This document comprises a summary of dropout statistics for the Austin (Texas) Independent School District for 1983-84 through 1987-88. The following dropout counts are reported: (1) the school-year and annual dropout counts for 1983-84 through 1987-88; (2) the current status of the entering ninth graders of years 1983-84 through 1987-88; and (3)…

This study reports the instructional effects of issue investigation and action training on the environmental behavior of middle school students. Discussed are the methodology including training and modules, the design of the study, instruments used, scoring protocols, and analysis of results. (Author/CW)

This document from the Virginia Department of Education reports on a project to enable public schools to meet requirements of two laws. The first law required public schools to emphasize instruction on the documents of Virginia and United States history and government. The second requested that all public schools be urged to display copies of the…

This four-section report presents information on the 1982-83 Louisiana State Assessment Program. The major purpose of the program is to assess student performance in reading, writing, and mathematics. Section I discuses the scope of the 1982-83 program, provides highlights of results, and briefly considers test administration and reporting…

Discussed are the philosophy and procedures behind the introduction of algebra to students in grade 7 in Australia. Included are the importance of concrete experiences, language development, and the consequences involved in this procedure. (CW)

This collection of papers was solicited from a variety of educators in an effort to provide direction to teachers, curriculum developers and textbook publishers on topics in mathematics education that are consistently mentioned in recent national reports and study groups. The consensus of reports sponsored by various professional associations…

This calendar of lessons conforms to the New York State syllabus for grades 7-8, United States and New York History, which was officially implemented throughout the state in September 1987. It is a guide to the objectives of the state social studies program, not a prescription for day-to-day lesson plans. United States and New York State History…

The Planning, Monitoring and Implementing (PMI) Evaluation Model for Decision-Making was used by the District of Columbia Public Schools to monitor the efforts of their Office of Educational Technology in providing direction and coordination for computer related activities, and in planning and implementing educational television (ITV) projects in…

This document analyzes data obtained from "Education in the Middle Grades," a national survey of practices and trends using a representative sample of principals in public schools that contain grade 7, to examine the use and effects of practices that many educators believe are especially responsive to the needs of early adolescents. Practices…

When students make the transition from elementary school to junior high school, they experience abrupt organizational changes in their school environment. The hypothesis that social comparison processes mediate the relation between ability grouping practices in mathematics and students' achievement expectancies was tested in a longitudinal sample…

A comparison of seventh and eighth graders' behaviors and achievement in K-8 and junior high schools shows K-8 students performing more favorably in all areas. Students in nine K-8 schools and nine junior high schools in the City School District of New York City were compared on reading achievement, attitude toward school, students' self-esteem,…

To gather longitudinal student achievement data from schools utilizing the four-day week, Iowa Tests of Basic Skills (ITBS) grade equivalent scores were obtained in 1984 from five rural Colorado school districts for four consecutive years--two years prior to and two years following the districts' change to the shortened week. A first analysis…

The 1982-83 school year was the second year of the New York City (New York) Public Schools Promotional Gates Program. Under this program students in grades four and seven who failed to attain their promotional criteria (in both reading and mathematics) were retained for a year of intensive remedial instruction. This report is the result of a…

The relationship between student's home environment and achievement in science was examined using data from the 1985-86 National Assessment of Educational Progress, Science Assessment, for a nationally representative sample of American school age children in grades 7 and 11. Science achievement and background data were also collected for grade 3.…

This document comprises an evaluation of the 1988 METRO Achievement Program, a summer educational program to help develop the academic potential of primarily Black and Hispanic girls entering the seventh and eighth grades in Chicago. The 5-week program included the following components: (1) mathematics, science, and communication skills classes;…