This study found that use of music as a reinforcer was highly effective in increasing productive and decreasing nonproductive behavior of 6 competitive swimmers (ages 12-16) during the dry-land portion of a practice session. Subjects rated the musical reinforcement favorably and elected to have the procedure continued. (Author/DB)

This article describes the City of London Polytechnic Mathematics Competition for Inner London Secondary Schools. The question design policy is specified, and examples of tie-breaker questions are given. (Author/JDD)

Presents a wish list for the Clinton administration. Wishes concern compensation for child care workers; discontinuance of the nation's tendency to compete with other countries in the educational arena; rejection of cost effectiveness as a criterion for justifying educational programs; bilingual education; and guaranteed justice for all children.…

Modern school reform efforts stressing competition ignore the redemptive power of love to heal wounds that cause so many youngsters to despair, leave school, withdraw from society, and abandon productive futures. This article discusses 15 commonly identified forms of love that can help address the problems of violence and provide evidence of…

A marketing program for recruiting African-American students to both African-American and predominantly white colleges is presented. It focuses on matching the individual with the college best suited to his/her needs, maintaining good relationships with admissions professionals on other campuses, knowing financial aid, and using the influence of…

Regarding Japanese students' high achievement levels, there are two important defining characteristics: high standards in all aspects of life and effort in problem solving. The idea of natural ability or talent is not very important. Ironically, Japanese colleges and universities are inadequate, despite rigorous qualifying examinations. (MLH)

Discusses the popularity and frequency of language bowls, academic competitions in foreign languages. Suggestions are made for the efficient administration and conduct of all aspects of the language bowl, such as guidelines for organizers, participants, and moderators. (six references) (GLR)

Obsession with institutional image, encouraged by the yearly rankings published by a major national news magazine, has led many colleges and universities to use questionable statistics to bolster public relations efforts. Manipulative reporting goes beyond standardized test scores to include athlete graduation rates and any other image-enhancing…

Any long-term solution to improving the American workforce through high school reform must address the fundamental issue behind the press for youth apprenticeships--the need for a formal, national system that brings together industry, government, and education to create a mainstream, high prestige, school-to-work transition program. The proposed…

Examined effects of self-disclosure and competitiveness on closeness of friendship for male graduate students (n=100). Subjects completed the Close Friendship Scale, Competitive-Cooperative Activities Scale, Jourard Self-Disclosure Questionnaire, and demographic questionnaire. Results indicated inverse relationship between competitiveness and…

Describes the 1998 Panasonic Academic Challenge including the configuration of the competition, source of questions, use of technology during the competition, and prizes for the winners. (DDR)

Describes the authors' experiences in organizing bilingual evaluation case competitions for the National Capital Chapter of the Canadian Evaluation Society for three years. Competition structure, eligibility, judging, contestant recruiting, and preparing cases are outlined. (SLD)

Discusses the use of competitions to motivate scientifically gifted students to further develop their abilities. Before scheduling a competition, teachers are urged to consider the type of project, ability to work at home or at school, curriculum fit, and individual pace and style. Seven science competitions are profiled. (CR)

Analyzes results of the 1999 National Association of College and Business Officers tuition discounting survey and identifies trends. Finds colleges and universities are reactively responding to market pressures and proactively trying to analyze and position themselves ahead of the competition, often regional rather than national, for the…

A case study of an Australian road construction company's skill development project is an example of an attempt to increase competitive advantage through competency acquisition. It remains to be seen whether reconstruction of the company will result in improved productivity and financial performance. (SK)