Summer programs that experiment with combining media literacy and social-emotional learning can potentially affect students' academic performance. Based on a six-week program, working with rising eighth grade students in a low-income school district, this program allowed students to work on media projects while trying to develop stronger…

The purpose of this study was to explore a new learning environment instrument which could be used by teaching practitioners and other educators to measure the language learning environment in the secondary science classroom. The science teacher is central in creating science classrooms conductive to the language needs of students and should be…

This article examines various aspects of school physical characteristics relating to problem behavior among students. We hypothesize that an attractive physical environment will be associated with less truancy, cigarette, alcohol, and marijuana use, whereas a negative physical environment will be associated with higher levels of these behaviors.…

This study focused on parents' relationships and involvement in their children's lives and the effects on the students' school engagement and school performance. The study used the Wave I data from the National Longitudinal Study of Adolescent Health (Add Health). The data on seventh and eighth grade students' school and family experiences were…

This study investigated the relative influence of perceived parent and peer disapproval for using drugs on youth intentions to use drugs. In a cross-sectional design, sixth and eighth grade students (N = 1,649) completed surveys that included measures of parent disapproval, peer disapproval, and intentions to use drugs in the future. Parent…

Ensuring a safe learning environment for students is a major responsibility of educators and policymakers around the world. Based on the secondary analyses of the Trends in International Mathematics and Science Study (TIMSS) data collected from 33 countries in 1999, the study found that 8th graders who witnessed their friends' violence…

Introduces an activity designed to develop statistical concepts such as the distribution for a set of data, various interpretations of the mean for a set of data, the limitation of the mean for distinguishing distributions, variation in data, variation in data from the mean, and the MAD as a measure of variation in data from the mean. (ASK)

Despite the success of many drug and alcohol prevention programs, drug and alcohol use by adolescents continues to be a problem. One important factor in preventing drug and alcohol use may be determining, in a non-intrusive manner, which students are most at risk for drug involvement. In the present study, the predictive relationship between…

Sex-related differences in achievement were studied in a random sample of 130 schools, using data from the Second International Mathematics Study. No significant differences were found in arithmetic, algebra, and probability and statistics; for geometry and measurement, boys were more successful. (MNS)

Eleventh grade U.S. history, as described in the 1981 California History/Social Science Framework, should not be taught using a chronological approach. Instead, the course should be based on selected "regional" focal points and students given the opportunity to study different historical accounts and interpretations of the same events.…

In this art activity, eighth grade students use charcoal to draw space art. This versatile medium helps the students see and use dark and light in their forms to show real space and depth. (RM)

A semester-long study of Mozart helped eighth-graders understand the composer's personality and appreciate his music. Students read a biography of his life, studied the forms of his music, danced the minuet, and performed one of his operas in a schoolwide Mozart Day celebration. (AM)

Offers reasons why algebra should not be taught in the eighth grade, suggesting that this subject be replaced by a challenging, engaging alternative. Also suggests enriching the mathematics program to bring more students into mathematics classes. (JN)

Attitudes toward mathematics and attitudes toward computers were examined for 1,018 grade 8 students and 800 grade 12 students. The female students were more likely than the male students to associate negative attitudes toward mathematics with negative attitudes toward computers. Participation in an eighth-grade mathematics course with a computer…

The International Association for the Evaluation of Educational Achievement examined eighth-grade mathematics programs in 21 countries during the 1981-82 school year. This report discusses how programs in the United States compared with those in other countries in instructional characteristics and student achievement. Recommendations are noted.…