A descriptive and metanalytic research review indicates that physically attractive students are usually judged more favorably than their unattractive counterparts by teachers on several dimensions including intelligence, academic potential, grades, and social skills. The influence of moderating variables and possible mechanisms responsible for the…

This paper reports a comprehensive "meta-review" and synthesis of research on variables related to learning, including both cognitive and affective schooling outcomes. A conceptual framework was developed, encompassing 228 items related to school learning, organized "a priori" into 30 scales within 6 categories ordered roughly from more distal to…

This paper studies statistical procedures used in the "Journal of Research in Music Education" (JRME) over a 5-year period (1987 through 1991). The results are compared with those of L. D. Goodwin and W. L. Goodwin (1985) concerning the "American Educational Research Journal" for the same period. In all, 78 quantitative and 31…

The decision by the National Institute of Education panel on the effects of school desegregation to select (for meta-analysis) a small group of preferred studies based upon criteria chosen in advance of examining the studies was, in principle, a mistake. One usually cannot know until the data have been examined which of several competing…

The focus of this paper is on the methodology used in analyzing studies on the effects of school desegregation on black achievement. The paper also addresses a number of substantive issues, including the overall effectiveness of school desegregation, the impact of type of achievement (math or reading), and time of desegregation (early or later…

Forty studies using one or more components of Lozanov's method of suggestive-accelerative learning and teaching were identified from a search of all issues of the "Journal of Suggestive-Accelerative Learning and Teaching." Fourteen studies contained sufficient statistics to compute effect sizes. The studies were coded according to substantive and…

This paper discusses the effects of the instructional use of computers and projects possibilities for their home use. Following a brief introduction, exemplar studies of two computer assisted instruction programs--TICCIT and PLATO--are described. The TICCIT study contrasted the performance of over 5,000 community college students in classes taught…

Meta analysis results were compared with a traditional review of bilingual education program effectiveness. When controlled for methodological inadequacies, participation in bilingual education programs consistently produced differences favoring bilingual education. The methodological inadequacies in the synthesized studies highlights the need for…

Explains how meta-analysis can be used to estimate the effectiveness of various teaching strategies in special education and related services. Identifies specific interventions with combined effect sizes that indicate either effectiveness (such as mnemonic strategies, enhancing reading comprehension), promise of effectiveness (stimulant drugs,…

Presents reanalysis of data from earlier reviews, particularly those by Hanushek (1981, 1986, 1989, 1991), on relationship between educational resource input and school outcomes when controlling for student characteristics such as socioeconomic status. Using different synthesis methods, analysis shows a positive relationship between resources and…

Two previous meta-analyses of the test-coaching literature have yielded conclusions that differ with respect to aptitude test scores. This study attempts to resolve differences in the conclusions of these two analyses by J. A. Kulik, R. L. Bangert-Drowns, and C. L. C. Kulik (1984) and K. Pearlman (1984) by using the methods of F. L. Schmidt and J.…

Foremost among many recent trends in education has been a surge of interest in small group instruction. Questions remain concerning the relative educational value of small group computer assisted instruction (CAI) or CBT (broadly defined as instructional use of computers). This paper presents the results of an investigation of 55 works on this…

This paper presents a comprehensive review of international research on the problems of beginning teachers facing "reality shock" in their first years of teaching. A discussion is given on the question of how teacher educators could anticipate the problems their students will encounter when they enter the profession. Particular focus is on…

This paper compares the effects of desegregation on black achievement with the effects of other factors in the process of school learning that have recently been synthesized. The first section of the paper discusses techniques and guidelines for research synthesis, including meta-analysis. The second section presents a summary of the statistical…

This meta-analysis examines the effects of adventure programs on diverse outcomes such as self-concept, locus of control, and leadership. Analysis of 1,728 effect sizes from 96 studies shows that effect sizes varied substantially and improved as the length of the program and ages of the participants increased. (SLD)