Background: Alcohol, tobacco, marijuana use, and sexual behaviors are consistently reported by high school students in the United States and can contribute to reduced quality of life. Empirical research finds that many assets may act as a protective factor for adolescent risk behaviors. As such, the purpose of this study was to examine the…

In the United States first-generation students (FGSs), those who are the first in their families to attend university, are recognised as disadvantaged and receive government support. Amidst affirmative action debates in higher education in South Africa, an increased awareness has emerged about challenges that FGSs in this country face. A…

This population-based study investigated the unique and cumulative relations between risks that are monitored by public surveillance systems and academic and behavioral outcomes for an entire cohort of third graders in a large, urban public school system. Using integrated, administrative records from child welfare, public health, housing, and…

Early intervention to mitigate special education and reading risk is especially critical for low socioeconomic and minority learners. This study examined the lasting effects of an early reading intervention package of phonemic awareness on the reading skills of 38 second-grade students one and two years after intervention ended. The participants…

This study evaluated a multidimensional model of loneliness as related to risk and protective factors among adolescents with learning disabilities (LD). The authors aimed to identify factors that mediated loneliness among 716 adolescents in Grades 10 through 12 who were studying in high schools or in Youth Education Centers for at-risk…

The purpose of this study was to investigate the relations among oral and silent reading fluency and reading comprehension for students in Grades 6 to 8 (n = 1,421) and the use of fluency scores to identify middle school students who are at risk for failure on a high-stakes reading test. Results indicated moderate positive relations between…

This paper offers facts which can help educators deal with children undergoing trauma. These include: (1) One out of every 4 children attending school has been exposed to a traumatic event that can affect learning and/or behavior; (2) Trauma can impact school performance; (3) Trauma can impair learning; (4) Traumatized children may experience…

Methicillin-resistant "Staphylococcus aureus" (MRSA) was once thought to be a bacterium causing infections in only hospitalized patients. However, a new strain of MRSA has emerged among healthy individuals who have not had any recent exposure to a hospital or to medical procedures. This new strain is known as "community-associated…

This article discusses College Summit, a nonprofit effort centered around the premise that there is a sizable number of students who are more capable of college academics than their test scores and grade point averages suggest. Its four-day summer sessions are focused not on ramping up students' academic performance but in mining students'…

When administrators at Howard Community College (HCC) in Columbia, Maryland, were planning the 2000 launch of the Silas Craft Collegians Program, which caters to at-risk students at the low end of the academic preparedness spectrum, they had to start from scratch. Though originally designed to respond to challenges Black males face, Dr. Pamela M.…

Project Exploration's Sisters4Science (S4S) is an afterschool program for middle and high school urban girls of color. Designed to "get" girls interested in science, "keep" girls interested in science, and "equip" girls with skills and experiences that enable them to pursue science, S4S creates a science-rich learning…

Career academies, after more than four decades of development and three decades of evaluation, have been found by a conclusive random assignment study to be effective in improving outcomes for students during and after high school. Career academies have therefore become the most durable and best-tested component of a high school reform strategy to…

According to many higher education experts, merit scholarship screening methods discriminate against a disproportionate number of underrepresented minority (URM) students. The screening methods, however, favored individuals with the highest achievement test scores and above-average GPAs. The assumption in the common selection model is that test…

In this study, we explored 3 Grade 4 English Language Learners' (ELLs) perceptions of teacher autonomy-supporting practices in literacy instruction in science. The support of autonomy in literacy classes is central to students' internal motivation for reading. Given that many ELLs are at risk for reading failure, understanding autonomous learning…

We examined the five most recent years of data (2003-2004 through 2007-2008) from the Texas Academic Excellence Indicator System regarding new teachers employed at high school campuses. We specifically focused on the extent to which differences were present between high school campuses with the highest new teacher percentages and high school…