An alternative school in Cinnaminson, New Jersey, is run by a community meeting of the student body, under the aegis of State law and board of education policies. (Author/MF)

Researchers currently working in citizenship education are nearly unanimous in advocating student participation. (Author)

Young students can benefit when teachers address behavior in positive, rather than punitive, ways. This paper describes how one teacher stopped using punitive time outs and instead developed a program in which working together on learning and having class responsibilities was meaningful enough that instances of troublesome behavior would be…

A systematic approach which clearly defines teacher, student, and parent roles in homework is described, including discussion of homework policies, homework returns, study areas, survival kits, and time management. (CB)

The authors undertook a series of empirical studies to examine how students experience homework at various grade levels. The research casts a different light on the century-old practice of doing homework, suggesting it is the quintessential job of childhood. Homework creates a situation where the child must complete assigned tasks under minimal…

In order to encourage students to be self-motivated, engaged, critical thinkers, instructors must shift away from the traditional teacher-centered class to one that allows students to take responsibility for their own learning. Instructors may be hesitant to change classroom power relationships due to students' resistance to assuming more…

A survey on campus culture and alcohol use was completed by 1,864 first-year students in their first semester of enrollment at a large public Midwest university. Twenty-four percent of these students agreed that students can do nothing about alcohol abuse as part of campus culture, as opposed to 46% disagreeing with this statement and 24% standing…

If you're a teacher with an academically diverse classroom (and what classrooms aren't today?), you need this resource. Framed around the critical elements for success in today's classrooms, "Making Differentiation a Habit" gives educators specific, user-friendly tools to optimize teaching, learning, and assessment. Following on the heels of Diane…

The main aim of the study is to explore the role of self-assessment in EFL learning in developing lifelong language learning skills and in furthering the development of more comprehensive and thereby fairer assessment practices. The study explores how students perceived their own general and specific writing abilities in relation to syllabus goals…

Few youth suicide prevention programs are theory based and systematically evaluated. This study evaluated the pilot implementation of a community-based youth suicide prevention project guided by an ecological perspective. One hundred fifty-seven adults representing various constituencies from educators to health care providers and 131 ninth-grade…

This article reports a design experiment conducted over three successive school years, with the teacher's goal of having his Grade 4 students assume increasing levels of collective responsibility for advancing their knowledge of optics. Classroom practices conducive to sustained knowledge building were co-constructed by the teacher and students,…

This article discusses the Berlin (Connecticut) High School's NET (Non-Traditional Educational Training) program. NET is a self-contained program that is composed of three components: academics, social and emotional support, and vocational training. Rather than treat students alike, the NET program tailors their high school experience to meet…

From preschool through high school graduation and sometimes beyond, students are told what to do, where to go, and when to go there. It is little wonder that some students have become all too comfortable with minimal effort and lack-luster achievement. Even the highest-achieving schools have students who are not being engaged or challenged.…

The population growth together with the unsustainable consumption pattern is putting increasing stress on the planet's natural resources. The increasing realisation that humans are harming the environment is taking the form of a global movement intended to change behaviour towards sustainability, now recognised as a framework that links humans to…