A need to provide more data about the impact of schools on children in terms of manipulable variables prompted an examination of the relationship between school organization and student aspirations for further education. A causal model is examined which would enable investigation of the mechanism by which school contexts could alter aspiration.…

The first part of this report presents background and procedures of the 1968 New Orleans conference on speech-communication and lists the recommendations formally adopted by the conference concerning research priorities, graduate instruction, and issues and responsibilities in speech-communication. The major section of the publication is devoted…

The purpose of this field study was to determine the effect of using achievement motivation simulations on the vocational development of high school students. Two hundred 10th grade students from four Washington, D. C. schools were randomly divided into a control and an experimental population. The control population remained in the regular…

This guide describes activities, methods, and materials which can be used in conducting a beginning-level social-science research project. Designed for secondary and college students as a laboratory component of a social studies or social science course, it provides ideas for firsthand experience in the methods used by social scientists for their…

Federal assistance for special educational programs makes necessary the regular study of evaluations of thousands of innovations in compensatory education, bilingual education, and reading programs. The results are reported to the President and to Congress. However, investigating organizations find only a few programs with adequate evidence and…

This document reports the tabulations of a national study sponsored by the Office of Child Development of the U.S. Department of Health, Education and Welfare to determine exactly how children are cared for, how often child care services are purchased, at what costs, for what reasons and with what accompanying problems or barriers. Of related…

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…

This is the final report of the National Academy of Education's Panel on the Evaluation of the National Assessment of Education (NAEP) Progress Trial State Assessment. In this report, the Panel considers philosophical, technical, and policy issues concerning the NAEP in the immediate future and in the long term. The high technical quality of the…

This paper focuses on the design of an assessment plan that can accurately measure the impact of using World Wide Web-based deliveries to increase performance. Key trends in technology and training are reviewed, and effective assessment of online training deliveries is examined. The Virtual Business Training Center (VBTC) is an integrated business…

This report describes the methods and procedures used for the Beginning Postsecondary Students Longitudinal Study: 1996-2001 (BPS:1996/2001). These students, who started their postsecondary education during the 1995-96 academic year, were first interviewed in 1996 as part of the National Postsecondary Student Aid Study (NPSAS:96). A follow-up…

Tinto's model of college persistence/withdrawal, developed for residential colleges, is tested at a nonresidential institution. Results indicated that the concepts of person-environment fit, social integration, and institutional commitment operated differently in the commuter institution. A reconceptualized model for explaining…

Discusses a number of ethical dilemmas encountered during different stages of qualitative research. Outlines problems specific to entering the field, being in the field, leaving the field, writing, and dissemination. Recounts an incident from ethnographic research that illustrates problems concerning conflicting roles and maintaining objectivity.…

Examines fundamental conceptions regarding the role and nature of evaluating and researching music education programs. Questions the common idea that evaluative criteria for programs should focus primarily on the students' level of musical skill. Argues that consideration should be given to personal growth and other issues. (MJP)

Examines preservice teachers' perceptions of music teaching, elementary students, musical content, and school contexts. Ninety preservice teachers responded to a series of experiences that included participating in a model lesson, observing an interview with a general music teacher, and discussing the components of educational experiences. (MJP)

Recommends confronting the problem of validity in intercultural research by adopting research approaches that focus on the problem (for example, ethnopsychoanalysis, intercultural psychology). Briefly reviews the current debate on intercultural-comparative research. Concludes with examples and a discussion of the recent developments in comparative…