Presents a lesson plan teaching students to analyze and evaluate the effectiveness and importance of human rights to world peace. Instructional handouts form the basis for student discussion on the history, need, and future of human rights. Debriefing serves as a check to determine whether students understand the material. (MJP)

Analyzes the attributional patterns of 48 junior high school parents who rated their children's math ability. Discusses the implications of sex-biased parental perceptions on the child's developing self-concept of math ability, future expectations, and subsequent achievement. (FMW)

Maintains that civic competence and socially responsible behavior have been among the 10 developmental tasks of adolescence since the 1950s. Contends that the decline of interest in political socialization must be shared by both political science and developmental psychology. Discusses community service as a measure of civic competence. (CFR)

Recommends ways to implement citizenship education in elementary school social studies lessons and classroom procedures. Emphasizes teachers' influence as role models. Identifies conceptual, process, and affective citizenship education goals. Suggests classroom activities and events for developing students' decision-making skills, awareness of…

Introduces "What We Consume," a British curriculum package that examines the social use of nature, world economy, and environmental/political controversies. Explains that the package's goal is to develop students' critical awareness of environmental problems and willingness to initiate change. Outlines the curriculum's framework and…

Reports a study of students' class participation in eight law schools, focusing on the language and dynamics of classroom interaction of a culturally diverse student population. Results indicate that race and gender have an effect on student inclusion in law school classes, but patterning is complex and involves the interaction of other factors in…

Examines the effects of new information and communication technologies on the structure and practices of U.S. politics. Maintains that the success or failure of digital-era democracy will depend ultimately on citizen participation. Includes a brief look at current innovative U.S. voter registration programs. (MJP)

Stresses the Robert Dole/Jack Kemp campaign's recognition of the importance of the youth vote. Notes the efforts of the Republican National Party to involve youth in politics. Details a 10-point program, the "Education Consumers Warranty," that summarizes conservatives' approach to educational reform. (MJP)

This article discusses the school engagement literature and offers a conceptual framework with the intention of developing a common terminology to more efficiently organize research and practice. Three distinct perspectives are outlined in relation to school engagement: psychological, educational, and developmental. Four main contexts of…

The provision of a coherent "parenting," "teaching," and "developmental" program is a complex undertaking. It has all the makings of an organizational, managerial, and therapeutic nightmare when different types of workers, with marked differences in personality and values, become responsible for different children with a variety of problems in a…

This study retrospectively examined physical activity patterns across three specific age periods (childhood, teenage, and young adulthood) in a cross sectional sample of young Caucasian undergraduate women (N = 44). All women (mean age = 22.27 plus or minus 3.14 years) completed questionnaire packets assessing transtheoretical model of behavior…

Collective teacher efficacy refers to teacher perceptions that they constitute an effective instructional team, capable of bringing about learning in students. Previous research demonstrates that a school staff with a strong sense of collective efficacy is likely to generate high student achievement. This study of 2,170 teachers in 141 elementary…

This article identifies (a) what we know about youths with emotional or behavioral disorders (E/BD) and what works in preparing them for the transition to adult life; (b) the key features of No Child Left Behind (NCLB; 2001) and the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA); and (c) recommendations for working within the requirements of…

The purpose of "Focus" is to provide coverage of poverty-related research, events, and issues, and to acquaint a large audience with the work of the Institute for Research on Poverty by means of short essays on selected pieces of research. This issue contains the following articles: (1) The new global labor market (Richard B. Freeman);…

This study explores the relationship between college graduation rates and student participation and success in Advanced Placement (AP) courses and exams. We reviewed three approaches to examining this relationship: 1) comparing the college graduation rates of AP and non-AP students; 2) comparing the college graduation rate of AP and non-AP…