Students who participate in community outreach programs develop a positive awareness for civic duty and observe applications of their learning. Teachers and students discover the most vivid benefits of service learning when they participate themselves. Students are energized and the school builds a stronger link with the community. In this…

High school teachers often have difficulty motivating struggling students to complete homework--especially in inner-city schools in which many students are discouraged by stressful living conditions. The authors consulted with successful urban educators who were involved with innovative, small high schools in New York City, and asked what…

The Third International Mathematics and Science Study represents the most comprehensive international assessment of educational contexts and student achievement yet conducted. As part of the examination of the effects of contextual factors on student achievement, a model was constructed that considered the effects of variables such as…

Many families in Boston, especially the immigrant ones, are unable to navigate the Boston Public Schools system and offer their children the education they could have. In this article, the author shares how the learning and support she obtained from Citizen Schools has helped her navigate through high school and in life. Citizen Schools is an…

Using data from Programme for International Student Assessment (PISA) developed by the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD), this study examines the social disparity of family involvement. A total of 4,405 students from 140 Hong Kong secondary schools participated in the first cycle of PISA study identifying four types of…

This article discusses student pressure as a subject of debate. The latest debate about schoolwork is being fueled by three recent books: "The Homework Myth" by Alfie Kohn, "The Case Against Homework" by Sara Bennett and Nancy Kalish, and "The Overachievers", by Alexandra Robbins, which depicts overextended high…

Background: New demands are imposed by rapid change in the education system; these, in turn, cause stress. Previous studies have suggested that the degree of stress experienced by students is affected by characteristics of education, teachers and the students themselves. Purpose: To identify student and teacher characteristics that determine the…

The connection between out-of-school activities and school engagement was examined in 140, 6th through 9th grade African American adolescents. Youth's out-of-school activities were measured with a series of 7 nightly phone calls and focused on time in structured (homework, academically-oriented, extracurricular/sports) and unstructured (watching…

Based on the theoretical perspectives of socio-constructivism and language socialization, this study reports two Chinese Canadian first grader's experiences of language and literacy learning in and out of school in a unique sociocultural setting where they were "the mainstream." The article examines the students' reading and writing…

A Valparaiso University (Indiana) computer network was used to investigate the use of campus electronic mail to encourage students in English-as-a-Second-Language reading and writing classes to increase communication among themselves, to make homework assignments more interesting, and to familiarize students with on-line composing and editing.…

This bibliography is a listing of resources which provide information about the involvement of parents and guardians in the process of the education of their children. The items listed are housed in the Library, Instructional Resources Unit, Manitoba Education and Training section of the provincial government. The bibliography is divided into two…

This paper discusses the nature and implications of problems that language teachers believe to exist in excessively large classes. A review of the literature on class size indicates three categories of problems, namely pedagogical, management, and affective. Pedagogical problems include: difficulties with speaking, reading, and writing tasks;…

This report describes a project designed to decrease the number of missing, incomplete, and late assignments of seventh-grade students in a middle school science class. The students attended a small parochial school in a suburb of a large midwestern city. The students' problems with organization were documented through anecdotal records; surveys…

This manual is a resource book for organizers and leaders and parent groups who want to explore specific strategies to use in helping children with home learning. The guide contains material necessary to conduct a 1- or 1.5-hour session on how parents can encourage and support children's efforts toward home learning. The guide includes: (1) a…

This manual is a resource book for organizers and leaders and parent groups who want to explore specific strategies to use to encourage children to view math as a "user-friendly" subject. The guide contains material necessary to conduct a 1- or 1.5-hour session to help parents see the importance of: showing their children how problem-solving math…