Describes a multiyear program in the Jacksonville (FL) schools that identifies high achieving students during elementary school and grooms them, through special advanced classes and summer programs, to work toward achieving high scores on the Scholastic Aptitude Test in high school. The program has increased student achievement and the number of…

Describes an honors composition course for the two-year college, including the student selection process, rationale for the course, operational strategies, and course and instructor evaluations. (ARH)

Independent study, fieldwork, and peer teaching are particularly well suited to helping outstanding students learn, interact collaboratively, and become contributing members of the academic community. Study options, elements of a study contract, and other components are described. (MSE)

This report provides guidance for a rigorous science curriculum in the middle grades based on a solid set of essential standards that can prepare all students to perform at least at the basic level of proficiency and for increasing percentages of students to perform at the proficient and advanced levels. This report is organized around 19…

This document addresses the fact that community colleges have received little attention in research literature. The biggest gap in research is about community college instructors who teach the most and least prepared students through honors and developmental courses. Data was gathered from a national survey the professional practices and attitudes…

This study examines the role of Advanced Placement (AP) and other honors-level courses as a criterion for admission at a leading public university, the University of California, and finds that the number of AP and honors courses taken in high school bears little or no relationship to students' later performance in college. AP is increasingly…

This study examined the impact of the Kansas Regents Honors Academy on students who had completed the program since its inception in 1986. A total of 504 of the approximately 1,640 academically superior graduating high school students completed a survey questionnaire that focused on demographic data, college data (degrees, majors, grade point…

Based on interviews with honors program administrators at six community college districts, discusses reasons for initiating honors programs; benefits for students, faculty, and colleges; admissions criteria; scholarships; and course options (e.g.,interdisciplinary courses, in-class honors options, speakers' programs, and extra-course activities).…

Describes how Penn State University introduced significantly revised admission standards. Discusses past admission practices. Describes changes including the addition of honors courses in evaluation of the secondary school record, consideration of college enrollment capacity, and actions in area of minority student and out-of-state enrollment. (RC)

Describes activities in a high school physics course designed to enhance learning. Also describes in detail an advanced course called Nucleonics, and activities in an honors physics course. Discusses changes in school classrooms since the early 1950s. (CS)

Describes an experiment for an honors organic laboratory course that allows the student to approach a synthesis with independent planning and the use of the literature. (MLH)

Examines the development of undergraduate library and information science education at the University of Wales, Aberystwyth in the context of educational change in the United Kingdom from 1967 through 1997. Discusses the joint honors program, the merger of the College of Librarianship Wales and the University College of Wales, and distance…

Explores self-reflection skills and views in the context of an introductory physics course for first-year engineering honors students. Measures students' conceptual learning gains using standard survey instruments. Finds that students with high conceptual gains tend to show reflection on learning that is more articulate and epistemologically…

An unusual degree requirement at Christ College, the honors college of Valparaiso University (Indiana), involves freshman production of an original musical theater production. The role of such a collaborative and imaginative effort in a liberal education is discussed, focusing on the arts as a context for inquiry. (MSE)

The honors program at the University of Texas at San Antonio serves an ethnically diverse, often underprepared, and commuter student population with special courses and support. The program's success to date illustrates the importance of strong support and effective leadership at all levels within the institution. (Author/MSE)