This article examines the role of friends in girls' and boys' advanced course taking and explores whether friends' characteristics are particularly important for girls' math and science attainment. With the use of data from Adolescent Health and Academic Achievement and the National Longitudinal Study of Adolescent Heath, the results indicate that…

This article reports findings from a study that investigated math achievement differences between English language learners (ELLs) and fully English proficient (FEP) students on a literacy-based performance assessment (LBPA). It has been assumed that LBPAs are superior to standardized multiple-choice assessments, but it has not been determined if…

This article presents an updated research synthesis on the use of students with emotional or behavioral disorders as tutors and/or tutees. Thirty-eight studies from 1972 to 2002 were identified in which students with emotional or behavioral disorders served as tutors and/or tutees in order to teach their peers a variety of academic and social…

The purpose of this study was to explore how parents and their young children attended to mathematical concepts as they engaged in shared book reading. Thirty-nine parents and their 4-year-old children from a culturally diverse metropolitan area were videotaped as they read "Mr. McMouse" (Lionni, 1992) and "Swimmy" (Lionni, 1963). Shared reading…

It is a well-known theory and practice among early childhood educators that building early relationships with the children is crucial to their development. However, there is irony in the fact that many teacher education programs that propose to model "best practices" do not model relationship building with their preservice teachers. This study…

The purpose of this study was to examine the variables that are associated with the percentage of students who pass Tennessee's Gateway exams in high school. Associations were examined between the Gateway exams and variables such as: socioeconomic status, ethnicity, dropout rate, graduation rate, attendance, average daily membership, per-pupil…

This report, submitted to the U.S. Department of Education, contains summary details of Delaware students' growth in the areas of reading, mathematics, writing, science and social studies. The results reported herein are part of a long-term effort to gather data on Delaware students' educational progress and use the data to inform decisions about…

This paper empirically examines the underlying premise of the No Child Left Behind (NCLB) school choice provision that students will perform better when they are given the opportunity to transfer from persistently low-performing schools to higher performing schools. We focus on students who move from schools that must offer choice under NCLB in a…

This monograph uses longitudinal, student-level achievement data provided by the School District of Philadelphia (SDP) to examine differential achievement effects in the 45 privately operated schools, in the 21 schools that were restructured and given additional resources in 2002, and in the 16 schools (known as the "sweet 16") that…

According to research studies, one glaring omission from teacher education programs is gender. Tomorrow's teachers receive little instruction or training on the tremendous impact of gender in the classroom. Just how does gender influence teaching, the curriculum, and the lives of teachers and students in the classroom? This unique book has been…

Using the national data from high school transcript studies conducted from 1982 to 2005, this special analysis addresses the following questions related to students' coursetaking patterns and trends during this period: (1) What do states require and what do schools offer for coursework?; (2) How many course credits do students earn by high school…

When a state test and National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP) are both measuring the same construct, the achievement gaps between subgroups on both tests should be the same. However, if a teacher or school engages in "teaching to the test" then student performance may improve on one test but not on another. We hypothesized that…

"Education Matters" is the monthly newsletter of the Association of American Educators (AAE), an organization dedicated to advancing the American teaching profession through personal growth, professional development, teacher advocacy and protection. This issue of the newsletter includes: (1) Making a Game of Math: AAE Affiliate Motivates…

The Council of the Great City Schools has prepared this seventh edition of "Beating the Odds" to give the nation another look at how inner-city schools are performing on the academic goals and standards set by the states. This analysis examines student achievement in math and reading through spring 2006. It also measures achievement gaps…

For many people committed to strong academic standards, the "advanced" high school courses offered through the College Board's Advanced Placement program and, increasingly, the Diploma Programme of the International Baccalaureate Organisation (IBO) represent the curricular gold standard for secondary education. Admissions directors and…