This study, using a non-experimental, exploratory and descriptive method, established learners' and educators' views about factors that contribute to poor performance in mathematics and physical science. Participants were purposefully selected from seven schools with poor pass rates in District 3 of Tshwane North. Focused group interviews with ten…

This study showed that working during high school had negative effects on 15 of 23 Grade 12 and postsecondary outcomes such as achievement, coursework selection, educational and occupational aspirations, and college attendance. These effects were found with control for background variables and parallel outcomes from Grades 8 and 10 based on the…

This study uses an existing astronomy software program to encourage inquiry-based learning and argumentation while also ensuring gains on conventional classroom assessments and high-stakes achievement tests. To supplement the software program, a curriculum and three levels of assessment--quizzes, exam, and test--were designed and administered to…

National statistics reveal an alarming trend concerning the use of 3,4-methylenedioxymethamphetamine, which is better known as ecstasy. Results from the Monitoring the Future survey of 50,000 secondary youth reveal that use among 8th graders rose to 3.1%, 5.4% among 10th graders, and 8.2% among 12th graders. High school faculty and staff must be…

This study examined area-specific self-esteem scores by sexual behavior relative to adolescents' values concerning participation in sexual intercourse as an unmarried teenager. The sample consisted of 332 students in grades 7-12 from a Southern rural school district. Students were asked if they had ever had sexual intercourse (yes/no) and if they…

More than a dozen statistical models have been developed for the purpose of cognitive diagnosis. These models are supposed to extract a much finer level of information from item responses than traditional unidimensional item response models. In this paper, a general diagnostic model (GDM) was used to analyze a set of simulated sparse data and real…

Introduction: The Maui Hawaii Educational consortium (the Maui School District and Maui Community College) sought scientifically based evidence for the effectiveness of the Cognitive Tutor (CT) Algebra I Curriculum to inform adoption decisions. Decision makers were particularly interested in whether the use of the CT program affects achievement of…

School bullying is often considered to be the fuel behind school violence. In a recent report by the Families and Work Institute, students reported that is was the small things, such as teasing, which often triggered serious episodes of violence. On the school campus, between 20 to 30% of the students report frequent involvement in bullying…

The present study tried to find out whether Saudi history textbooks for grades 4-12 contain global themes, in which grade levels global themes are introduced, the percentage of global themes, local history themes and Islamic history themes, and which global history themes are taught. A checklist of global history themes was developed. Those are:…

Each year over one million high school students complete the SAT[superscript R] I. Information on repeat testing and the probability that a student's SAT I score will change may help students and educators make better-informed decisions about retesting. This information would also be useful for high school counselors who advise students regarding…

In line with other Western nations, the 1980s and 1990s saw a significant increase in the number of TAFE graduates wanting to transfer to university. As a consequence, recent times have evidenced increased co-operation between universities and TAFE institutes and the emergence of alternative university-entry programs (e.g. degree-articulation…

International comparisons of American education have become so popular and widespread in the reform debates of the last several decades that many of the current centerpieces of the American reform movement were shaped through evidence and speculation on what other more educationally successful nations were doing that the U.S. was not. The current…

Project-based learning (PBL) that has authenticity in the pupils' world enables the teaching of science and technology to pupils from a variety of backgrounds. PBL has the potential to enable pupils to research, plan, design, and reflect on the creation of technological projects (Doppelt, 2000). Engineering education, which is common in Israel,…

Results from the Monitoring the Future's 2005 nationwide survey of 8th, 10th, and 12th grade students are given in this report. Recent trends in the use of licit and illicit drugs are emphasized, as well as trends in the levels of perceived risk and personal disapproval associated with each drug. This study has shown these beliefs and attitudes to…

This monograph provides the 1975-2005 national trends in smoking, drinking, and illicit drug use among American secondary school students. It covers subgroup differences, attitudes and beliefs about use, social milieu, degree and duration of drug highs, initiation rates, prevalence and frequency, and trends in illicit drug and alcohol use. Drug…