Examines teachers' ratings of effective principal leadership in magnet and nonmagnet schools. Teachers in nonmagnet schools rated principals more effective than did teacher in magnet schools. Principals' efforts to deal with lower student SES, permeable school boundaries, and larger school size may account for their lower rating of leadership…

This study uses a unique set of microdata on university applications to examine the role played by institutional attributes in choices made by graduating high school students between the 17 universities in the Province of Ontario, Canada. We estimate a rank-ordered logit model that uses all information contained in each applicant's ranking of…

This interpretive study explored the qualities of six high-performing schools that served low-income South African students. The theoretical framework and methodology derived from research on effective schools conducted, for the most part, in the United States. Data consisted of interviews and classroom observations over the course of two…

Participatory exercises are standard practice in qualitative methods courses; less common are projects that engage students in the entire research process, from research design to write-up. Although the teaching literature provides several models of complete research projects, their feasibility, and appropriateness for large, compulsory,…

There is still little consensus on whether and how teaching is affected by small and large classes, especially in the case of students in the later primary years. This study investigated effects of class size on teaching of pupils aged 7-11 years. We used a multimethod approach, integrating qualitative information from teachers' end-of-year…

In an attempt to uncover differences in student behavior as a function of class size, the author observed a small class and a large class for 15 hours each and conducted interviews with eight students who were members of both classes. Two trends emerged from these qualitative data. First, a "diverge-converge" pattern was evident in the small class…

This study investigates the relationship between the number of students with special needs (designated as exceptional or receiving special education services) in grade-3 classrooms in 1997-1998 and their achievement scores in reading, writing, and mathematics on Ontario's provincial assessment with their peers without special needs. When the…

This study explores teachers' beliefs about pedagogical issues as well as related educational and professional issues. Six hundred K-12 teachers in three Midwestern states received surveys and 60% returned them. Results of the survey indicated that teachers were relatively unified in their beliefs, and few differences emerged around demographic…

Findings from a survey of undergraduates demonstrate links between students' experience level and their perceptions and expectations of large classes. The authors made a number of hypotheses, including that students prefer active-learning experiences but expect passive-learning experiences, that experienced students prefer large classes but…

Dutch and US teachers were questioned about their perceptions of the incidence and causes of ADHD, as well as their views of appropriate treatments. Dutch teachers were more likely than US teachers to think the etiology of the disorder lay in biochemistry, while US teachers were more likely to believe in a combination of environmental and…

Parents, teachers, and other caregivers need to be aware of certain fundamental concepts to protect children from assault, abuse, and neglect. Among other things, children need: to understand what being a "stranger" means; to have sources of self-esteem (that thrive when children are loved unconditionally); to have good communication…

A detailed assessment of the average class size in Massachusetts public schools is provided in this report, which includes the means and ranges of average class size and a description of class size across grade levels, subject area, and community type. Data were collected from the Chapter 188 Individual School Report (1987-88), an annual survey of…

The relationship between test performance and the size of the class in which instruction occurred was studied at Brigham Young University. The classes prepared students for examinations to meet general education graduation requirements. All test scores from 318 sections representing 27 courses from the fall semester, 1980 were analyzed. Section…

This study provided the opportunity to examine the relationship of achievement in mathematics to class size and to the number of hours of mathematics instruction received each week. (RK)