Four models for teaching students how to interact more effectively with text at the junior high, high school, and university levels are reviewed in this paper. Each model emphasizes one or more of the following classroom components and their interactions--student resources, text characteristics, tests or course goals, and instructional strategies.…

Although disabled students need the same comprehensive assistance in making the transition from school to work as their nondisabled counterparts, most disabled youth, and particulary those with severe disabilities, do not receive adequate assistance in this area. This situation can be remedied by approaching the transition to employment as a…

By initiating formal structures for cooperation and coordination of programming between themselves and local high schools, community colleges can reduce the amount of unnecessary duplication of efforts and programs and can benefit many students who, without such a program of articulation, would be unprepared for community college course work.…

This chapter focuses on the need for a revised relationship between schools and the courts through the concept of preventive law. The chapter reviews court cases and presents an overview of conflict resolution models and strategies for reducing litigation. Preventive law assumes that greater use of its strategies affords a lesser need for conflict…

For many years personalization of achievement testing has been impossible in all but the simplest forms. Recently, item response theory (IRT), or latent trait theory, has emerged as a valuable tool which brings far greater flexibility to the process than had previously been possible. The single parameter Rasch Model, a mathematical model developed…

This paper focuses on how educational statistics might better serve the quest for educational improvement in elementary and secondary schools. A model for conceptualizing the sources and processes of school productivity is presented. The Learning Productivity Model suggests that school outcomes are the consequence of the interaction of five…

The efficiency of the butterfly catastrophe model for describing and predicting performance changes in an educational setting was studied. Subjects were 455 introductory psychology students. Changes in performance on the first exam and three subsequent exams were examined, plus extra credit for participation in psychology experiments. The…

The purpose of this study was to test the reliability and validity of an instrument designed to measure the dramatic and sociodramatic play activity of young children. A total of 31 children were selected from early education programs on the basis of sex and socioeconomic status. The spontaneous classroom dramatic play behavior of each child was…

Nursing curricula have been revised numerous times over the years in response to changes in the health care arena, as well as societal demands and political and economic forces. One of the most dynamic shifts in nursing education in the last 25 years is the shift in focus from the medical model to an integrated approach. Faculty in university…

The Leander Independent School District in Austin, Texas, undertook a project to (1) research the training needs for high-technology occupations in the Greater Austin area, (2) develop a statewide model of an articulated 2 + 2 program to prepare students for careers as technicians, and (3) implement the articulated 2 + 2 program with Austin…

Written in narrative form, a study examined the impact of using writing as a learning tool in an upper-division college course in Seventeenth Century literature. The study investigated: (1) student writing samples of both informal and transactional writing forms; (2) the impact of writing-to-learn on course objectives; (3) the impact of informal…

Designed for students in a community college introductory psychology course, this booklet provides course assignments and ideas to improve students' writing. The booklet covers the following topics: (1) course writing assignments and the steps in preparing summaries of readings; (2) academic honesty and ways to avoid plagiarism; (3) the use of…

The monograph summarizes characteristics of effective instruction of mildly handicapped and non-handicapped students by focusing on two literature areas: Instructional Psychology and Models of School Learning. The review on instructional psychology covers the following areas: definitions of instruction, principles of learning, models of the…

The manual is designed to provide information and support to parents of emotionally disturbed children. The first chapter, "Feelings Come First," deals with such topics as identifying unusual behavior, impact on parents and other family members, coming to terms with feelings, and advice from other parents. Chapter 2, "Finding Some Help," defines…

This report describes the activities of the Center for Agricultural and Rural Development (CARD), Iowa State University, for the year ending June 30, 1987. During this fiscal year, CARD conducted numerous projects including the following: (1) a policy evaluation on agricultural applications of pesticides and ground water quality for the…