Georgia's Quality Core Curriculum (QCC) originated in 1984 with a recommendation for review every 5 years. In 1996, teachers, administrators, parents, and business leaders throughout Georgia reviewed and analyzed the existing QCC in an effort to update the curriculum, reflect technological advances, and create a more effective base for teaching.…

This publication presents a broad array of data designed to illuminate the status of America's children and to assess trends in their well-being. By updating the assessment every year, this book provides ongoing benchmarks with which states can see how they have advanced or regressed since 1990. The book focuses on 10 indicators: percent…

This case study reports on collaborative activities among four fourth grade teachers and their students over a year and explores the effectiveness of distance learning for international team teaching. Two classes in Mexico City conducted school activities with two classes in College Station (Texas). Researchers examined: school activities that…

This exploratory study examined a field-based project in which preservice teacher candidates and faculty collaborated to implement a problem-centered, technology integrated curriculum for a multiage (4th, 5th, and 6th grade) intersession at Timber Lane Elementary School. Content included detective skills such as fingerprinting and handwriting…

This paper offers insights on how to facilitate student-student interaction in the science classroom. These insights derive from the education and the linguistics literature. Cooperative learning research offers a means of understanding what helps groups of students interact successfully. Systemic functional linguistics provides tools for…

Observed sixth-grade students and their ways of gathering information for a science report from Encarta 94, a CD-ROM encyclopedia. Developed recommendations for collaboration between the classroom teacher and the school library media specialist during the implementation of CD-ROM technology for information gathering, as well as ways to manage a…

Describes a middle school history unit focused on the African American experience. The unit is constructed around four general types of historical questions that can be applied to any history unit. These are informational, empathetic, methodological, and analytical/evaluative. Provides examples of each type of question. (MJP)

The paper describes a successful effort at collaboration among a college reading program, a neighborhood self-help agency, and a public school. The three-way partnership was formed to improve the literacy levels of 12 behaviorally disturbed children in the fifth and sixth grades. The project involves whole language reading instruction and…

Describes the first administration of the California Learning Assessment System (CLAS) to fifth-grade students. Discusses the history of CLAS, types of questions employed, content coverage, methods of scoring, and reporting on tests results. Presents sample questions, student responses, and commentary on student performance. (CFR)

Examines the current status of cultural diversity in middle school education theory, suggests some developmental characteristics of young adolescents of color that are often overlooked, and proposes some ways that middle school education could be modified to be more responsive to the ethnic and cultural diversity of early adolescents. (SM)

Incentive structures were observed in mainstream classes enrolling students labeled as low achieving, average achieving, and learning disabled (LD). Incentive structures were labeled academic engagement and behavioral management. Students with LD engaged in intermediate amounts of content-related process relative to other students. Teachers used…

Describes a middle school program that integrates history/social studies, language, and visual arts. Describes how the program links two different middle schools through electronic mail in their study of world cultures. Includes examples of student writing and descriptions of classroom activities. (CFR)

Ideas young students have about their government and the effects of instruction and development on the formation of these ideas were studied for 26 students interviewed 4 times (before and after U.S. history instruction in grades 5 and 8). Why students' conceptions showed more consistency than growth is discussed. (SLD)

Reports a case study that examined how one effective middle school teacher of primarily high-risk students created a classroom environment that enhanced learner outcomes. Analysis of data collected through participant observation and interviews indicated that the normative nature of this particular classroom was intimately entwined with academic…

Maintains the Holocaust is part of the national history curriculum for all 11-14 year olds in England and Wales. Examines ethical and pedagogical issues involved in teaching the subject, concern about promoting antisemitism, freedom of speech, and the right of parents to withdraw their children from this part of the curriculum. (CFR)