This is a summary of the final report of the Cardston School Division Project for Improvement in the Language Arts, a three-year project in Alberta, Canada, using Exemplary Center for Reading Instruction (ECRI) strategies and materials and having as its objectives the improvement of language arts teaching, student achievement in language arts,…

The status of New Jersey school districts' evaluation and reporting network of compensatory education programs is surveyed. The procedures involved in the analysis are explained, and the results are interpreted. The reported analyses compared actual student growth to growth that could be expected without Basic Skills Improvement (BSI) program…

This collection of abstracts in part of a continuing series providing information on recent doctoral dissertations. The 27 titles deal with a variety of topics, including the following: (1) the effects of second language learning on achievement in English; (2) developmental aspects and effects of variables on prekindergarten, kindergarten, and…

THE TEACHING OF ENGLISH AS A SECOND LANGUAGE TO SPANISH-SPEAKING STUDENTS IS A CHALLENGING AND COMPLEX TASK. IN ORDER TO PLAN AN ADEQUATE CURRICULUM, THERE MUST BE A CLEAR UNDERSTANDING OF THE ACADEMIC AND CULTURAL OBJECTIVES TO BE MET. FOUR FACTORS WILL INFLUENCE IMPLEMENTATION OF THE OBJECTIVES--THE STUDENTS, THE TEACHERS, THE SCHOOL, AND THE…

This study sought to determine whether students who perceived their teachers as more effectively providing facilitative conditions (warmth, empathy, genuineness, and concreteness) achieved greater language arts gains than did students who perceived their teachers as being less facilitative. A statistically significant difference was found in…

This curriculum guide for a high school junior- and senior-level English program identifies twenty-two characteristics of a successful graduate. These characteristics are regarded as goals to be met through the completion of units on four communicative processes: (1) reading, (2) writing, (3) speaking and listening, and (4) thinking and…

The final evaluation report on the 37 Elementary Secondary Education Act (ESEA) Title I projects in the Bureau of Indian Affairs (BIA) Aberdeen Area, this report presents graphic and tabular descriptions for each of the 37 projects re: (1) Title I expenditures (graphic display of expenditures for reading, math, language, administration, area…

Reviews the Curriculum Referenced Tests of Mastery that are intended to measure achievement, with the emphasis on measuring what a student has learned rather than predicting future success in school, concluding that the tests are worthy of consideration by any district. (HOD)

The consequences of large state testing are often uniformity of expectations for achievement. The largest impact of higher standards, then, are realized by traditionally disenfranchised student populations, particularly the least affluent who are most likely to bear the yoke of low expectation. This paper advances S. Messick's (1981) fundamental…

Beginning in the 1992-93 school year, the North Carolina State Board of Education authorized administration of North Carolina-developed end-of-grade tests aligned with the state's "Standard Course of Study." These state-normed tests were administered to more than 568,000 students in grades 3 through 8 in 1998-99. End-of-course tests were…

Arguing that our democratic society needs citizens with advanced language and thinking skills, this paper invites readers to take part in a Literacy Compact in their communities. It first discusses what a Literacy Compact is, describing it as a pact between students, English language arts teachers, parents, school administrators, and communities…

Reports on a study that assessed students' ability to perceive their teachers' level of warmth and empathy and whether this perception affected student achievement in language arts classrooms. (FL)

Analyzed two sixth-grade teachers' efforts to improve their instruction. Subjects were 129 students. Theories of multiple intelligences were practiced in two essential ways, specifically, by encouraging students to understand the way they learn, and by generating a variety of instructional activities. Results showed that there were gains in…

A sample language arts/history curriculum based on state curriculum standards was created and implemented in a classroom for 22 secondary students with emotional/behavioral disorders in a residential treatment program. Emphasis on story elements and narrative summary writing resulted in improvements in both summary writing skills and academic…

To evaluate the adequacy and efficiency of preschool education in California, the RAND Corporation has undertaken the California Preschool Study to improve understanding of achievement gaps in the early elementary grades, the adequacy of preschool education currently given, and what efficiencies or additional resources might be brought to bear in…