This paper reviews research on school effects and teacher effects on student achievement. In general, academic learning is influenced by the amount of time that students spend engaged in appropriate academic activities. Students learn more efficiently when their teachers instruct them actively by structuring new information and helping them relate…

School climate is a term used to describe how people feel about their school. The following 10 factors are described: (1) a supportive, stimulating environment; (2) student-centered; (3) positive expectations; (4) feedback; (5) rewards; (6) a sense of family; (7) closeness to parents and community; (8) communication; (9) achievement; and (10)…

The guide is intended as an information resource for school counselors in their interactions with emotionally handicapped (EH) students and their teachers. Following a definition of EH students, the first of seven brief chapters uses a question-and-answer format to discuss the counselor's role in student assessment and the individualized education…

In the attempt to improve achievement test scores, schools may overlook affective activities and events as well as processes and procedures that influence students in positive ways. The self-fulfilling prophecies held by teachers, administrators, and others for their students and the self-concepts the students hold for themselves are two major…

Five exercises based on a sample school dress code were designed from a political science perspective to help students develop skills in analyzing issues. The exercises are intended to be used in five or more class periods. In the first exercise, students read a sample dress code and name groups of people who might have opinions about it. In…

This study examined the attitudes of Swedish junior high students concerning student participation in deciding matters that affect them. Over 100 students and their teachers were interviewed, class committees and school meetings were observed, and the students completed a short questionnaire. To illustrate the pitfalls that a study of pupils'…

Educational policy makers and administrators must choose from a bewildering variety of discipline models and techniques. Legal intervention and contradictory research findings further complicate the matter. There is, therefore, no cut-and-dried solution to student behavior problems. Rather, discipline policies must be based on community values,…

Decisions made by federal and state courts during 1983 concerning the liability of schools, school districts, school boards, or school employees in tort cases are reported in this chapter. Torts are civil causes of action based on noncontractual legal responsibilities that individuals have to avoid harming or injuring another's person, property,…

A leadership class for high school seniors that has been offered since 1979 at Lakeland High School, New York, and that is popular with students, the school administration, and the community is described. Described also are the rationale behind the leadership program, the techniques found successful in moving it forward, the community resources…

This paper provides information on the Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act of 1974 (part of Public Law 93-380) and on the regulations that govern its implementation. This act (also called the Buckley Amendment) provides that parents or students 18 or older be given the right to review student records, to have a hearing to challenge the…

The Supreme Court has ruled in several cases that schools must formulate rules and regulations that do not infringe on a student's right to free and unrestricted expression as guaranteed to them under the First Amendment. In two separate cases, the Court decided that students may wear buttons or armbands that express a particular position on an…

Estimates of the precise costs of school vandalism vary widely, but the seriousness of the problem is beyond dispute. It is possible to get a general idea of the nature and motivation of most vandals and, in doing so, begin to understand the problem and devise solutions for it. There are two basic approaches to vandalism prevention. Currently, as…

Educational consumerism continues to be the major focus of litigation involving students. Disputes over admissions practices, grades, academic terminations, and financial aid comprised the largest proportion of cases reported this year. The section on academic affairs is the largest single section. As the job market gets tighter and the cost of…

Diagnostic classification of schools into types according to several school characteristics may be helpful in pinpointing causes for student disruption. Responses to questionnaires administered to principals, teachers, and students in over 600 junior and senior high schools showed that a common group of characteristics was shared by many central…

Court cases involving student discipline, especially in regard to student publications and dress and appearance, is the subject of this chapter. The introduction discusses the doctrine of in locus parentis, the celebrated Supreme Court case of Tinker, and the minimum essentials for enforcing rules of student conduct. The first half of the chapter…