One of a series of activity guides, this publication offers a variety of learning activities and resource materials for elementary school students. The activities and resources include: poems; word puzzles and other puzzles; art and art appreciation activities; language arts activities; bulletin board ideas; self-awareness activities; facts and…

Containing recommendations of a 36-person task force, this report establishes a direction for actions that the Virginia Beach, Virginia school division should take to improve the current educational program. Recommendations are presented in four sections. Section 1 (kindergarten-grade 12) discusses curriculum, staff development, and student…

Detailed statistical tables on federal funds for research and development (R&D) are provided in this document. Tables are organized into the following sections: research, development, and R&D plant; R&D--agency, character of work, and performer; total research--agency, performer, and field of science; basic research--agency, performer,…

Two conferences were held to: (1) study the decline in mathematics and science academic performance among elementary and secondary students; (2) examine the dramatic lack of participation of women, Blacks, Hispanics, American Indians, and others historically underrepresented in these academic areas; and (3) propose strategies to improve these…

A 50-state survey of mathematics, science, and computer education initiatives was undertaken to identify the number and diversity of responses states have made in response to the national crisis in precollege mathematics and science education. Descriptions of these initiatives (obtained from questionnaires, telephone interviews with state…

Students at 19 Michigan elementary schools in 17 districts showed a dramatic improvement in Michigan Educational Assessment Program test score results from 1976 to 1979. A three-pronged effort to identify the factors associated with the improvement involved a computer analysis of school demographic data, field interviews, and a symposium of 107…

A procedure was developed to combine subsets of curriculum-relevant items from a norm-referenced achievement test (NRT) with items comprising a locally-developed supplementary test in order to produce objective-referenced test (ORT) data for program evaluation. The study was designed to determine whether the ORTs were valid instruments for program…

Assessing fit of psychometric models has always been an issue of enormous interest, but there exists no unanimously agreed upon item fit diagnostic for the models. Bayesian networks, frequently used in educational assessments (see, for example, Mislevy, Almond, Yan, & Steinberg, 2001) primarily for learning about students' knowledge and…

Working with in service science/mathematics teachers at the Aga Khan University Institute of Educational Development, Karachi, Pakistan we find that even though the teachers take aboard innovative ideas, they find it challenging to implement the newly acquired ideas primarily because of their inadequate subject matter knowledge. In this paper we…

This research focused on students' learning of mathematical rules with reasoning. A small group of students (age 11-12 yrs) was observed closely by the first author as she taught them fraction rules. The area of focus was fractions and activities were designed pertaining to the four rules of fractions: addition, subtraction, multiplication, and…

A project to identify competencies needed by students entering college was undertaken jointly by the New Mexico Department of Education and the Commission on Higher Education. The first step was to review statewide data on enrollment in developmental/remedial college courses of graduates from New Mexico's public secondary schools. After a…

The digest is based on a full length report (with the same title) on postsecondary developmental programs. The full report provides a definitive review of the literature and institutional practice on the topic. Postsecondary developmental programs at institutions of higher education encompass a variety of courses and services that are conducted to…

This report describes a program designed to improve science achievement among students in grades 4-6 in a New Hampshire school. The areas of improvement included physical, earth, and life sciences. Analysis of the problem indicated a need for improved teaching techniques and for additional materials related to the instructional strategies. The…

Results are presented from the administration of the New Jersey High School Proficiency Test (HSPT) to ninth graders in April 1988. The test was administered to 69,364 students in grade 9 and to over 30,000 students in higher grades who had previously failed one or more parts of the examination. This report includes a series of tables summarizing…

An evaluation is presented of the remedial programs in each of New Jersey's 32 public colleges and universities. The academic outcome of full-time students entering in fall 1984 is tracked over four semesters. This analysis combines measures of the colleges' administrative efficiency in testing and enrolling students in needed remedial courses,…