Beliefs about retention in kindergarten through grade 7 of 135 regular, special education, and special area elementary school teachers were studied through questionnaires and interviews. Teachers often believe that retention is appropriate in some circumstances, but teacher beliefs about retention are complex. (SLD)

A task given to equal numbers of high- and low-achieving machining students and electrical fitting students tested their ability to form sets and set hierarchies. Electrical fitting students had higher achievement. Results suggested that low achievers in technical math may have difficulty with sets because of lack of language facility. (SK)

This paper describes and evaluates the efficacy of a combination of curriculum-based measurement and peer tutoring incorporated into 40 elementary education mathematics classes, to differentiate instruction and improve student achievement. The evaluation indicated that students with low achievement, average achievement, and learning disabilities…

Problem-solving models in memories of 11 good and 12 poor novice first-year university students were studied. The students reconstructed physics problems seen briefly, relying on models in memory. Both good and poor students had models of problem situations at their disposal, but good students performed better than poor students. (SLD)

A multivariate approach reexamined Lewis Terman's longitudinal study data comparing the 100 most successful and 100 least successful men identified in the 1920s as having very high intelligence. Results reaffirmed the importance of educational attainment in vocational achievement, though intelligence and amount of early acceleration also predicted…

In the current article, effects of socially induced metacognitive activities on performance of 60 French elementary and secondary school students (grades 3 through 9) were studied. Performance of low-achievement students was higher in a social comparison situation than an ordinary academic situation. A strong contingent relationship between social…

This study found that 420 regular elementary and 359 special education teachers were similar in use of procedures to assist students with low achievement. Peer tutoring received the highest mean score by both groups, followed by cooperative learning. Differences in teaching practice are analyzed by age, grade level, and degrees obtained.…

Describes a five-year longitudinal study of "Reading Recovery," a program in the San Luis (California) Coastal Unified School District, providing tutoring for children struggling with beginning reading. Of 613 participating first graders, 513 successfully completed the program. "Graduates" reached average reading and writing…

Examines the effects of exposures to children's literature through reading aloud and an inferencing strategy on low-reading-ability fifth-grade readers' sense of story structure and reading comprehension. Uses an experimental/control group repeated measures design. Finds that this study is consistent with other research that indicates the…

Looks at similarities between black student athletes at predominantly white colleges and oscillating migrant laborers. Shows how the rotation between socially and culturally different communities leads to negative experiences. This rotation may contribute to low graduation rates and high student attrition for black students. (SLD)

Presents six myths about black children that may contribute to their overrepresentation in special education. The myths include the following: (1) poor black students' parents don't care about education; (2) poor black students fail because they are unmotivated and uncooperative; (3) black students fail because they have had few literacy…

Discusses looping, or multiyear assignment of children, as a strategy to ease the retention/social-promotion dilemma. Multiyear assignment gives teachers extra time to bring low-performing students up to grade level and develop stable, caring relationships with students. A suburban Kansas school's successful program is profiled. (24 references)…

Examines values and purpose in mathematics education in Scottish schools in light of declining Scottish scores on international and national mathematics assessments and the rhetoric of national policy documents. Argues that policy documents convey an unclear, dual vision of mathematics learning as a carefully structured activity with predetermined…

A study of 10 Cypriotturkish young people in British universities identified the factors they perceive as having had an impact on their achievement. Negative experiences in secondary and higher education included teachers' low expectations, racism, and lack of role models/mentors. Women were more aware of these issues than men were. (JOW)

Studied the education of Showground families in Scotland, a group of traveling show and fairground entertainers who tend to settle in one place for the winter, putting their children in the local schools. Data from many sources about the approximately 400 families in this group show weaknesses in the actions developed to address the…