Addresses the crucial role of families in helping students learn, arguing that the success of schooling depends on the contributions of the home and school/home collaborations. Ways to better understand the everyday lives of children living in poverty are illustrated to help schools increase learning opportunities for all children, even when…

A teacher inservice training program was developed to increase student writing skills in a suburban elementary school. Subjects were 9 teachers and 200 third and fourth grade students. Strategies included implementing demand writing activities into the content area curriculum. For subject students, levels of success were measured by pre-training…

A program developed interventions for improving student writing in the areas of technique and creativity. The targeted population consisted of students in the first through fourth grades in three different school sites, all being similar upper-middle class communities, located in the suburbs of a mid-western city. The problems that some students…

PARENT TALK is a newsletter distributed to approximately 10,000 recipients of Aid to Families with Dependent Children in Grand Rapids, Michigan, along with their assistance checks. The newsletter is designed to help parents relate to schools in order to facilitate and promote their children's success. Five topics are discussed: (1) what PARENT…

This paper reviews the literature on telephone-based schoolwork assistance programs and describes the activities of several such programs. Research literature indicates that properly organized lessons and assignments result in greater student achievement. Research on characteristics of students who procrastinate in doing their schoolwork is…

This publication presents a collection of true stories that demonstrate the ways in which children's and parents' lives have been enriched as a result of their involvement with Project Head Start. The stories describe remarkable achievements, often made in the face of great disadvantages and difficult circumstances, which illustrate, through…

Presented is a compilation of materials concerning the Augusta College Humanities Program in Augusta, Georgia, beginning with a brief description of the program and its background. In 1984, the college began a 2.5-year project to revitalize and strengthen its required sophomore level three course humanities sequence (Greece and Rome, the Middle…

This report discusses the Student Academic Services (SAS) project at Eastern New Mexico University. It looks at how student development efforts have been augmented at the university. SAS is based on student development philosophy, fundamental to which is an understanding that the human individual functions as a unit, and his/her diverse features…

The Pennsylvania Writing Project (PAWP), a regional outreach service of West Chester University, is described in this report. Among its basic assumptions are that: there is a nationwide need to improve the writing skills of school graduates; a pervasive problem is in the teaching of writing; colleges, universities and schools share a common…

Examines the effectiveness of "maverick schools"-- low-income neighborhood urban public schools with exceptionally high student achievement. Elements of their success include emphasis on basic skills, discipline, direct teaching styles, and committed leadership. (SK)

Suggests that using the one-minute paper to teach an introductory economics course increases economic knowledge regardless of student ability level and instructor characteristics. The one-minute paper is a form of feedback where the students answer a few basic questions about the lesson at the end of the class. (MJP)

Outlines a step-by-step process through which students can construct, defend, and test historical arguments. These include to support the claim with facts and analyze their relevance, to oppose the claim with additional facts, to rebut this claim with additional facts, and to ask for new information to test the claim. (MJP)

Describes the work of Peggy O'Brien and the Folger Shakespeare Library's Summer Institute. The Institute works with upper level secondary students helping them prepare scenes and performances of Shakespeare's works. Discusses some of the lessons learned during this process. (MJP)

Examines the theme of adolescent maturation and growing responsibility in Shakespeare's "Henry IV, Part I." Uses excerpts from the play to illustrate key points in Prince Henry's developing sense of responsibility. Argues that this theme makes the play accessible and enjoyable for adolescents. (MJP)

Discusses improving mathematical reasoning through the design of computer microworlds and evaluates a computer-based learning environment that uses multiple representations to improve undergraduate students' conception of average speed. Describes improvement of students' estimates of average speed by using visual feedback from a simulation.…