper covers the application of functional behavioral assessment (FBA) to treatment of problem behavior in residential facilities. Basic behavioral concepts are covered with emphasis on antecedent events and their importance in assessment and treatment. The paper focuses on two types of assessment, the behavioral interview and A-B-C narrative…

There is currently controversy over the validity and applicability of function behavioral assessment (FBA) procedures with students with emotional/behavioral disorders (E/BD). A set of FBA procedures, including teacher and student interviews and direct classroom observations, were carried out with eight students with disabilities (7 classified…

The study set out to investigate the impact of interactive whiteboards (IWBs) on teacher--pupil interaction at Key Stage 2 in the teaching of literacy and numeracy. As part of the National Literacy and Numeracy Strategies, IWBs have been made widely available as a pedagogic tool for promoting interactive whole class teaching. In order to…

Teacher effectiveness is an issue that has received increased attention in recent years, as researchers have become aware of limitations in models that see the school as the key arena for improving pupil learning outcomes. This renewed interest makes it timely to look again at the methods used in teacher effectiveness research. This article…