This monograph on charter schools and reform contains four chapters. The first chapter ("The Unfinished Goal and the Role of Interest Groups") discusses the history of the charter movement, its role, benefits, shortcomings, and the opposition to the movement from teacher unions. Charter schools have attracted support across the political spectrum…

This article describes a project on water undertaken by kindergartners. The article first lists criteria that help determine the merit of a topic for study, followed by a discussion of how the water project emerged. Preliminary work by the teachers, the formation of groups to explore specific aspects of water, and the results of each group's work…

In this lesson plan, students (grades 11-12) examine photographs of the Nubian environment and the Nubian people. Students critically examine artifacts of ancient Nubia and write a two page essay outlining the Nubian environment, describing the Nubia people, and explaining how they adapted physically, materially, politically, and intellectually to…

A U.S. frontier theme park is opening in your (the student's) home town. The featured adventure rides will be forms of transportation used in the late 1700s to early 1800s to journey west across the Appalachian mountains. Each ride represents an historically accurate time and place. The students need maps identifying where the mode of…

In this activity, first grade students learn their addresses and their places in space. Each student pretends they are a student in Ms. Frizzle's class and are to help the class figure out how to get home. The students create their own intergalactic address book, so that on their next trip into the universe they will have a map to guide them back…

This report presents 13 commentaries on issues related to intercollegiate athletics that were delivered to institutional chief executive officers every 2 weeks during the first half of 2002. The commentaries address: "Division I Academic Reform"; "The Gambling Threat"; "Amateurism: Re-Examination";…

This book contains suggestions from 45 educators on what every teacher should know. It includes: "From Start to Finish: A Strategic Plan" (e.g., recognizing problems, strategic planning, planning lessons, and managing time); "Classroom Management" (e.g., designing a creative learning environment, empowering students, maintaining discipline, and…

This reference guide examines special education, Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973, and the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA), and their implications for educators in Catholic schools. Chapters 1 through 4 look at special education, Section 504, and IDEA from a legal perspective. A brief history of special education is…

The movement for developing and implementing adult English as a Second Language (ESL) content standards is gaining momentum in the United States as more emphasis is placed on learner outcomes, accountability, and professionalism in the field. Additional research is needed to investigate the impact that adult ESL content standards have on…

The author defines "middle schoolism" as "an approach to educating children in the middle grades (usually grades 5-8), popularized in the latter half of the 20th century, that contributed to a precipitous decline in academic achievement among American early adolescents." She argues that many middle schools are on the right…

The "No Child Left Behind" Act (2002) requires that all students have access to the general curriculum at their designated grade level. Federal guidance received from the US Department of Education noted that these extended standards are intended only for students with the most significant cognitive disabilities. A key goal is to assure…

The relationship between good teaching and student achievement elevates the importance of teacher quality in the eyes of parents, educators, and policymakers. While some teachers may have a special gift to help students learn, good teaching encompasses critical elements, such as knowledge of the learning process, child development, teacher…

This review of the literature investigates ways to apply student-centered math activities in fifth grade standards-based curriculum. My goal for this project is to discover and share several ideas about how to effectively implement student-centered math activities within the standards-based curriculum requirements that dominate today's public…

This book provides basic data on educational attainment, achievement, and practices for each state and the United States as a whole, with a focus on the academic-achievement gap between minority and white students. The first part provides an overview of the national picture of education, describing academic achievement, expenditures and…

In early 1996, the Atlanta school board approved a plan to reconstitute Walden Middle School, opening it to students across the city and substantially changing the composition of the faculty. This report for 1996-97 recounts the first year of the reform effort, during which all positions were declared vacant and a new staff and faculty were…