One purpose of "identification and prevention of dietary- and lifestyle-induced health effects in children and infants" (IDEFICS) is to implement a standardized community-based multi-component healthy eating intervention for younger children in eight different countries. The present study describes important influencing factors for dietary…

In this era of increasing accountability and high-stakes testing in schools, a serious paradox has surfaced. Children are becoming overweight at an alarming rate, and mounting evidence points to a relationship between obesity and poor school performance. Ironically, pressure to improve children's academic achievement has led many schools to adopt…

American classrooms are experiencing the largest influx of immigrant students since the beginning of the 20th century (National Collaborative on Diversity in America's Teaching Force, 2004). The U.S. Department of Education says that of the more than 50 million children enrolled in elementary and secondary schools this year, one in every five has…

Although most secondary schools do use management information systems (MISs), these systems tend not to be used to support higher order managerial activities but are currently primarily used for clerical purposes. This situation is unsatisfactory as MISs fully utilised could offer invaluable support to schools, which are increasingly being granted…

This Technical Report includes detailed information on the reasons for the strategies presented in the Centers for Disease Control (CDC) "Guidance for School (K-12) Responses to Influenza During the 2009-2010 School Year" and suggestions on how to use them. The guidance is designed to decrease exposure to regular seasonal flu and 2009 H1N1 flu…

Response to Intervention (RTI), as a model for improving services to all students, has been a growing phenomenon since the reauthorization of the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA) in 2004. The National Association of State Directors of Special Education (NASDSE) defines RTI as "the practice of (1) providing high-quality…

This guide is designed to inform school directors about the value of a data dashboard and to provide information on how districts can create a data dashboard for school directors. A data dashboard is a tool for viewing and analyzing student achievement and performance data. Key data for monitoring student achievement and directing policy level…

Bullying and harassment negatively affect the learning environment, and school principals can make a difference. Previous research has found that teachers see having a supportive principal as critical to changing school climate. Yet not all principals may have the experience, skills or knowledge to address lesbian, gay, bisexual or transgender…

In order to understand the trend towards resilience and the emergence of "Generation Queer" in Canadian schools, educators need to examine the research that has shaped their understandings of the health and safety needs and experiences of these vulnerable youth. Correspondingly, educators also need to examine the opinions and experiences…

The powerful, reciprocal connection between school and housing segregation has long been recognized. The housing-school link was a key element in both the 1968 Kerner Commission Report and in the legislative history of the Fair Housing Act. The relation of school and housing segregation was also explored in a series of school desegregation cases…

This ERIC Digest discusses various types of homework assignments and examines research findings about the effectiveness and amount of homework assigned to American schoolchildren. It also examines some of the policies presently being discussed by school districts. Three types of homework are briefly delineated: practice assignments, preparation…

Suggested are ethical and programmatic issues for early childhood educators and administrators to consider. These issues concern children's participation in research and the process of working with researchers in day care centers. Questions to ask of researchers concern research objectives; approval of the research by a committee for human…

A survey of 170 school districts was conducted to determine the type and amount of teacher participation in school policy decisionmaking. Ninety of these districts engage in collective negotiation in which teachers are represented exclusively by one teacher organization. In the remaining 80 districts, either a teacher organization is not…