This study compares the instructional practices in honors and nonhonors French and Spanish classes at a Midwestern high school, as well as factors influencing those practices. The researcher observed 54 class sessions and used questionnaires and interviews to obtain teachers' perspectives on instruction. Analysis revealed a statistically…

Many agricultural and environmental problems are interrelated and overlapping. Several agencies, including nonprofit organizations, have developed programs to educate schoolchildren about agricultural and environmental issues; however, programs that integrate both agricultural and environmental learning, especially among middle and high school…

This study tested the replicability and cross-cultural invariance of a trans-contextual model of motivation across 4 samples from diverse cultures. The model proposes a motivational sequence in which perceived autonomy support (PAS) in physical education (PE) predicts autonomous motivation, intentions, and behavior in a leisure-time (LT) physical…

In this article, the author, a skeptical writing teacher, gains newfound appreciation for projects that tap creativity--and creative thinking. She argues that teachers need to rethink the genre and make it as appealing as those projects students see as "more fun." The trick is to teach responsibly, knowing when to allow a student to go off and…

This study examined the relationship between environment-based education and high school students critical thinking skills and disposition toward critical thinking. Four hundred four 9th and 12th grade students from 11 Florida high schools participated in the study. A Pretest-Posttest Nonequivalent Comparison Group Design (9th grade) and a…

The study compares overexcitability scores of Turkish 10th graders who are grouped in terms of their intellectual abilities, motivation, creativity and leadership as well as gender. 711 students who were administered Raven Advanced Progressive Matrices Test (APM) were divided into three intellectual ability categories. From this pool, 105 subjects…

This document presents the proceedings of the 17th Annual Research Forum held June 29, 2012, at Wake Forest University in Winston-Salem, North Carolina. Included herein are the following 25 action research papers: (1) "Reading and Writing": A Study Comparing the Strengths of Peer Review and Visible Author Writing Strategies (Elizabeth Behar); (2)…

High achieving Puerto Rican high school students are largely missing not only from urban high schools, but also from the educational research. The purpose of this article, then, is to describe the five success factors that ten low-income urban high school students from this ethnic group attributed to their high academic achievement. These success…

The Internet, an exciting and radically different medium infiltrating pop culture, business, and education, is also a powerful educational tool with teaching and learning potential for mathematics. Web-based instructional tools allow students and teachers to actively and interactively participate in the learning process (Lynch, Moyer, Frye & Suh,…

Inner-city youth are at high risk for dropping out of high school. Within this article, risk factors associated with dropout and strategies for effective prevention and intervention are reviewed. An example of a school-based drop-out prevention program is highlighted. The FUTURES Program is a school-based drop-out prevention program designed to…

The Chemistry/Physics Program at Evanston Township High School was designed to provide an environment for the rigorous teaching of advanced science and mathematics to accelerated students. This type of student makes up the bulk of students in the Advanced Placement Chemistry and Physics classes. However, there is a small number of students who…

Motivating students to master the basics in any field is a demanding task. In technical education, while the direct benefit--almost certain, well-paying employment--is obvious, the challenge is to keep students' interest high. Absent that, the technical workforce lacks skilled replenishment, and the possibility of being overtaken by competition…

Background: For ten years, the National Science Education Standards (National Research Council, 1996) have served as the foundation for Connecticut's teacher certification in science and the expectations of teacher practice secondary science classrooms. Furthermore, beginning science teachers must demonstrate the ability to teach in an…

Urban high school students want their schools to provide academic courses and extracurricular activities that challenge and interest them. Too often, however, these students chafe against "a system that shuts them off rather than recognizing and developing their potential," writes Cushman. In her conversations with 65 students across the…

Critical questions in educational psychology research to be addressed in this paper concern the casual relationship between academic self-concept, academic motivation and its effect on academic achievement. Do changes in academic self-concept and academic motivation lead to changes in subsequent academic achievement? Various studies have attempted…