In recent years, there has been a growing understanding that consistent developmental relationships support student learning and well-being. Research shows that youth who have positive connections with adults at their schools demonstrate higher levels of motivation, self-esteem, and prosocial behavior than their peers in less relationship-centered…

Several areas in the UK allocate children to secondary schools based on exam results at age 11. While many studies have investigated how attending academically selective schools affects pupils' subsequent educational attainment, we know very little about how grammar attendance affects other outcomes, such as pupils' self-confidence, academic…

Students attending alternative provision (AP) schools have typically disengaged with their education. They present with multiple problems and complex support needs which makes their re-engagement back into education challenging. This study examined educational re-engagement using the self-system model of motivational processes. Teacher (or other…

The aim of this study is to determine the positive/negative teacher behaviours which teacher candidates observed during their primary and secondary school years and the effects of these behaviours on themselves. The research was conducted in the spring term of 2012-2013 academic year with 88 teacher candidates (52 females and 36 males), studying…

Test and performance anxiety is not recognized easily in schools, in large part because adolescents rarely refer themselves for emotional concerns. Not wanting to risk teasing or public attention, anxious adolescents suffer in silence and under perform on school-related tasks. In school, anxiety is experienced often by students when being…

This study investigated whether adolescents' appraisals of their education-related goals change during the transition from comprehensive school to postcomprehensive secondary education (academic vs. vocational track) and how such appraisals contribute to their self-esteem. Six hundred and seven 16-year-old adolescents were surveyed three times:…

This study focuses on girl college students in a rural area of South West Bangladesh exploring the meaning and value they give to higher secondary education. By listening to their voices, the ethnography shows that unlike their younger counterparts, who stop studying in order to get married, girls who enrol at college develop more complex and…

This document presents the proceedings of the 20th Annual Research Forum held June 25, 2015, at Wake Forest University in Winston-Salem, North Carolina. Included are the following 21 action research papers: (1) History Lives! The Use of Simulations in a High School Social Studies Classroom (Lydia Adkins); (2) Using Francophone Music in the High…

Butler County (Pennsylvania) Vo-Tech motivates better attendance and achievement through an incentive program with tangible rewards such as the Win-a-Car contest. A two-day self-esteem program involves action-oriented experiential learning activities designed to develop leadership, teamwork, self-esteem, and problem-solving skills. (SK)

Describes a student-behavior-modification process and ongoing research project involving 650 of the highest risk youth from a population of 11,000 6th to 12th graders. After identifying at-risk students, researchers isolated routine problem behaviors and examined how they could be modified. Students work their way back to a regular school setting…

Rewarding students for their achievements enhances self-esteem and confidence. These positive feelings permeate the school, improve the general climate, and raise the level of school pride. New and traditional methods of recognizing student groups such as a welcoming assembly, a spirit banner contest, and senior privileges can make students feel…

This study uses New Zealand secondary school students to assess the effects of coeducation on student attitudes and behaviors related to academic motivation and achievement. Subjects were 1225 students in their third and fourth years of secondary school. Part of the sample attended coeducational schools, and part attended single-sex schools.…

This book examines the characteristics and educational needs of unmotivated adolescents. It suggests that many of these students suffer from low self-esteem and are learning disabled and/or have an attention deficit disorder with hyperactivity. It offers a definition of learning disabilities that emphasizes the presence of significant differences…

Provides seven answers to the question: "What is the most persistent and troublesome problem you deal with in your English classroom?" Discusses student motivation, class size, critical thinking, self-esteem, and student interests. (PRA)

Achievement patterns of tenth grade females of above average intelligence revealed a significant difference between the grades of achievers and underachievers, beginning at grade 6. Other-direction and attitudes toward women were significantly related to mathematical achievement test scores and high school grades. (Author/BH)