A Maryland school system developed a program called "Students Achieving Independent Learning" (SAIL) to help low-achieving students learn how to read. SAIL helps students become successful readers by showing them steps they can take throughout the reading process to increase their understanding. (13 references) (MLF)

Poor performance in technical/statistical courses may reflect ineffective problem-solving strategies. Experts approach problem solving with tacit strategies such as chunking, emergence, fundamental questioning, attention to process, and self-monitoring. These concepts can be presented in ways that enable students to practice expert behaviors.…

Identifies word factors associated with poor spelling in 5 school year-groups (ages 7 to 11 years) as: (1) the word's frequency in the English language; (2) word length; and (3) a measure of the phoneticity of the word. Explores the concept of word phoneticity. Presents data illustrating the predictive model of spelling. Discusses implications for…

This document examines where the concern for at risk students comes from. It discusses some of the causes and effects related to students who are at risk, looking at multiculturalism and the role it plays for these students.

'Underachievement' is now a widely used term in education policy and practice. It is used routinely to refer to nations, home nations and regions, to types and sectors of schooling, to physiological, ethnic and social groups, and to individuals. It has been used to mean simply low achievement, also lower achievement relative to another of these…

Work teams sometimes include individuals with low levels of reading proficiency. Traditional team assessment instruments may not be suitable for use with such teams. A well-known teamwork instrument, the Team Excellence survey (LaFasto & Larson, 1987), was simplified to enhance readability. Fifty-two participants completed both the original and…

This article reviews the validity of models based on (a) aptitude--achievement discrepancies, (b) low achievement, (c) intraindividual differences, and (d) response to instruction for the classification and identification of learning disabilities (LD). Models based on aptitude--achievement discrepancies and intraindividual differences showed…

The authors evaluated the effects of response cards on the disruptive behavior and academic responding of students in two urban fourth-grade classrooms. Two conditions, single-student responding and write-on response cards, were alternated in an ABAB design. During single-student responding, the teacher called on one student who had raised his or…

This article interrogates the dominant ideology that is shaping education in Victoria at the current moment. It does so by analysing the government school publication, "Education Times," focusing on the years 2000-2003. During those years the Victorian Government invested a significant amount of money into improving the literacy outcomes…

The present study investigated the role of low academic competence in the emergence of depressive cognitions and symptoms. Structural equation modeling was conducted on a longitudinal sample of African American boys (n = 253) and girls (n = 221). Results supported the hypothesized path models from academic competence in 1st grade to depressive…

In this study, the authors examined the effects of two supplemental interventions on the mathematics achievement of low-performing intermediate-grade students. A conceptually based intervention designed to reteach fundamental mathematics was evaluated along with an intervention designed to provide extended time in the context of the core…

The purpose of this study was to investigate teacher perceptions of the ten specific principal instructional leadership behaviors of Hallinger's Principal Instructional Management Rating Scale as they relate to school need, school achievement, years of experience as a teacher, and years working with the current principal. This quantitative…

The relatively poor academic achievement of black and Hispanic students has been a national concern since the passage of the "Elementary Secondary and Education Act" in 1963. Frustrated with relatively slow progress in closing these educational gaps, the most recent reauthorization of the ESEA, the "No Children Left Behind Act of…

This article examines equity in national systems of education in terms of differences in student outcomes, as measured by mathematics achievement scores on Programme for International Student Assessment (PISA) 2003. The author uses four measures for assessing equity in student outcomes: (1) the strength of the relationship between student…

Critical action research is contextualized in a low socioeconomic, multicultural urban school in Auckland, New Zealand. The writers are a university lecturer (mentor) and a school principal (critical action researcher). The research was part of a meta project which aimed to raise the achievement of Maori (indigenous) students. Research processes…