This annotated bibliography reviews 12 publications dealing with substitute teaching, including an article listing at least five ways principals can avoid problems with substitute teachers, a guidebook providing detailed advice for substitute teachers, an article suggesting community people with special knowledge be called in as an alternative to…

With the recent increase in the number of students wishing to enter vocational programs and the increased pressure on accountability and efficiency, vocational educators need to reexamine their policies regarding the selection and admission of students. Several considerations that complicate these decisions are (1) open-door policies that exist in…

This review and synthesis of health occupations education is aimed at those who plan, implement, and evaluate health occupations education; those who seek clarification on the issues in this area; those who wish to identify research topics or plan replication studies; and those who seek information on curriculum development, materials, and…

Provides a rationale for content area writing, and suggests ways it can be used for social studies instruction. (JC)

This digest discusses using strategy instruction to assist students with learning disabilities. It begins by describing strategy instruction as teaching students about strategies, teaching them how and when to use strategies, helping students identify personally effective strategies, and encouraging students to make strategic behaviors part of…

Secondary educators are using ways other than the traditional high school diploma and transcript to communicate students' new and different sets of knowledge and skills to employers. A career passport may be characterized as a formal product or document in which students present the many marketable skills they have developed through their life…

This ERIC Digest describes the development of the 1994 National Assessment of Educational Progress for geography and the results from that examination of geographic knowledge and skills of students in grades four, eight, and twelve. The assessment format utilized multiple-choice questions and constructed-response questions. Results were reported…

This publication reviews works on educational reform that represent attempts to do more than merely respond in knee-jerk fashion to political pressure for reform. Bruce Joyce and Emily Calhoun, in "Learning Experiences in School Renewal: An Exploration of Five Successful Programs" (Eugene, Oregon: ERIC Clearinghouse on Educational…

Microcomputers in schools contribute significantly to the learning process, and software selection is taken as seriously as the selection of text books. The seven step process for responsible software selection are: (1) analyzing needs, including the differentiation between needs and objectives; (2) specification of requirements; (3) identifying…

This Digest describes the development of the 1998 National Assessment of Educational Progress for civics, and the results from that examination of civic knowledge and intellectual skills of students in grades four, eight, and twelve. The assessment format utilized multiple-choice and constructed-response questions. Results were reported by the…

The wealth of information available on the Web affords teachers and learners access to language learning resources like never before. Online journals, listservs, newspapers, and magazines provide authentic material for language learners, while teachers can find lesson plans and ideas, exercises, assessment tools, and other materials for use in…

This Spanish-language digest reviews research on the demographics and effects of video game playing, discusses game rating systems, and offers recommendations for parents. The digest begins by discussing research on the time children spend playing electronic games, which shows that younger children's game playing at home (90% of fourth-graders…

Listening and speaking, the most used language skills in the classroom, are critical for functioning in an English language context, and are logical starting points for language instruction for low-literacy learners. Speaking is an interactive process of constructing meaning that involves producing, receiving, and processing information. A…

This digest identifies seven essential elements of effective programs for students in alternative programs because they have dropped out, are at risk for dropping out, or have behavior disorders that require special education outside the general education setting. Such alternative programs offer flexible curricula that can address the unique…

With the release of "A Nation at Risk" in 1983, Americans focused on the report's declaration of "a rising tide of mediocrity" in the schools, which suggested unacceptable results in the education of America's children and youth. Concurrent to the missives levied at schools' lack of progress with academics and other…