In 1978, the South Carolina state legislature passed Act 631, resulting in the mandated Basic Skills Assessment Program (BSAP) to improve the quality of instruction in the areas of reading, writing, and mathematics. This report is the documentation of a 1-year Southeastern Public Education Program project, the Basic Skills Assessment…

This four-part report provides both a theoretical framework and empirical data concerning effective programs for the marginal high school student. Part 1 addresses the problem of adolescent social development as a broad educational goal. Part 2 presents a set of six case studies describing special programs in Wisconsin designed for the marginal…

This publication focuses on the retention/promotion debate regarding failing and low-achieving students. An introductory essay describes the inherent limitation in the research done on this issue--the impossibility of obtaining an appropriate control group--and suggests that the retention/promotion quandary can best be resolved by accommodating…

By identifying speculations concerning cognitive abilities and cognition's relation to culture, this paper outlines some of the work surrounding basic writers and speaking-writing relationships. Beginning with a discussion of the differences between speaking and writing popularized by Mina Shaughnessy, the paper goes on to examine studies that…

The Chapter 1 Language Enrichment Communicative Skills Project served students in eleven Tucson Arizona elementary schools in the primary grades during the 1983-84 school year. The project provided supplementary instruction in oral language interaction and developmental reading and writing in small groups. Students were selected on the basis of…

Using historical statistics and key indicators, data were synthesized to identify longitudinal trends and patterns in the social, economic, and political status of El Paso's Chicanos. Data related to group achievement were analyzed. A framework adapted to local conditions based on the internal colonialism model was used for the periodization of El…

This monograph reports on a project designed to help teachers use Erik Erikson's concept of ego psychology as a framework to help students with school-related difficulties. It was hypothesized that a full understanding of the growth patterns of students, their orientation to their social (school and family) environment, and the development of…

To determine the concurrent validity of a standardized test and its usefulness to educators, reading ratings from the Iowa Tests of Basic Skills were compared to teacher ratings and independently administered placement test ratings. Two hundred one primary children, the majority of whom read one or more years below grade level, took the ITBS by a…

This manual describes programs to educate seventh grade "differentiated" students in language arts and mathematics. Differentiated students are defined as those who are about two years behind their peers in a given subject; both academic performance and behavior characteristics are factors in students being encouraged to take the…

A study was undertaken at Bronx Community College (BCC) to: (1) examine the relationship between feelings of powerlessness and academic success at the college level; and (2) assess the relationship between powerlessness and background variables such as students' race, sex, age, socio-economic status, and family characteristics. A biographical data…

To examine the problem of widening gaps in reading achievement between initially low-achieving children and other students as they move through elementary school, the authors first reviewed the literature on school effectiveness. Using a form of systems analysis called "system dynamics," they formulated a model and a set of hypotheses…

This is a needs assessment of educationally disadvantaged students in Seattle, Washington for 1976-77. The report includes data on the following: (1) the distribution of low achievers by grade, sex, ethnic group, and school administrative area; (2) the distribution of achievement test scores of low achievers by subject, grade, and administrative…

This report describes the system of compensatory services offered to students in Seattle, Washington during the 1978-79 school year. The analysis focuses on programs which have evolved according to district identified student needs and program goals rather than according to funding sources. Reflecting that emphasis, the report begins with a…

Past research on teachers' causal attributions has shown little relation between perceptions of responsibility for positive versus negative student learning outcomes. In this study, Weiner's model for causal attributions was employed to explore these perceived attributional differences. Data were gathered from 184 teachers from two metropolitan…

Ten annotations of literature in the ERIC system that discuss the pros and cons of grade retention for low-achieving students are presented in this booklet. (Author/MLF)