The report presents an objective third-party assessment of the WALKABOUT program. Now in its third year in Northern Westchester County, New York, this program offers an optional learning environment for Grade 12 students in which the skills and self confidence needed to be effective adults are nurtured. In order to attain WALKABOUT program goals,…

The Walkabout program is an optional senior-year educational experience in which New York high school students can acquire the basic skills and confidence to take charge of their lives and contribute to the world. The year-long program is divided into 5 "challenge environments": wilderness (5 weeks); applied academics (18 weeks of health…

In order to investigate the relationship between 7 school system characteristics and student achievement test scores in the 45 metropolitan and 82 nonmetropolitan Alabama school systems, 1979 California Achievement Test combined battery scores for 8th and 12th grade students attending each system in the state were analyzed. For both metropolitan…

During the 1978-79 school year, all third grade pupils in California public schools were tested in reading achievement. Tests of reading, written expression, spelling, and mathematics were administered to all sixth and twelfth graders. Various subtests of the Survey of Basic Skills, which was developed specifically for the California Assessment…

To comply with the Oklahoma legislative intent, a statewide random sample of students in grades 3, 6, 9, and 12 were tested in mathematics and reading. Students in grades 3, 6, and 9 were administered the California Achievement Tests (CAT), reading and mathematics subtests. It was concluded that: more students scored above, rather than below,…

Mexican American educational aspirations and achievements were studied to determine why they tended to be considerably lower than those of Anglos and also to account for the sources of variation within each group, thus attempting to explain the particular contribution of school contexts of varying socioeconomic level and ethnic composition. A…

The relationship between community involvement and academic excellence is discussed. The hypothesis was that performance on the Scholastic Aptitude Test is best predicted by the extent to which students extend their education beyond the classroom to become involved in the businesses, organizations, and other institutions in the community. Senior…

Survey data were analyzed from 14- and 17-year-old Israeli students--1,990 ninth graders and 2,000 twelfth graders, respectively--involved in the Second International Science Study. The effects of ethnic origin (Afro-Asian versus European/American) and gender on high school student achievement, interest/motivation, attitudes, and self-concept…

Understanding and preventing high school failure is a national priority. Structural strain and general deviance theories attempt to explain late high school failure. The authors tested the hypotheses that general (vs. specific) deviance and academic competence mediate the relationships between structural strain factors (gender, ethnicity, and…

This document analyzes responses to questions included in a national assessment of knowledge of U.S. history and geography in an attempt to determine the relationship between study habits and academic performance. The National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP) 1994 asked 4th-, 8th-, and 12th-grade students specific questions regarding…

In 1990, President Bush and the nation's governors adopted the six National Education Goals as part of a campaign to increase educational performance at all levels. Goal 3 states that, by the year 2000, American students will leave grades 4, 8, and 12 having demonstrated competence in challenging subject matter, including English, mathematics,…

Since 1989, the Texas Education Agency has reported selected results from the Scholastic Aptitude Test (SAT) and the American College Testing (ACT) Program's original and Enhanced ACT Assessment for prior year graduating seniors. This fourth annual report presents data for the 1990-91 graduating class. Score data from these examinations are…

Three documents related to the passage of Public Law 102-62 are presented. The first document is the House of Representatives Report 102-104, a report of the Committee on Education and Labor regarding the establishment of a National Council on Education Standards and Testing. The Council would be established to determine whether standards for…

The Second International IEA Science Study (SISS) had participants from 24 countries. In this report the data collected in 17 countries are analyzed and reported. Students from the 5th, 9th, and 12th grades were tested. The results from achievement tests, student questionnaires, opinionnaires, a science teaching and learning inventory, a word…

The National Assessment Governing Board (NAGB) is responsible for improving the form and use of the National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP). The NAGB is beginning to define achievement levels to state clearly what students should know and be able to do at key grades in school. This report creates a policy framework, definitions, and…