Policy makers are especially concerned about persistently high dropout rates among U.S. Latinos, the largest minority population in the United States. This study used a national longitudinal database to show that the behavioral and social aspects of schooling are dynamically linked in the process of school completion and dropout among Mexican…

Background: To explore whether social or emotional outcomes for high-risk early adolescent youth that attended an established preventive intervention called the Chicago Child-Parent Center Preschool Program (CPC) are moderated by individual, family and program variations. Purpose: Two questions are addressed: (1) Do the effects of CPC preschool…

We focus on the concept of matter and explore how young children in urban schools bridge their spontaneous concepts and everyday experiences with scientific concepts introduced to them by children's literature information books and their teacher. The study shows how material artifacts used in a sorting activity became ideational tools--semiotic…

Many first-generation college students struggle during their first year in college. Cushman shares the reflections of 16 college students she worked with over two years who were the first in their families to attend college. Students describe how entering a climate where most fellow students come from backgrounds of greater wealth and…

Media education curricula has had to address significant changes in students' experiences of media resulting in a void for disadvantaged youth in terms of exposure to arts and technology. In this study we give an overview of the development of media curricula from an international perspective as it pertains to the intersection of art, education,…

Research on African-American and Latina/o youth has been dominated by studies that focus on "problem" adolescent behavior. Typically, they explain youth crime, delinquency, and violence as individual pathological behavior or cultural adaptations stemming from social disorganization in their communities. This article argues for a more…

Utilizing a biographical approach and network analysis, this article examines one South Australian woman's life of public and Methodist social welfare service in the post-suffrage era. It is argued that although Kate Cocks (1875-1954) viewed her welfare work as "a God-given mission", as "practical Christian service", personal…

The Randomized Control Trials (RCT) design and its quasi-experimental kissing cousin, the Comparison Group Trials (CGT), are golden to some and not even silver to others. At the center of the affection, at the vortex of the discomfort, are beliefs about what it takes to establish causality. These designs are considered primarily when the purpose…

In this article, the author provides a review and critique of key provisions in the No Child Left Behind Act (NCLB) and documents some major effects of the law, which have not been positive for arts education and other subjects not formally tested under the law. Because NCLB is scheduled for reauthorization in 2007 or 2008, the author offers a…

This study examines the differences in self-reported fathering activities of men who were reported to be a residential biological father or father figure. Specifically, this study examines self-reported fathering activities which include physical play activities, social skills activities, cognitive activities, and caregiving activities across…

This article is an excerpt from a keynote speech delivered by Senator Christopher J. Dodd of Connecticut at the 2007 Annual Conference of the American Montessori Society held last March 3, 2007 in New York City. In his speech, Dodd talked about how Dr. Maria Montessori literally took the teacher's desk out of the classroom when she developed the…

This report presents a revision of the Head Start Child Outcomes Framework (2000), renamed The Head Start Child Development and Learning Framework: Promoting Positive Outcomes in Early Childhood Programs Serving Children 3-5 Years Old. The Framework outlines the essential areas of development and learning that are to be used by Head Start programs…

The relationship between afterschool staff and students is very important for encouraging and promoting longevity in school. The primary goal of this study was to examine the connection between perceptions of staff-student relationships and the educational values, future aspirations, and engagement of LA's BEST students. To this end, we…

The increased marketisation and privatisation of schooling in economically developing countries struggling to achieve Education for All and Millennium Development Goals warrants a focused examination of the phenomenon. However, there is little work on the nature and extent of private provision in countries that, on the one hand, are striving to…

Research has identified a host of factors that likely contribute to the disparity in achievement, negating the possibility that a one-size-fits-all answer exists. Therefore, the initiatives highlighted in this issue of "Early Developments" address a variety of approaches. This issue of "Early Developments" includes the following articles: (1) The…