This report presents findings from a study of dropouts and students at risk in Chicago public schools. It is divided into five major chapters. Chapter 1 describes the study's grouping of Chicago high schools into four "types": selective academic; selective vocational; non-selective integrated; and non-selective segregated. A…

This report assesses the first year of a school achievement program in Lowell, Massachusetts (Lowell Achievement Program, LAP). The program targeted seventh and eighth grade students who were at risk for dropping out of school. The main goals of the program were to identify these students and to stimulate them to participate in their own learning…

This report describes a research study in which motivational strategies were used to increase student enjoyment of reading and to foster a life-long love of reading. The targeted populations consisted of primary and middle grade students in three different urban midwestern settings. The problem of motivating students to read was documented through…

An intervention program in the area of sixth grade social studies was implemented for the purpose of increasing reading comprehension levels of average ability students in a large, urban school district. Five metacognitive strategies were employed to improve understanding of the adopted textbook. The strategies included outlining, sentence…

A study was conducted in the City College of Chicago and replicated in three other urban community college districts to investigate the instructional methods of a sample of exceptional community college teachers and to look for alterable teaching behaviors and techniques that could be presented to other teachers who wanted to improve their…

An exploratory study was conducted to identify the characteristics and behaviors related to effective instruction in an urban community college. The 30 instructors selected for the study taught introductory courses in biology, English, mathematics, or social sciences at the City Colleges of Chicago. All had exceptionally high levels of student…

The Pre-Reading Skills Battery is a group-administered diagnostic battery measuring skills considered to be prerequisite to beginning reading instruction. Three major areas of skills are included: language, visual perception, and auditory perception. Within each of these three areas several skills are tested through two or three sub-tests. In some…

This guide's 11 sections are: "Evolution of Whole School Reform (WSR) in New Jersey"; "Department of Education Organizational Structure in Support of Urban Education Reform"; "Whole School Reform Regulations"; "School Management Teams: Leading the Process"; "Becoming a Whole School Reform School";…

A team from the New York State Education Department examined the regulatory compliance of the human immunodeficiency virus acquired immune deficiency syndrome (HIV/AIDS) instructional program of the New York City Public Schools and assessed the policies and procedures of the New York City Central Board of Education and community school districts…

This study sought to determine whether Chicago Public School teachers are more involved in shared decision making since the Chicago School Reform 1988. A review of literature on shared decision making yielded inconclusive results. While some studies concluded that shared decision making is imperative, other studies suggested that school climate,…

Four case studies were conducted to evaluate the Arts Partners project, an umbrella program which brings together schools and art agencies who hire professional writers, artists, dancers, and musicians to hold 10-week residencies with students. The four schools, chosen randomly, included three elementary schools--one in upper Manhattan, one in the…

A program was designed to improve reading comprehension of first-grade students in one school and second-grade students in another school of an urban neighborhood school district in a medium-sized midwestern city. The problem has been addressed both at the district level and the building level, although scores in reading comprehension have…

A study evaluated the effectiveness of the 1993-94 Reading Recovery program as implemented in the Columbus, Ohio, public schools. The program featured individualized one-on-one lessons provided by 61 specially trained teachers serving 402 pupils. Data included results of administration of Metropolitan Achievement Tests and Scott Foresman text…

The Urban Mathematics Collaborataive (UMC) project has the goal of contributing to the improvement of mathematics education in the inner-city schools by identifying models to enhance the professional lives of teachers and encouraging the entry of high school mathematics teachers into a larger mathematics community including mathematicians from…

This document offers a detailed description of the dynamics involved in the choice of an independent neighborhood school. These primarily urban schools are an expression of cultural power and identity among minority groups who wish to ensure access to opportunities for academic achievement for their children and also to control the content and…