Measures of self-concept and level of acculturation obtained from 44 male and 48 female Anglo American and 103 male and 116 female Mexican-American students from one rural and one urban school district showed no overall ethnic differences for: behavior, happiness-satisfaction, intellectual/school status, physical appearance, anxiety, popularity.…

Examined six aspects of vocabulary instruction given to fourth and sixth graders prior to reading in two basal reading series. Found that words targeted for instruction were already known; instruction in the two series differed markedly; much of the instruction was not sufficient to improve comprehension; and instruction was not necessarily suited…

Presents a unit of study on the Holocaust designed by a team of teachers for sixth-grade students. Includes student objectives, suggested learning activities, and methods of student evaluation. Provides a full-page description of a culminating activity. (CFR)

Investigates the validity and reliability of performance assessments using data from over 300 fifth and sixth graders. Results demonstrate the gap between the reality of measurement through performance assessments and the political rhetoric that would institute these assessments in a national examination system in the immediate future. (SLD)

The influence of school experiences on student self-esteem was explored in a longitudinal study of 322 sixth and seventh graders. School experiences do affect self-esteem, although the impact varied from year to year and discipline to discipline. Overall climate and teacher feedback influence academic and global self-esteem. (SLD)

A whole-class model providing for student diversity through remediation and enrichment in small groups was compared with a two-group model accommodating diversity through fixed within-class ability groups. Higher mathematics achievement was found for the whole-class model in a study of 1,736 fourth, fifth, and sixth graders. (SLD)

Analyzes risk factors for drug use among 6,760 sixth- and seventh-grade Cuban, other Hispanic, African-American, and white non-Hispanic males in Miami (Florida). The cumulative prevalence of risk factors is monotonically related to drug use, but ethnic and racial differences in risk factor profiles suggest cultural differences in predictive value.…

Observed 88 first and second graders and 76 fifth and sixth graders during playground interactions. A time-sampling procedure recorded gender, race, and group size of all interactive play in seven playground areas. Found that mixed-gender interactions were more likely than same-gender ones to include other races, and mixed-race interactions…

Examined the effectiveness of a 2-year, stage-based alcohol prevention intervention using nurse consultations and parent prevention materials among 6th graders in one neighborhood school and one bused magnet inner-city school. Students received either the experimental program or a minimal intervention. Student surveys and saliva testing indicated…

Early adolescents may lack the cognitive and metacognitive skills necessary for effective inquiry learning. In particular, they are likely to have a nonnormative mental model of multivariable causality in which effects of individual variables are neither additive nor consistent. Described here is a software-based intervention designed to…

This study examined the nature of the partnership between clinicians and parents of two struggling readers at a university reading clinic. Research questions sought to examine the roles of the clinicians and parents in the reading clinic and the ways, if any, their partnership facilitated reading improvement of the children involved. Data were…

The National Assessment Program--Civics and Citizenship assessment measures the civic knowledge and understanding and the citizenship participation skills and civic values of Year 6 and Year 10 students in schools across Australia. It reports on student achievement using proficiency levels on a common civics and citizenship assessment scale, and…

Efforts to address the problems of access and achievement for minorities and women in mathematics and science have been focused primarily at the secondary level. However, it has become increasingly apparent that intervention needs to begin earlier. This directory identifies and briefly characterizes intervention programs serving young minority…

A longitudinal study of various measures of creativity was conducted to determine the validity of a number of possible predictors of an arts orientation. Tests of creative thinking, creative personality, divergent thinking, intelligence, and school achievement were administered to above-average fifth-graders (N=23), who also drew pictures based on…

The Nevada Proficiency Examination Program was established by the Nevada State Legislature in 1977 to identify students who might require additional assistance to maintain normal academic progress through school and to serve as a minimum competency examination, insuring that each student who receives a high school diploma has met certain minimum…