The author of this article was a teacher, who had taught high school English for seven years. Then she was a researcher, observing and interviewing, recording and reflecting. One incident, stretching over four class periods, took her back across that divide between teacher and researcher, and touched her personally. She was trying to understand…

Parkrose (Oregon) School District 3 became involved in standards of competence in 1978 when the Oregon State Board of Education adopted standards requiring high school students to demonstrate competency skills to graduate. The California Achievement Test has been administered to Parkrose tenth graders each fall since 1974 when students scored…

Notes the advantages grade 10 English students found in using a word processor: (1) they spend more time reworking text, (2) they are better able to determine needed change, (3) they find the revision process less arduous, and (4) they seem to find it easier to develop a sense of audience. (MM)

The purpose of the study was to compare two regression-based approaches for measuring educational effectiveness in Tennessee high schools: the mean residual approach (MR), and a more general linear models (LM) approach. Data were obtained from a sample of 1,011 students who were enrolled in 48 high schools, and who had taken the Comprehensive…

Presents the viewpoints of a tenth grader on novels for young adults that portray troubled teens dealing with alcoholism, drugs, depression, suicide, sexual abuse, and violence. Suggests that contrary to adult opinions that these novels are not always age-appropriate, they in fact broaden teens' outlooks and prepare them for the real world. (LRW)

Describes a study that investigated the effects of learner control and program control, and lean and full modes of instructional programs, on the achievement, use of options, time on task, and attitudes of high-ability and low-ability students from grades 9 and 10 during computer-assisted instruction. (LRW)

An interview with three top students and an English teacher at a troubled urban high school in Portland (Oregon) yields interesting insights: The best teachers blend strictness with understanding. Learning is more lasting when multiple avenues for absorbing material are provided. A principal's strong leadership is critical to a cohesive school…

Three schools in Minnesota have designed a shared-resource project to address the areas of career, gifted and talented, and chemical and drug education, to provide guidance and counseling services, to add and enhance course offerings, and to develop an individualized instruction program (IEP) for every tenth- and eleventh-grade student. (MM)

Studies patterns of computer use based on data from the National Science Foundation's Longitudinal Study of American Youth in which 7th- and 10th-grade students were surveyed for five consecutive years. Highlights include parental backgrounds; socioeconomic status; parental attitudes; student attitudes; gender differences; computer ownership; and…

Discusses the views and attitudes of 7 mathematics teachers, 19 7th- and 10th-grade students, and others participating in a pilot curriculum development program stressing active methodologies and group work. Teachers approved of the new orientations but complained about the design and implementation of the program. (Contains 24 references.)…

This essay is the author's battle cry for help in revitalizing democracy. It deals with the institutions in which the future citizens are being educated. It deals with the undemocratic way in which schools are run. Given the time and space, the author would like to narrow the focus of his battle even further and argue for a revitalization of…

Presents a model for working with students at risk, helping them develop critical thinking, listening, reading, and writing skills. Includes cooperation of the local community relations officer for the police department. (RAE)

A recent study of ninth- and tenth-grade dropouts in North Carolina shows that Hispanic adolescents have the highest early dropout rate among the state's largest ethnic groups. This relationship persists when boys and girls are analyzed separately: Hispanic boys are more likely to drop out early than other boys are, and Hispanic girls are more…

Reasons that Bowie State College in Maryland should participate in the Upward Bound Project are discussed, with attention to geographic and demographic characteristics of the area, school characteristics, and needed services. The college historically has provided educational opportunities for black, disadvantaged students and has been successful…