Because of increased demands for curriculum expertise and constricted funding, many small rural elementary schools in the United Kingdom have created consortia, allowing groups of schools to share resources and facilities and cooperatively plan for meeting educational standards. Describes cluster development and concludes that loss of school…

Provides brief descriptions of major types of early childhood programs, and reviews what is known about the effects of early childhood programs on children and their families. The authors also consider how those effects come about and why effectiveness varies across programs. Five policy questions and recommendations are discussed regarding how…

Reviews 20 years of research on gender issues and political attitudes during the high school years. Current research reveals no gender difference in levels of student political interest, efficacy, confidence, or trust. Interviews, however, suggests that females are more likely to express views on public policy. (MJP)

Contends that often lawmakers misread their constituents' opinions on important issues. Presents data from an Indiana survey that suggest support for the death penalty vanishes when citizens are given the option of life in prison without possibility of parole combined with a requirement of work and restitution. (MJP)

Discusses American Indian education in four critical areas: tribal control, focus and priority, language and culture, and research. These areas are complex and political due to treaty rights; sovereignty; and relationships between Indian tribes and federal, state, and local governments. Unity among Indians and making Indian education a priority at…

A study of 545 academically underprepared undergraduates found that attitudes were predictors of later grade performance, that academic background was more important than attitudes, and that initial learner characteristics did not predict grade performance similarly for each ethnic group (Hispanic, Asian-American, African-American, White). The…

This issue contains data on trends and indicators of New England higher education, including demography, admissions, enrollment, degrees, educational attainment and income, student migration, retention and graduation, financing higher education, and university research and development. It also includes articles related to the data and on New…

Chronicles English-as-a-Second-Language (ESL) tutorial between a woman from Niger, whose first languages are French and Fulani, and her teacher, a native speaker of English. Highlights teaching issues, including identifying most useful focus for ESL instruction, gap between what teachers mean and students apprehend, and cross-cultural differences…

This article discusses two collaborative efforts of classroom and computer teachers to integrate adapted technology into the elementary and secondary curriculum of 24 students with visual impairment. In the primary-level project students developed computer Internet and word processing skills while studying desert life. In the secondary-level…

The research presented in this paper is a study of the values underpinning the curriculum and teaching of current Australian degree-level youth work courses. The paper looks at the implications that values raise for the introduction of competency-based training in the youth and community services sector. The paper raises some of the potential…

This eight-week descriptive study examined the impact of the incorporation of a Life-Application Learning Methods Program on struggling middle school readers. Two questions were explored: 1) How did incorporating life-application learning into the middle school curriculum impact reading motivation?, and 2) How did incorporating life-application…

Systems of care (SOCs) have been developed throughout the country to meet the needs of children with severe emotional disturbances (SED) and their families. In these SOCs, multiple agencies and disciplines are expected to work together with informal community supports to address families' needs (Stroul & Friedman, 1986a). A review of the…

In this study, we seek a better understanding of how individuals and their daily interactions shape and reshape social structures that constitute a classroom community. Moreover, we provide insight into how discourse and classroom interactions shape the nature of a learning community, as well as which aspects of the classroom culture may be…

In a rural Eastern North Carolina county, a team of students and teachers has come together to explore the scientific dynamics of a historic millpond. This article talks about the Bennett's Millpond Environmental Learning Project. The project immerses students and teachers in sustained contact with science technology tools as they study the water…

Why is classroom management especially problematic for urban teachers, and why has research yielded so few helpful answers to this question? In this article I take up both questions, suggesting that the answer to both emanates from the same source: the reliance on deficit paradigms to explain underachievement of students who have historically not…