In the U.S., state guidance to schools in response to the COVID-19 pandemic was politicized. We used state-level political affiliation to explore whether access to curricular resources differed pre-pandemic or during pandemic remote teaching and teachers' reported control over curricular resources during pandemic teaching. We found that…

Political boundaries have historically been used to both segregate and integrate populations by social characteristics. Researchers have investigated the concentration of poverty, yet less attention has been given to the concentration of affluence, despite growing income segregation of the affluent from middle and low-income households. While the…

The purposes of this pilot study were to determine if elementary and middle school teachers and principals have similar perceptions of science education, and to compare the teachers' perceptions of science education with their perceptions of the principals' enthusiasm for the teaching of science. The study used three elementary and two middle…

The potential usefulness of C. Perrow's (1967) social-technical approach to describing elementary schools is described. This approach is based on the organizational technology and proposed relationships among social, structural, and personnel dimensions of organizations. Perrow's formulation of technology contains two dimensions: (1)…

Two colleges of the University of Alabama have established the Alabama Quantitative Literacy (AQL) Workshop in an effort to prepare teachers to teach statistical techniques accurately and effectively and to enhance the ability of teachers to create new activity-based lessons. The AQL Workshop aims to achieve goals of the National Council of…

This study examined several aspects of elementary science students' achievement, attitudes, and journal writing in conjunction with an Alabama Hands-on Activity Science Program (HASP) grant utilizing the Full Option Science System (FOSS) kit. The sample of 56 fourth grade students in two classes was administered a 15-item pretest and post-test.…

Limited literature on physical educator inservice education and training (INSET) needs provides little basis to design INSET programs for such specialized teachers. This study identified physical educators' perceived INSET needs and determined whether there were predictors of such needs. The sample consisted of 265 Alabama physical educators who…

The onset of adolescence brings with it significant changes in the biological, social, and emotional growth and development of students. In an attempt to meet the needs of transescents (early adolescents aged 10-14) middle level programs have been developed and implemented. However, preparation of teachers to work specifically with middle level…

Committees on Content Analysis and Correlation Studies were appointed by the Alabama State Superintendent of Education to provide information regarding the similarities and differences between the Californa Achievement Tests (CAT), Levels 13-C and 16-C, and the Alabama Basic Competency Tests (BCT), grade 3 and 6. The major purpose of these…

A study was conducted to determine the prevalence of the use of portfolios in selected public elementary schools. Participants were asked for demographic information and information about the amount of training they had in portfolio use and the perceived strengths and benefits, weaknesses and barriers they find in portfolio use. A questionnaire…

The level of agreement among principals and teachers concerning the certification competencies needed by beginning teachers was studied, and an effort was made to determine the level of preparation or experience at which the competencies are mastered. Twenty-seven principals, 27 elementary school teachers, and 5 secondary school teachers from…

Brewton City (Alabama) school district administrators implemented the concept of an institution of higher education (IHE) person becoming involved in their schools' professional programs on a long-term basis. The IHE person became as familiar as possible with the school system and the personnel involved by talking with teachers, observing in…

The stages of development and reporting of a statewide needs assessment about inservice teacher education that was conducted with educators in Alabama during the 1992-93 school year are described. The first phase was development of a pilot instrument by focus groups. The instrument was tested with 559 workshop participants, and the final…

A study was conducted to determine the status of Internet access and usage in selected rural schools of northeast Alabama, and to contribute to an ongoing database that describes Internet access and usage in rural schools as a benchmark for future study. A 28-item survey of 107 teachers and media specialists in 18 selected rural schools in…