This companion piece to a 1997 article examines United States demographic trends, such as diversity by age, "race" and U.S. Census racial classifications, wealth, transiency, suburbanization and sprawl, and immigration, focusing on differences among states and metro regions. Nothing, including achievement scores, social services, and…

Over the past 30 years, Florida's 500 middle schools have become more sizeable, racially segregated, and security conscious. Other features include interdisciplinary team organization, warring curricula, block schedules, integrated technology, inclusion, ability grouping, corporate practices, and female and minority principals committed to…

Gender differences in participation and performance at "high stakes" examinations have received much public attention, which has often focused on mathematics and science subjects. This paper describes the innovative forms of assessment introduced into mathematics and science subjects within the Victorian Certificate of Education (VCE)…

This article reports on the results of a planning grant studying the effects of a highly rated curriculum unit on a diverse student population. The treatment was introduced to 1500 eighth grade students in five middle schools selected for their ethnic, linguistic, and socioeconomic diversity. Students were given pre-, post-, and delayed posttests…

This investigation compared quantitative outcomes associated with class-wide peer tutoring using differentiated hands-on activities vs. teacher-directed instruction for students with mild disabilities in inclusive 8th-grade science classes. Thirteen classes of 213 students (109 males; 104 females), of whom 44 were classified with disabilities,…

The primary intent of this program evaluation was to determine the degree of inclusion of students with disabilities in general education classes in four elementary and four secondary schools; the similarities and differences in how special education services were offered; and the ways in which students with disabilities were supported in the…

Project EXCITE was developed and implemented specifically to raise the achievement of gifted minority students in a large suburban school district of Chicago so that they could qualify for advanced programs and accelerated tracks in high school in mathematics and science. This paper describes the goals, components, eligibility, and selection…

"Chronicle of Higher Education" presents an abundant source of news and information for college and university faculty members and administrators. This June 11, 2004 issue of "Chronicle for Higher Education" includes the following articles: (1) "Parlez-Vous Anything?" (Germano, William); (2) "The Colors They…

Extrafamilial sexual abuse experiences of young adolescents (ages 10-14), particularly young teen boys, are not well studied. This retrospective chart review study compared psychosocial correlates and victimization experiences between young adolescent girls (n = 226) and boys (n = 64) referred to a hospital child advocacy center. Several…

The reauthorization of IDEA, which is now Public Law 108-446, was signed into law by President Bush on December 3, 2004. This article discusses background issues and some of the consequences of this new law for children with learning disabilities. For the first time in a reauthorization of IDEA, the rights of parents and students have been…

This article describes a replication of the "First Step to Success" program (Walker, Stiller, Severson, & Golly, 1998) with at-risk students in the first and second grade to determine program effectiveness in decreasing inappropriate behaviors and increasing academic engagement time. This expands the "First Step to…

The purpose of this study was to analyze the newly developed elementary school (grades 1 through 8) mathematics curriculum by considering 5th grade students' and classroom teachers' views. The analysis of the curriculum was realized in three dimensions; (1) Classroom management--classroom physical and emotional environments, teacher and student…

Efforts to improve the educational achievement of children, especially those from disadvantaged backgrounds, are at the heart of current government policies in the United Kingdom. The Peers Early Education Partnership (PEEP) is an intervention that, since 1995, has worked directly with parents and caregivers of children from infancy to 5 years of…

Scratch the surface of a successful school and you will find a web of interactions that is the root of its success. Who is it that envisions, inspires, cajoles, and rallies all the various players in and around a school toward any improvement goal? Often it's a superintendent, a principal, a professor, a special teacher, or a parent. In a word,…

California counties receiving funds from Juvenile Justice Crime Prevention Act (JJCPA) programs are required to report six outcome measures to the California State Legislature on an annual basis to measure the success of the program. These outcome measures are (1) successful completion of probation, (2) arrests, (3) probation violations, (4)…