Throughout Arizona and the Southwest, the odds are against high achievement in schools with a mostly Latino, mostly poor student enrollment. Some schools, however, "beat the odds" and achieve consistently high results or show steady gains. Why do these schools succeed where others fail? Using the methodology of business guru Jim Collins…

In the "PIRLS (Progress in International Reading Literacy Study) 2006 Encyclopedia," each participating country, 39 in total, describes its education system and the reading curriculum as it is intended to be taught, and outlines the polices and practices that guide reading instruction and teacher education. This in-depth, qualitative…

This book explores the educational needs of Muslim children. Based on 6 years of research into the educational needs of Muslim children, the discussion highlights the perceptions of both Muslim and non-Muslim teachers. Beginning with an historical overview of Muslim communities in Britain, Chapter 1 addresses issues concerning statistics and…

The role of participating stakeholders was considered as part of an 18-month research project evaluating the influences of class size (student-teacher ratio) and class mix (mixing disabilities) on special education students' educational outcomes. Stakeholders (N=81) participating in the project represented superintendents, principals, directors of…

Sixteen papers are presented. Topics covered include language teaching, discourse analysis, code switching, phonetics, language and cultural identity, and descriptive and comparative studies. All presenters were from the Asia-Pacific area of the world. Papers include: "The Baba Malay Lexicon: Hokkien Loanwords in Baba Malay" (Anne…

This book describes a British project which used cooperative group work as a curriculum approach to help reduce children's social difficulties and encourage cooperation and friendship across such barriers as race, sex, or disability. The book consists of eight chapters. Chapter 1 provides an overview of research findings and theory related to peer…

Children who are "at risk" are differentiated by their difficulty meeting standards for school success. This paper describes a model for a field-based component of an elementary education children's literature course involving in-school tutoring of at risk children. The program provided preservice teachers the opportunity to: (1) develop…

Middle school students (N=712) were surveyed about their achievement goals and cognitive processing strategies. Results suggest that academically at-risk students use deep strategies less and are less learning focused than not at-risk and special education students. Special education and at-risk students tended to be more ability-focused than not…

A study/research partnership between university teacher educators and teachers was formed when teachers at the third-, fourth- and fifth-grade levels decided to implement an innovation called Literature Response Groups in their classrooms. The setting was an urban elementary school in northern California. Participants included six elementary…

This set of health education materials for grade 5 includes a teacher's manual, student workbook, activity posters, suggestions for a special event, and a booklet of letters for parents. The materials cover recommended health education content, including personal health, hygiene, family life, substance abuse prevention, injury prevention and…

The development of oral language and literacy skills and the development of portfolio management strategies to assess these skills is reported. Data are from a longitudinal study involving sixth and seventh grade students in an English as a Second Language (ESL) urban middle school classroom. Portfolios were originally introduced to 13 sixth…

This document contains a series of learning materials for 3rd and 4th graders and their families. The materials are designed to augment classroom learning. Included are worksheets, games, and other skill building activities for writing, reading, math, citizenship, and science. These activities are meant to help children prepare for proficiency…

Extending over a 14-week period, this study examined the effects of a program designed to enhance the self-esteem of at-risk students by developing an internal locus of control in the students. The program consisted of six major components: (1) a specified vocabulary and format; (2) goal identification and description by students; (3) student…

This report provides an end-of-year summative evaluation of the STEPS (Striving Toward Excellence in the Performance of Students) program, which was first implemented in elementary schools in 1983-84. The program, which is based on research on effective schools, focuses on school improvement efforts in six areas: (1) aligning instruction with…

This booklet is a practical guide to the use of games, role play, and simulation in the classroom to encourage active learning and increase opportunities for experience and reflection. Basic principles for use of these techniques are presented and include determining the game objective, planning for progressive learning processes, planning a…