In this study of the Accelerated Reader (AR) program, qualitative and quantitative analyses of the relationship between the implementation of AR and student motivation and extent of reading are drawn from data collected in three schools in Scotland and England. These schools represent low (Scotland, n=53), middle (Scotland, n=40), and high…

This study examined the impact of a Florida State Department of Education project entitled Fit to Achieve--a cardiovascular fitness education program for elementary school children. Of the teachers implementing the program, 24 elementary physical educators and 134 elementary classroom teachers responded to a survey that asked for information on…

This practicum was designed to develop an effective homework-assistance program in an after school and evening youth center. Before the program was introduced, a facility was available, but few students attended. The author reorganized and restructured the facility and its services to attract participants, motivate them to complete their homework,…

Contributed by English teachers across the United States, the activities contained in this booklet are intended to promote the effective teaching of literature and writing. Teaching strategies offered in the first section of the booklet are designed to stimulate language exploration and include activities in which students choose their favorite…

A special effort was undertaken in 1988 to increase the number of females in the University of Minnesota Talented Youth Mathematics Program (UMTYMP), a program of accelerated mathematics instruction for elementary school, junior high school, and senior high school students. As part of this effort, attitudinal data were collected from participants.…

The purpose of the workshops presented in this notebook is to: (1) help educators learn about the needs of marginal learners (described as students, preschool through twelfth grade, whose academic performance may be less than that of their classmates or whose behavior may interfere with learning); (2) identify proven practices in both classroom…

How students perceive standardized tests and routine classroom tests on subject matter units was studied by surveying 61 fifth-grade and 65 eighth-grade students in public schools in Michigan. It was hypothesized that older students would more often distinguish between the types of test and would be more cynical and less motivated than would…

A longitudinal study examined the classroom environments in which 30 children learned to read. Over the first four years of the study, data were collected on how the children's third, fourth, fifth, and sixth grade teachers taught reading and other subjects, the kinds and numbers of books that the children had available to read, the functions of…

In these days of tremendous political pressure for results measured by standardized tests, time constraints can make social and emotional learning (SEL) a difficult undertaking for many classroom teachers. It seemed that after-school programs would be effective learning environments for supplying the missing piece in children's education. In this…

Engaging students seriously in their own academic learning is a persistent difficulty for teachers. The goal of this action research project was to actively involve elementary school students in their learning. The program was implemented at three elementary schools in northern Illinois serving multicultural populations; special education…

Problems in students completing homework may be related to lack of parental involvement and support, student attitudes and priorities, and the assigning of inappropriate and irrelevant homework. This action research project implemented and examined the effectiveness of increased communication with parents regarding homework, cooperative learning…

This study investigated outcome data obtained from six samples of primary school students, four of which consisted of at-risk students. Participants were: (1) 46 students from a transitional first-grade, developmental, regular education school readiness program (SRP) for at-risk kindergartners; (2) 20 nonplaced kindergartners who were recommended…

Do variables identified as existing within effective school models relate causally to student achievement? A study attempted to answer this question by manipulating selected school effectiveness variables and teacher behavior and by examining the effects of that manipulation on student achievement. Over a 1-year period, 10 kindergarten through…

A program, initiated during the Fall of 1970 by the Language Research Foundation, which develops a curriculum for training teachers in cross-cultural communication is described in this paper. The three-phase project focuses on: (1) research, (2) curriculum development, and (3) curriculum trial-evaluation. Proceedings of a conference held under the…

On the assumption that students are more successful if their parents participate at school and encourage education and learning at home, the Los Angeles Metropolitan Project granted funds to 29 Los Angeles schools for the Parents as Learning Partners (PLP) Project. This initiative focuses on three primary areas in which parents and teachers can…