This executive summary of the multiyear Beginning Teacher Evaluation Study (BTES) focuses principally on the findings of Phase III-B of this research program on teaching effectiveness. One outcome of the BTES study was a concept that makes it possible to measure individual student learning by noting observable variables of student behavior in the…

A model of Academic Learning Time (ALT) is described, where ALT represents ongoing student learning in terms of student engagement, low student error rate, and relevance of the instructional task to the specified outcome. This model was validated in a correlational study of the relationship between these variables and student achievement in…

Grade 5 students (N=39) judged on the basis of familial factors to be at risk for antisocial behavior were evaluated for academic engaged time, social interactive behavior, teacher ratings of social skills, principal contacts, and special education services. Results indicated behavioral differences between the at risk subjects and normal controls.…

Prompting, positive and negative reinforcement, and a gradually extended reinforcement schedule were used with three autistic clients (two six-year-olds and one adolescent) to teach them to maintain on-task behaviors without constant supervision. Results indicated that appropriate behavior could be successfully maintained with only infrequent and…

The school day of a total of 122 learning disabled, emotionally/behaviorally disturbed, educable mentally retarded, and nonhandicapped elementary students was observed. Findings were noted concerning time allocated to instruction in specific content areas, time spent in different school settings, and time allocated to instruction as a function of…

Reviews current psychological research on the effects of time, discusses policy and practical implications, and proposes "productive time" rather than "allocated time" or "time-on-task" as a new focus of educational reform. Productive time allows students to engage in lessons adjusted to their differences in learning rate and background knowledge.…

Using several charts, this article compares strengths and weaknesses of Japanese junior high schools and American middle schools. Each system could learn something from the other. As an adaptive, reactive culture, Japan might benefit from a more flexible, diversified school atmosphere, while an individualistic, pluralistic United States might gain…

Describes implementation of computer simulation to aid in training psychology students in research methodology. Four skills required in research are reviewed; the simulation's context and the software used are described; and student activities, including submission of articles to online class journals and students' responses to the method, are…

The SOBR observation technique was used to observe reading instruction in special education resource room programs for mildly disabled students. Disabled and nondisabled students in regular classrooms were also observed. There were considerable differences in reading instruction across programs and students. The amount of reading instruction was…

Three groups of elementary school children, rated on activity and distractibility, were given a visual search task with three levels of display load and tested twice in two conditions of stimulus visibility. Encoding deficit or data limitation did not account for the attentional performance of either hyperactive or somewhat hyperactive subjects.…

Research results that showed that high school employment may foster high school achievement is explained by a congruence hypothesis, which holds that there is a correspondence between the personality traits promoted and rewarded by employers and those traits promoted and rewarded by teachers. (Author/RM)

Describes the final investigation of a sequential series of studies to determine whether videodisc technology is educationally effective and cost efficient. The study compared training time, posttest success, student stress, and student satisfaction in U.S. Army paramedic students in a nonvideodisc control group and limited-access and full-access…

A case study describes the installation of economic education at the kindergarten-primary grades in one state. The effectiveness of the process depends on the demand for such instruction, the materials available, the willingness and capabilities of teachers, and the time allocated for such instruction. (Author/RM)

Evaluates the effect of a comprehensive teacher training program in Instructional Theory into Practice (ITIP) on student achievement. Reports findings of two phases of a four-phase Follow-Through study. Achievement test scores indicate that students in the project made significant gains in reading and mathematics. (DR)

The main reasons that students drop out of high school are poor grades, family problems, and financial problems. The school reform movement may compound marginal students' difficulties and cause more students to drop out. (MD)