Examined benefits/risks of participation in five types of extracurricular activities (prosocial, team sports, school involvement, performing arts, academic clubs). Data for 1,259 adolescents were drawn from the Michigan Study of Adolescent Life Transitions. Found that prosocial involvement was linked to positive educational trajectories and low…

Nearly two thousand years ago, Quintilian wrote a guide for the education of the ideal citizen which combined theory with educational practice. He believed in the importance of early education, the place of play and joy in learning, the necessity to base education on students' individual patterns of growth and learning, the magnitude of the…

We analyze a two-year Faculty Fellows Program designed to enhance the service-learning pedagogy and scholarship at a regional comprehensive university. The impact of the program was analyzed using initial questionnaires, meeting notes, final reports, and faculty reflective essays. Participation in a faculty fellows cohort program provided a sense…

Cultural diversity in society is reflected in schools but it is seldom taken into account as an influential variable in the personal and social development of students. School culture transmits specific socio-cultural values (those of the dominant group), excluding other cultural features that are not in accordance with it. Certain educational…

Instructors who consider creation of an experiential course in race relations at the university or college level may benefit from information provided in this article. One of the coauthors, a licensed psychologist and pioneer in this type of educational experience, provides insights regarding challenges of the course from an instructor's…

This article describes the conversational interactions of one online learning group whose task was to identify themes of human development from life histories of the group members. The data were analyzed by a research team using the hermeneutic circle, which involves continually looking at parts of the text in light of the meaning of the larger…

The mission of the Nebraska Center for Research on Children, Youth, Families and Schools (CYFS) is to advance the conduct of high-quality interdisciplinary research to promote the intellectual, behavioral, and social-emotional development and functioning of individuals across educational, familial, and community contexts. Central to this is…

The Concordia University Inner City Youth (CICY) program links university students with youth from disadvantaged backgrounds in a way that is beneficial to both groups. Through the project, students in Concordia's Leisure Studies Program provide recreation activities for youth from Montreal's inner-city areas. Positive leisure experiences offer…

If, as research suggests, exposing children to two languages and two cultures provides a cognitive advantage, it could be assumed that a child exposed to two languages may be accelerated in a more advanced cognitive stage (as defined by Piaget) than a child exposed to only one language. This study sought to determine when Hispanic children from…

Adventure education seeks to promote individual growth and development through the purposeful planning and implementation of educational processes that include risk in some way. This book introduces major topics in the broad literature of adventure education by bringing together 53 writings of adventure education practitioners. The writings are…

Rapid and escalating changes in labor market and post-secondary educational opportunities challenge adolescents to meet their personal and career needs. A recent study found that young people left high school unprepared for current career realities and that both the career and personal areas of the lives were in a state of change and uncertainty.…

This report provides an introduction to technology-based materials and mechanisms for ensuring student teachers' exposure to thought-provoking classroom diversity experiences. The paper discusses diversity in modern, multicultural, U.S. society and proposes an alternative definition that focuses more on an acknowledgement of the individual, with…

This case study documents one graduate student's reflections on her personal and professional development as a teacher as part of a portfolio project. Her story describes how she has blended a teaching philosophy that combines the traditional pedagogy of her own early education with her subsequent experiences as a student and as a teacher using…

This Pilipino teacher's guide is part of Berkeley, California Unified School District Asian American Bilingual Center's effort to foster the total growth of the child. To facilitate that growth, the Center has selected an interdisciplinary approach to curriculum development. Social studies themes and concepts provide the framework within which all…

Based on the premise that children need to be motivated to learn in school to achieve success, this guide is intended for parents who want to help their children realize the benefits of learning and knowledge. The guide offers effective methods for challenging and supporting children at school and throughout their lives, provide insights into how…