The nation's dropout problem has been making national headlines with more and more frequency and more and more urgency. Although certainly not a new problem, the failure to earn a high school diploma is receiving heightened attention because the causes and effects of dropping out have changed significantly. No longer is a dropout simply a young…

This handbook is designed to help school leaders use research on best literacy practices to create a well-defined intervention plan that not only will improve the literacy of all students but also the long-range academic success of students by enhancing their chances for postsecondary education and future employability. The handbook presents…

We report the findings of an empirical analysis of the performance of a group of middle and high school students before and after an after-school algebra enrichment program using the SimCalc software incorporating classroom networks. The results highlight statistically significant gains in their learning and briefly outline contributing factors of…

Improve school success for students who have learning disabilities and ADHD with "Academic Clubs," the proven learning-by-doing approach presented in this energizing guidebook. Sally Smith--the highly respected founder of the Lab Schools, where 95% of students with learning problems go on to college--shows elementary school educators how to…

The most common configuration for the middle level is for grades 6-8 to be housed together. Although not a common configuration, there are some ninth grade only campuses sprinkled throughout the United States. Many of these schools were designed to address overcrowding issues either at the middle or high school while some were designed to help…

This report summarizes various academic outcomes for only a single, closed cohort, or class, of first-time ninth-grade students in AISD between the 1993-1994 and 1997-1998 school years.

In this article, a distinct type of adult-youth relationship found in some youth programs and characterized as instrumental is discussed. Such relationships focus primarily on joint work on a task or project, or in a discipline, with the adult having expertise and a strong identity in the substantive domain involved, rather than in youth work per…

The purpose of the present study is threefold. First, the author aims to determine how middle and high school students would perceive and classify a set of homework purposes drawn from relevant literature by conducting an exploratory factor analysis to ascertain the underlying factor structure of these homework purposes. Second, the author…

The aim of this study was to show how general models of text production can account for argumentative text planning. It focuses in particular on retrieval process in 11- to 18-year-old children. Various experimental situations were designed to promote different ways of retrieving ideas from long-term memory. Essays written by students were…

The factorial invariance of the Multidimensional Students' Life Satisfaction Scale (MSLSS: Huebner, 1994) across two divergent cultures (collectivistic vs.individualistic) was investigated with 835 Korean and 822 US students in elementary, middle, and high schools. Psychometric properties of the Korean version of the MSLSS were acceptable. A…

The purpose of this project was to gain a better understanding of dimensions of trust and inter-relationships between those dimensions during the adolescent years. Drawing from survey data collected at the beginning and end of a semester in eighty middle- and high-school social studies classes, relationships were assessed between: social trust,…

The evaluation of the Texas Rural Technology (R-Tech) Pilot sought to understand how districts implemented R-Tech grants, the effects of implementation on student and teacher outcomes, as well as the cost effectiveness and sustainability of R-Tech. The Texas legislature (80th Texas Legislature, Regular Session, 2007) authorized the creation of…

Written by a prominent array of scholars and practitioners, this book elucidates the complexities, contradictions, and confusion surrounding adolescence in American culture and education. For too long, harmful public myths and lies have portrayed teenagers as a principal cause of our nation's social ills. Similar unfair charges have been lodged…

"Straight A's: Public Education Policy and Progress" is a biweekly newsletter that focuses on education news and events both in Washington, DC and around the country. The following articles are included in this issue: (1) NCLB Redux: House Committee Releases Draft Language on NCLB Reauthorization, Includes Significant New Programs for…

The Gaining Early Awareness and Readiness for Undergraduate Program (GEAR UP) is designed to provide assistance to low income students. The program provides discretionary grants for the purpose of increasing the readiness of low income students to attend and succeed in postsecondary education. The grants are up to six years in length and provide…