This paper examines the negotiations that occur in a specific educational setting when traditional student placement practices are challenged and redesigned in an effort to better meet the needs of English language learners. The settings for these negotiations is an elementary school where over 90 percent of the students are native English…

This comprehensive and easy-to-read book explores both the theory and practice of English-as-a-Second-Language (ESL) assessment and is full of work samples, ideas, organizers, and personal experiences that all readers can use or adapt for their own situations. The primary goal is to provide proven and effective assessment methods. As ESL students…

In this study, four hearing mothers with deaf children (ages 3-10) were interviewed about the process of choosing a mode of communication and school placement for their children. All of the children attended local public schools. The mothers' responses were examined in order to identify any common factors that contributed to the choice of public…

A study compared two methods for assessing English proficiency of limited-English-proficient school-age children, for purposes of placement in bilingual and monolingual education programs. The two instruments used were the Idea Oral Language Proficiency Test (forms C and D) (IPT), which assesses oral English proficiency, and the Woodcock-Munoz…

This booklet provides information to families with young children who are deaf or hard of hearing to assist them with communication, socialization, and education choices. It provides: (1) a description of each of the various modes of communication available for use with and among children with are deaf or hard of hearing, including American Sign…

The progress of children through the grades of the public schools and the stage of advancement at which they quit school are matters of great educational and economic importance, and enlist the interest of both school officers and taxpayers. If many children fail to accomplish any part of the work of the school in the time prescribed, it may be…

Presents a model reading lab design for advanced English for Academic Purposes students and describes the four major instructional components of the lab as well as the logistics of running a lab. (44 references) (Author/CK)

Conflicts between parents' wishes and school authorities' decisions have historically occurred in several areas, including compulsory education, special education, and curriculum. Reviews legal precedents for parental rights, explores current court cases involving parent/school authority conflicts, and critiques recent state legislation concerning…

Compared children retained in kindergarten with matched samples of age and grade mates, using teacher ratings as an index of their social and academic skills. Found that retained children showed a reduction in behavior problems, specifically acting-out and shy-anxious behaviors, but only slightly increased competence for task orientation across…

Overviews challenges facing foreign language educators, including lack of a shared framework, dominance of the curriculum by textbooks, inaccurate student placement, yearly repetition of course content, and lack of a consensus on what students should achieve. A new articulation and achievement project has made progress in solving these problems.…

Describes the role of parent information centers in the school selection process, drawing on experiences with six Massachusetts information centers. In spite of insufficient funding and overwhelming work loads, these centers are providing valuable information to help parental school choice and to promote parent participation in school decision…

Describes the work of the Toussaint Institute, a nonprofit organization that places African-American male students in about 53 African-American independent schools in New York City. The institute investigates the schools, places and monitors students, and helps schools become local and national resources. Advantages of these schools are described.…

This study investigated social support preferences of Hispanic male junior high school students with (n=22) and without (n=11) mild learning handicaps for various life stressors. Students with handicaps were more likely to choose "nobody" and less likely to choose siblings than nonhandicapped peers. Differences between special class and resource…

Future special education placement bias litigation can be prevented if special education and related services programs meet certain principles of responsibility, including ensuring the development of effective interventions in regular education, using assessment procedures that are oriented toward intervention rather than student classification,…

Describes social, cultural, and psychological factors that can influence academic achievement of African-American students by gender and placement in gifted or nongifted academic programs. Results with 148 African-American fifth and sixth graders in an urban Ohio elementary school demonstrate more importance for academic program than for gender.…