Puerto Ricans as a group are more disadvantaged economically, politically, and socially than any other ethnic minority. This marginalization is partly due to the educational system's discriminatory practices which deprive the vast majority of Puerto Rican children of equal educational opportunities. The educational problems of Puerto Ricans stem…

This evaluation is presented in four parts. Part I provides the background of the preschool program and includes the provisions of ESEA Title III, a description of the planning for the Title III grant, characteristics of the tri-county area in Maryland where the program is located and a brief description of other subsidized programs in that area.…

What percent of Americans have been exposed to arts education? Has it changed over time? How do demographic characteristics correlate with arts education? What is the state of arts education in U.S. schools? These research questions are the focus of this report, which is presented in two parts. Using data from the Surveys of Public Participation…

Intuitively, class size reduction is a good idea. Parents support it because it means that their children will receive more individual attention from teachers. Teachers like it for the same reason and also because it creates a more manageable workload. It is generally assumed that the fewer students in a class, the better they will learn and the…

This case study, part of the State Structures for the Governance of Higher Education study, focuses on governance and related issues in Florida's higher education system. The study's overall purpose was to examine differences among states in their governance structures, and to determine if differences in performance were related to governing…

This report examines the participation of older undergraduates, above age 24, in postsecondary education using data from the 1989-90 National Postsecondary Student Aid Study (NPSAS:90) and the 1990-92 Beginning Postsecondary Student Longitudinal Study (BPS:90/92). It profiles older undergraduates and compares them with younger undergraduates with…

This study, conducted by Regents College (New York), a virtual university founded to serve the needs of adult learners, sought to determine factors associated with student retention in an external degree program. Assessment data for students enrolled in the Regents College undergraduate liberal arts program was derived solely from the student…

In this study indicators associated with suicidal ideation and suicide attempts in a nationwide representative sample (N = 3,184) of Danes aged 16-35 years were examined. The study was cross-sectional and had three aims: (1) to draw a profile of persons with and without suicidal tendency established on a combined quartered variable on current…

This study explores the relationship between college graduation rates and student participation and success in Advanced Placement (AP) courses and exams. We reviewed three approaches to examining this relationship: 1) comparing the college graduation rates of AP and non-AP students; 2) comparing the college graduation rate of AP and non-AP…

Child poverty, as a critical indicator of the QOL, is intricately related to the social structure of the community. This hypothesis is explored for the 159 counties of Georgia for the year 2000. The influence of demographic, economic, family and health factors upon child poverty are explored through models of total, black and white child poverty.…

Part of an effort to expand and improve community college programs and services for older adults, this two-part report summarizes results from a national survey of older adult programs and provides an overview of current trends and their implications for action in community colleges. Following introductory sections, the report discusses a fall…

This two-part document summarizes and analyzes the implications of a national study of adult literacy in Canada that included home interviews with a representative sample of 13,571 Canadians between the ages of 16 and 69. Part 1 summarizes the study's objectives, methodology, and findings. Among the main findings are the following: (1) 16% of…

In 1993-94, a random sample of 547 individuals authorized to perform marriages in Australia (marriage celebrants) and 560 couples from across Australia who had married in 1993 were surveyed regarding their views of premarriage education (PME) and the factors enhancing/inhibiting participation in PME programs (PMEPs). Of the marriage celebrants,…

Concerns over the high incidence of divorce and domestic violence have prompted many Australian churches and some nonchurch agencies to offer premarriage education programs (PMEPs) to couples planning to marry. Unlike past PMEPs, which were often didactic, Australia's present-day PMEPs tend to be learner-centered programs that encourage…

A study examined the labor market problems of the United States' out-of-school youth population and trends in the development and attempted solution of those problems over the past 20 years. The study's major areas of focus were as follows: trends in the nation's out-of-school youth population's size and demographic composition; trends in the…