Reviews services provided to 120 children (62 experimental and 58 control) by state welfare agencies. Finds that, over six years, children in the experimental groups required less supervision time, lived at home longer, and were in less-restrictive placements than those in the control group. (Author/JDM)

Describes a kindergarten teacher's successful efforts to create more heterogeneous groupings and less animosity among students in her class. Discusses efforts to encourage after-school visiting among peers, classroom agreements about put-downs and exclusion during play, turn-taking, teacher-assigned grouping, conflict management, efforts to…

Describes "community meetings" in early childhood classrooms, designed to create an intentional community devoted to learning to live with and consider the perspectives of others. Discusses how meetings work, community meeting and the topic of exclusion, students' learning about themselves, awareness as a kind of solution, airing a…

The development of ethnic identity is a critical facet of adolescence, particularly for adolescents of color. In order to examine the developmental trajectory of ethnic identity, African American, Latino American, and European American early and middle adolescents (N=420) were assessed over 3 years. Two components of ethnic identity were…

This book describes in detail the basic elements of school-based management (SBM) and the ways in which to implement successful change in the individual school. Specifically, it tells how Prince William County Public Schools (Virginia) has implemented SBM. Chapter 1 presents a rationale for the development of a more effective school-operation…

This paper examines the ritual socialization of parents into a school community. Rituals may be mundane or sacred and typically involve actions that have transformative potential. In the context of groups, rituals may serve the purposes of identifying and constructing group identity, maintaining cohesion, and constructing and communicating values.…

To research the implications of portfolio assessment for student learning and teacher methodology, a teacher examined the interplay of reflection and evaluation in her expository writing class of 12. In a semester-long intermediate-level class, students wrote a draft of a paper each week, with each paper then going through multiple drafts.…

A "do-it-yourself" library move may produce significant changes in the established patterns of personnel organization and behavior of the library staff. However, most previously published work on the topic of moving a library collection concentrates on procedural aspects of a move. This study recounts and analyzes the impact of such a…

Family stories, told and retold, become important vehicles in shaping the lives of family members. Knowing and understanding family narratives can aid students in understanding their families' histories, communication patterns, and meanings. The stories are a cohesive element for holding the family together, and may also capture the essence of the…

After a discussion of the circumstances that led to the unification of the two German states, this paper then evaluates the challenges to political education in Germany after unification. Beginning with the focus by the media and politics on the effects of East German political changes on the two German states, the revolution in East Germany and…

A random sample of the 7,996 volunteer adult 4-H program leaders in Nebraska were sent a questionnaire to determine how the 4-H leaders felt about the contribution of the 4-H program to family strengths such as appreciation, sharing, good communication, commitment, and sharing values. Of the 334 Family Involvement Questionnaire responses, 315…

The necessity of balancing the need for togetherness and the need for separateness in intimate relationships has been well documented in family research. To investigate cross national differences in the value placed on autonomy versus togetherness in close relationships, 2,079 college students from Hungary, Ireland, Mexico, the Netherlands, the…

This document summarizes discussions at an invitational workshop on the role of culture in development in Nigeria. The discussion centered on encouraging those elements of traditional African culture that contribute to the national development and on identifying a national Nigerian culture. The following broad topics were discussed: (1) the…

Of the many specific situations in which the exercise of suasory influence may be necessary to assure that a decision making group meets its analytical responsibilities, five appear to be particularly important. These are circumstances in which (1) a group is violating accepted procedural norms, (2) an authority figure or high status group member…

This study developed an index of communal school organization and used this measure to focus on specific features of high schools as social organizations. The philosphical and social perspectives of the school as a community are explored, focusing on the school as a social organization consisting of cooperative adults who share a common purpose…