This document brings together two preliminary reports on field research undertaken as part of the Children's Folklore Program of the Southwest Educational Development Laboratory. This research is an inquiry into the nature and function of the traditional, expressive activities of Black, Mexican-American and Anglo children, of both sexes, between…

Six Education For All (EFA) goals were agreed to in the World Education Forum in Dakar, Senegal in 2000. Since then, UNESCO Bangkok, UNICEF and the Regional Thematic Working Group on EFA have been jointly assisting countries in conducting assessment of progress and gaps towards the EFA goals and mid-term review of policies and reforms. In October…

This study investigates computer-mediated communication (CMC) to facilitate the construction of a learning community of preservice teachers. The formation of a learning community involves students working together to solve ill-structured problems and applying knowledge and experience to heuristic teaching. "Peer learning" broadly…

This report reviews the benchmarking practices that are presently being used at community colleges. It introduces the concept of a "culture of inquiry" as a means for judging their potential value. It classifies benchmarking efforts among three types--performance, diagnostic, and process--and characterizes each by its typical use. The…

The aim of this study was to assess the interrelations of social support and school attitudes as predictors of achievement across a culturally and economically diverse sample of preadolescent children. Parent and peer support were assessed along with parent and peer attitudes toward school. Achievement indices were the child's own attitudes,…

In 1998 the authors published research with NFER (National Foundation for Educational Research) "Family Numeracy Adds Up" showing how parents and children had gained from fourteen pilot family numeracy programmes. It showed strong evidence of the double benefits of work with families. Children have an early boost in their learning and…

Describes the birth and growth of Circle of Sistahs, a school group developed to provide support to adolescent girls of color from mostly impoverished backgrounds. The students learn to take responsibility for their learning and engage in critical thinking. As they overcome battered self-images, they teach younger girls and engage in service to…

An investigation was conducted to determine how fifth graders with prior experience in student-led literature discussions assisted peers familiar with teacher-led discussions in basal reading programs. Tapes, observations, and writings of students indicated that students quickly adopted leadership roles, interacted, and helped one another conduct…

This study investigated what teachers understood from reading, writing, and discussing a case versus just reading and writing. Analyses of writing and oral discourse from student, beginning, and experienced teachers indicated that the addition of discussion affected their thinking about the case, benefiting teachers at different experience levels…

Twenty students (ages 11-15) with disabilities used a consensus-based group evaluation system to evaluate their group's behavior during a specified time period. Comparing team ratings to teacher ratings and delivering reinforcement (based on group behavior and team accuracy in rating behavior) was found to be an effective strategy for modifying…

Investigated relationship between peer groups and incidence of psychosocial problems among 241 adolescents. Found that group with lowest level of involvement in school activities was labeled negatively by others. Least involved group had most positive attitudes toward alcohol/drug use; lowest levels of perceived harm from alcohol/drugs; and…

Two professors in the University of Oregon's College of Education reflect upon their consultation and research experiences and share their insights about organization development in education. They discuss such areas in organization development as self-study, value systems, budget, peer cadres, teamwork, conflict management, and staff development.…

Examined three peer approval and self-worth relationship orientations among young adolescents. Focused on participants who based their self-worth on peer approval. Found such students were more likely to be distracted from schoolwork, to perceive fluctuations in classmate approval and self-worth, and to report lower levels of classmate approval…

The peer group is an important developmental context for children. In this paper we present a method to operationalize a child's integration into the classroom by their informal social classroom roles, which we obtained using a blockmodel analysis based on role equivalence. This method differs in several respects from the common socio-metric…

The purpose of this paper is to examine the influence of gender-specific peer groups on students' intentions and realisations to stay on into post-compulsory education at the age of 16. This is an important area for research as one of the UK government's aims is to achieve a 50% staying on rate in higher education at the age of 16. However, this…