Argues that the role of educational standards that has emerged from the National Education Summit is fundamentally misunderstood, does not address the issue adequately, and that using increased standards as a negative incentive is detrimental to students by punishing them for noncomplience. Explains the importance of student-centered standards,…

Examines three factors that influence student learning and motivation of beginner foreign-language listening skills: text, context, and gender. Studies responses of fifth graders to computer-based foreign-language learning. Results indicate that providing text with spoken words facilitates the acquisition of listening skills, increases student…

Discusses preservation of a historic house in Beaumont, Texas, by the National Endowment for the Arts' Architect-in-Residence program with help from eighth-grade volunteers. Notes attitude changes in one participating student, who had previously been failing mathematics, English, and American history, but received A's after the experience. (MH)

Presents secondary students' perceptions of cooperative learning (CL) in an attempt to understand how and why CL benefits students affectively and cognitively. After describing the structure of learning and schooling, the article discusses how CL promotes positive interdependence, social skills, work skills, and individual accountability. (SM)

A program description and sample program materials of a self-paced, individualized mathematics program designed to improve the achievement of junior high school students are presented. The usual daily activities of the students include a quiz, work in drillbooks, and work in the Basic Skill Levels curriculum--the heart of the program. Each of the…

The central question addressed by this book is, "How can middle and secondary school teachers overcome seemingly impossible circumstances in the classroom and elicit students' attention, effort, and cooperation?" The first five chapters focus on teachers' responsibility for student's classroom behavior, and ways for teachers to manage…

Faced with declining enrollments and decreasing resources, institutions of higher education need to consider new ways to conceptualize their purposes and the administrative processes relevant to those purposes. Asserting that the organizational structure of the institution and the learners, educators, and instructional methods interacting in that…

The desirability of early foreign language (FL) pronunciation is discussed from organizational, psychological and social points of view. Gaining early mastery of the FL sound inventory (starting with the "dramatic items") allows beginning students to quickly enjoy significant initial successes of a very personal nature which also enable the…

This paper describes a program implemented to improve student writing skills. Research data included teachers' observations and evaluations, student surveys, and student writing samples. Subjects were students in grades 1, 3, and 4 in 5 Illinois schools showing a need for writing improvement. Objectives were to increase writing abilities with…

This action research project evaluated a program for decreasing the gap in achievement levels among primary and secondary level students in the targeted schools. The subjects, from various cultural and socioeconomic backgrounds ranging from lower to upper-middle class, were students in Chicago city and suburban public and Catholic schools. The…

This action research project implemented and evaluated a program to motivate students to learn through multiple intelligences, cooperative learning, and positive discipline. The targeted population consisted of students in kindergarten, fourth grade, and sixth grade at two grade school and one middle school sites. Evidence of lack of motivation…

A middle school teacher presents three case studies of seventh-grade students who began the school year poorly but then decided to change. All three students had challenging home situations but, after becoming motivated to succeed, showed dramatic and rapid improvement. Such motivational changes are seen as stemming ultimately from reasons…

Study investigated teacher preferences for certain modes of helping students (enactive attainment, vicarious experience, verbal persuasion, and anxiety reduction). Preservice and inservice teachers read six scenarios of students with learning difficulties and ranked helping responses. Overall, they preferred verbal persuasion; they tended to…

This handbook serves a four-fold purpose: (1) it functions as a reference guide for counselors using the Otis Spunkmeyer Student Motivational Program (SMP); (2) individuals in other corporations who are interested in sponsoring their own Student Motivational Program (SMP) may use it to train counselors; (3) it serves as a program overview for…

Statistics clearly demonstrate the need to assist students who may drop out of school or who may graduate with inadequate academic, social, and emotional skills. This paper describes efforts at one elementary school to address some of the needs of at-risk students. The program revolves around a structured martial arts class designed to develop…