Engaging students requires giving them a say in what they learn and how they will learn it. However, in strictly disciplined, rule-bound schools with test-driven curricula, this cannot happen. Edison Schools, Inc., a for-profit Education Management Organization (EMO), and Confluence Academy, an Edison-run school located in one of the most…

Best practice is based on knowledge--not on beliefs or guesses--about how children learn and develop. This volume contains 20 overviews of research on aspects of young children's social, emotional, cognitive, or physical development, as well as how the findings can be applied in the classroom. Originally "Research in Review" articles in NAEYC's…

This paper reports on the re-design of the Advanced Certificate in Education (ACE) programme, which is offered by the University of Pretoria through distance education (DE) to teachers in rural South Africa. In 2007, a team re-designed the programme with the goal of promoting access, quality, and student support. The team included an independent…

Although born into privilege, Katharine Drexel was blessed with parents, siblings, friends, and spiritual guides who kept her rooted in a deep, Eucharistic faith. Responding to the needs of the poor was a responsibility of the rich, and Katharine learned this value at the hands of her parents at an early age. With the good counsel of popes and…

Throughout the United States the debate has been frequent, intense, and at times adversarial over how to fund education adequately. Maine has been trying to identify higher performing schools in the hope that practices that contribute to success at higher performing schools can be adapted at similar schools throughout the state. The 1997…

The poor health status of Australia's Indigenous people is well-documented, as are the links between health and education. Aboriginal communities recognise the utmost importance of improving educational, physical, social and economic well-being in an environment where disproportionate numbers of Aboriginal students fail to complete secondary…

This article reports results from a network analysis of international trade from 1965 through 2000. It addresses the impact of changes associated with globalization and the "new international division of labor" (NIDL) on structural inequality in the world economy. To assess this impact, I ask three specific questions. (1) Do patterns of…

This paper examines whether AFDC/TANF asset tests affect the asset holdings of low-educated single mothers. Special emphasis is given to vehicle assets that make up a very significant share of total wealth for poor families. Consistent with other recent research, the author finds little evidence that asset limits have an effect on the amount of…

This study is designed to test two hypotheses. The first specifies that older adults who live in dilapidated neighborhoods will receive less social support and encounter more negative interaction with family and friends. The second hypothesis proposes that the relationship between deteriorated neighborhood conditions and social relationships will…

Sir John Daniel and Paul West explore the difficulties inherent in bringing postsecondary education to developing countries. While current research points to online education as the best financial alternative for these impoverished countries, cross-border educational solutions are largely unavailable, making local solutions a necessity. Daniel and…

Television regularly depicts work-related activities of fictional characters and is one of several important sources of occupational information for young people. However, no research appears to have examined the influence of televised occupational portrayals on economically disadvantaged youths, although television may be an especially important…

The author of this article is a young elementary teacher at Rosado Elementary in Richmond, California, on the eastern shore of the San Francisco Bay. She writes this article as a moving memoir describing her experiences as a tutor in literacy programs developed by low-income schools. In order for their students to remember their lessons, they have…

If Congress passes legislation consolidating federal funding for vocational education, job training, and adult education, states will be free to combine federal funding with state programs to create more coherent and effective systems. If such legislation is stalled, states have the power to reform the patchwork that now exists, but doing so…

Opportunity-to-Learn (OTL) benefits all students by providing information about how to improve the academic achievement of students, especially poor and minority students. This paper discusses ways in which the OTL conceptual framework can be expanded. OTL's conceptual framework identified four variables that have a powerful influence on teachers'…

This is the second publication in a series of three reports that summarize the results of Ohio's Javits Project, a 3-year federally sponsored program to improve the identification of and services to young economically disadvantaged gifted children in 25 Ohio schools. This report details the processes used by project teams to create a shared vision…