Introduces the articles in this journal issue, noting the burgeoning interest in the roots of parental beliefs, values, and goals. Highlights thematic continuities among the otherwise diverse research approaches presented, for example, synthesis of different theoretical perspectives of parent beliefs, or the context in which parental beliefs…

Asserts that, although music teachers direct a great deal of time toward improving student recruitment, improving student retention in music courses and activities is just as important. Maintains that student interest in music rises dramatically in the first few weeks of instruction and then declines in a second stage. (CFR)

This paper cites observational and interview evidence indicating that language immersion students in the United States and Canada increasingly avoid using their second language in peer interactions as they move into higher primary grade levels. Implications for immersion programs and teachers are discussed. (32 references) (MDM)

Examined whether children of alcoholic mothers were more psychologically damaged than children of nonalcoholic mothers. The subject families' potential for creating a good upbringing environment and subjects' childhoods were studied. Found that children of alcoholic mothers develop social maladjustment problems and addictions, and have a high rate…

Describes a study that focuses on the Pygmalion effect by examining how educators express their expectations to children in a kindergarten class. Indicates that educators, when cultivating high or low expectations toward the children, do not react in the same manner. (46 citations) (MAB)

Reports on an evaluative study of a secondary level civics curriculum in the Netherlands. Finds a discrepancy between the curriculum plans of the developers and the classroom implementation of the curriculum. Recommends an implementation-oriented development strategy with emphasis on early and intensive formative evaluation. (CFR)

Analyzed stability and change in late adolescent attachment relations and the interrelationship among attachment, separation-individuation, and college adjustment variables. Results of two studies suggested stability in attachment to parents, over time, for both men and women. Security of attachment was inversely related to independence from…

This study examined beginning teachers' perceptions of inservice training needs. Researchers asked beginning teachers to rank the areas in which they needed the most training. The highest ranked topic was student motivation, while practical classroom management ideas and positive reinforcement ranked second. Behavior problems and diversity also…

Investigates ways in which social capital made available in an immigrant community contributes to the adaptation of the younger generation. Findings from Vietnamese youth living in New Orleans indicate that strong positive immigrant cultural conformity and constructive forms of behavior provide disadvantaged children with an adaptive advantage.…

Examines hypothesis that stepfamilies experience more marital conflict than do biological families. Measured remarriage's and stepchildren's impact on marital conflict frequency. Findings suggest that remarriage and stepchildren are not necessarily associated with more frequent marital conflict and that stepchildren's effect varied depending on…

Examination of developmental scores of 198 infants and young children with Down's Syndrome attending exemplary early intervention programs found more similarity to other children in Personal Social and Adaptive Domains and less similarity in Communication and Cognitive Domains of the Battelle Developmental Inventory. These differences were…

Using 41 students (ages 6-10) with moderate mental retardation as subjects, 3 different forms of academic integration are compared: special classes using a functional curriculum, special classes using a traditional curriculum, and regular classes. After the first year, no significant intergroup differences appeared for measurements of cognitive…

Discusses general conclusions for which evidence is provided by the research presented in this issue. Conclusions relate to (1) child-teacher relationships and attachments; (2) concordances between children's relationships with their teachers and parents; (3) children's internal representations of their relationships; (4) factors underlying…

Evaluated the factor structure, reliability, and validity of a French version of the Self-Perception Profile for Children. The profile was administered to elementary school students in Quebec, and results were correlated with teacher and peer assessments. Results supported a five-factor solution and indicated that each factor was reliably…

Studies previously identified factors associated with adolescent pregnancy among a nationally representative sample of unmarried African-American females (n=4,663) born between 1938 and 1962. Data from the 1982 National Survey of Family Growth suggest substantial changes in sexual behavior over the years. (SLD)