The authors examined the conditions that promote or discourage engagement in the classroom among kindergarten students. Engagement included learning behaviors (on-task behavior) and pro- and antisocial behavior. The authors examined 3 policy-manipulable features of kindergarten classrooms: (a) whether the class met for a half day or full day, (b)…

Described is the role of the teacher aide in the Papillion (Nebraska) Title III elementary level "engineered classroom" program which stresses accomplishment of academic goals by emotionally disturbed students. Noted is the aides' goal of carrying out students' prescriptions provided by the teacher and psychologist. Described are the…

This program initiated by the Central Cities Educational Development Center was designed to offer experiences which lay the groundwork for intellectual development and school achievement to underprivileged children two to five years of age. The Center has assumed a somewhat different composition and focus in each of the four years of its…

This article reports the Project STAR interview study that examined changes in K-3 teacher perceptions after teaching for a year in small classes or regular classes with aides. Teachers believed small classes or aides changed teaching and learning. They became more effective and satisfied and provided more individual attention. (SM)

Pupils (N=1,755) in 232 elementary school classes in Tennessee participated in a 3-year longitudinal study of the effects of reduced class size on reading and mathematics performance. The small-class setting increased performance significantly in both mathematics and reading, and it had an especially strong impact in inner-city schools.…

The Annual Condition of Education Report provides a wide range of state-level data, including shifts in student populations and demographics, teacher salaries and characteristics, student achievement results, and school financial information. A few examples of the categories presented in this 22nd edition report include: (1) Enrollment; (2) Early…

This paper presents findings of a study that examined the relationship between the performance (as measured by test results) of pupils in classrooms with full-time teacher aides. The Student Teacher Achievement Ratio project (STAR) was implemented in Tennessee from 1985 through 1989 to study the effects of class size on student achievement and…

The report describes accomplishments of a project to identify patterns of task persistence among handicapped preschoolers and the teacher behaviors that facilitate task persistence. In phase I of the project, 101 children (including 12 nonhandicapped, 57 mildly, 28 moderately, and 4 severely handicapped students) participated in an examination of…

The Teacher Assistance Team (TAT) process has come about as a result of the increase in referrals for special education services (mostly for the learning disabilities classroom). TAT was devised to break the cycle of student failure. This paper has five parts. Part 1 briefly elaborates on the definition of a TAT. Part 2 addresses the need for TAT…

The purpose of this study was to (1) ascertain the perceptions of teachers using volunteer aides and (2) to investigate the effect of the use of volunteer aides on student achievement when comparing anticipated achievement with actual academic achievement. The population included elementary school teachers and 169 student from 2 elementary schools…

This study was designed to compare the utilization of instructional time of first grade classroom teachers with and without full-time teacher aides, to compare the academic performance of children in these two groups, and to examine the relationship between teacher and aide activity. A sub-purpose was the development of an observation instrument…

The Georgia Instructional Assistance Program (IAP) earmarked $3,200,000 in grants to local school systems for supplemental instructors and aides in the form of additional certificated and/or noncertificated personnel to provide assistance in the elementary grades to classroom teachers. It was anticipated that through the intensive instruction and…

It is widely assumed that increasing the number of teaching assistants (TAs) in the classroom will be beneficial to children, and this is one important aim of the recently implemented Workforce Agreement. But there are still significant gaps in knowledge about many aspects of their deployment and impact. The Class Size and Pupil-Adult Ratios…

This evaluation report is presented at the conclusion of the third year of Project Assist, a program funded under the Emergency School Assistant Act (ESAA). The main focus of the project was on improving student reading and mathematics skills primarily through contact with instructional teacher aides and special supplementary instructional…

This study on the use of nonprofessionals, or teacher aides, in elementary schools reveals some significant findings on (1) division of workload in the classrooms, (2) labor costs, and (3) pupil achievement gains, specifically among disadvantaged children, when a program employing nonprofessional personnel complements the conventional teaching…