This study examines the relationship of academic achievement to future time perspective (FTP), hope, and ethnic identity among low-income, rural and urban African American adolescents ( N = 661). Findings indicate that adolescents who are oriented toward the future, determined to reach their goals (hope), and interested in and have a strong sense…

The aim of the present study was to further examine the impact over time of single-sex and coeducational school environments on girls' motivation in language arts and mathematics. Two cohorts comprising 340 girls (7th to 9th grade; 9th to 11th grade) from eight coeducational and two single-sex schools were followed during a period of three…

A substantial amount of research in mathematics education seeks to document disparities in achievement between middle-class White students and students who are Black, Latina/Latino, First Nations, English language learners, or working class. I outline the dangers in maintaining an achievement-gap focus. These dangers include offering little more…

Gay, lesbian, bisexual, and transgendered (GLBT) public school educators' rights have not been clearly delineated by the courts. As such, the outcomes in legal controversies involving adverse employment consequences based on teachers' sexual orientation have varied somewhat across jurisdictions and have been decided on a case-by-case basis. To…

Two studies were conducted regarding the achievement goal orientations of college students within two contexts: coursework in all courses and in general education courses. Interactions were detected for achievement goals by class level and context. Findings raise concern about student attitudes toward general education, despite its importance to…

Purpose: The paper aims to explore the stages involved in the school establishment phase and detect differences between new and innovative schools startup. Design/methodology/approach: The exploratory study was conducted on the creation phase of two Israeli elementary schools: one new and one innovative. The data were collected through interviews…

Within achievement goal theory debate remains regarding the adaptiveness of certain combinations of goals. Assuming a multiple-goals perspective, we used cluster analysis to classify 1002 undergraduate students according to their mastery and performance-approach goals. Four clusters emerged, representing different goal combinations: high…

This study explored why mastery-based achievement goals often are unrelated to class grades despite promoting deep learning strategies and high course interest. We hypothesized that mastery-oriented students jeopardize their exam performance by allowing their individual interests to dictate their study efforts such that they neglect boring topics…

This paper examines aspects of coming out as a gay or lesbian person through the models of identity development presented in the literature as well as presenting some findings from face-to-face in-depth interviews conducted with young people telling us what it is like to grow up and identify oneself as gay. The coming out process is set in the…

Background: The mixed findings of previous studies on the nature and effects of performance goals have led to a call for re-examination of the dichotomous framework of achievement goal orientation theory. While the call for a revised achievement goal orientation theory has received considerable discussion in Western studies, it is not clear…

Three hundred twenty-six undergraduates who participated in a diversity-based course or voluntary intergroup dialogues completed a written questionnaire about their attitudes toward and comfort with people who are African American, Asian American, First Nation, Latina/o, white, and lesbian, gay, or bisexual (LGB). Secondary analysis of…

This article looks at one instance of a teacher attempting to discipline students for sexually profane heteronormative language and the resulting events that demonstrate a discipline over all discourses in the school. Using Fairclough's critical discourse analysis (2005) to analyze the narrative, I argue that the discourse in the school reinforces…

In this article we examine the importance of sensation seeking and pragmatism in the steroids and sports supplements behavior and attitudes of high school and junior high school students on Long Island, New York. Steroid use is much less acceptable than sports supplement use, although the reasons for use are similar. Respondents use supplements…

The purpose of this study was to obtain validity evidence for the Physical Activity and Healthy Food Efficacy Scale for Children (PAHFE). Construct validity evidence identifies four subscales: Goal-Setting for Physical Activity, Goal-Setting for Healthy Food Choices, Decision-Making for Physical Activity, and Decision-Making for Healthy Food…

This study discusses findings that replicate and extend the original work of Burns and Vollmeyer (2002), which showed that performance in problem-solving tasks was more accurate when people were engaged in a non-specific goal than in a specific goal. The main innovation here was to examine the goal specificity effect under both observation-based…