Over the past four decades the yearly acceptance rate to U.S. medical schools has remained fairly constant at about 50 percent. Each year, substantial numbers of persons cannot continue formal training toward their occupational goals. In a sense, these individuals represent certain intellectual and financial losses to society in general, and to…

Reported is a study designed to determine whether reading grade level (RGL) assessment techniques used for elementary and secondary education textbooks would discriminate among plant and soil science textbooks. The study was to select the RGL indices suited to quantify the readability of these sources, and to identify the factors affecting…

Without governors' support, the emerging teaching reform agenda will go nowhere. States should eschew their "deja vu" attitudes and embrace quality of education as a major determinant of state and national economic survival. The governors' action agenda includes 10 recommendations addressing teacher education and standards, work…

Surveys the content of 13 elementary social studies methods texts published between 1981 and 1988. Disregarding quality or length of coverage, Breiter identifies common topics in social studies methods texts as well as social/controversial issues and skills coverage. Suggests how this information might be used in text selection or course renewal…

Describes a reading course offered to the first-year economics majors studying English at La Sapienza University in Rome, Italy. The reading materials were taken from authentic texts, journals, and articles about economics from English language publications. Sample passages with pre-reading and post-reading exercises are included. (CFM)

Describes the methods and objectives of assessment centers, and the benefits to academic libraries that participate in such programs. The discussion covers the usefulness of this process in collective bargaining situations, cost effectiveness, and guidelines for developing an assessment center. (33 notes with references) (CLB)

There is a continuing demographic shift toward a multiethnic school population, but the teacher population includes few minorities. Teacher selection procedures should examine personal qualities such as adaptation, creativity, self-renewal, and moral orientation. Incentives for attracting minority populations to teaching are proposed. (BJV)

Describes the lack of substantial knowledge base about the nature of adult reading schemata and adult skill acquisition processes, posits reasons for the lack, and points out areas in adult reading that need to be addressed by researchers, such as materials, programs, and instructional methods. (SKC)

The authors of a popular secondary school level-speech communication textbook that has frequently been removed from schools or attacked because it discusses values defend their book and assess the effects of censorship. (NKA)

Notes how limited funds and technical personnel affect small school districts and points out benefits that computer technology can bring to their administrative practices. Presents seven guidelines for selecting a computer to meet a small district's needs. Covers software selection, maintenance, staff training, and choosing a vendor. (JHZ)

Reports on the observation of a group of kindergartners in their classroom library twice a week for eight weeks to learn more about how the nature of the texts--familiarity, predictability, and size--influence the children's use of books. (NH)

This article contains eight principles for teaching the adult beginning reader. Each principle is based on classical, established, or new research and learning theory related to the adult reader. With each principle, a brief rationale for its development is presented and practical instructional strategies are indicated. (Author/CH)

Presents the fifth in a series of six modules designed to give beginning teachers an opportunity to become familiar with the styles of authors and illustrators representative of the various genres of children's literature. (NKA)

A study of Israeli university students' attitudes about the value and use of findings from student evaluations of instruction is reported. It examined student opinions of the relevance of certain evaluation criteria and their relationship to student characteristics and expectations. (MSE)

Surveys 254 teachers in Texas and Kansas to determine their favorite books for reading aloud to children. Shows that their preferences included twice as many male protagonists as female and that these males were portrayed more positively than the females. (FL)