This article presents an overview of online learning, particularly for elementary- and secondary-school students. Online learning has much to offer certain students under the right circumstances. However, questions remain about policies regarding online learning and the suitability of the approach for younger students. (Contains 6 online…

The effect of a listening-to-literature program on the attitudes toward reading of 1,712 middle school (grades 6 through 8) students was studied. Selected teachers read aloud to students four or five days a week for six months. An experimental group pretest/posttest design indicated a positive difference in student attitudes. (SLD)

Describes the Dublin model, a program which uses thematic units or individualized reading assignments to focus on popular adolescent literature and includes projects that demonstrate students' comprehension of text. Discusses the formulation, implementation, and assessment of this program. (RS)

Describes a service learning project where students identify a real political problem, research related issues, and propose a solution. Members of the U.S. Congress and county offices of education have created corresponding awards programs. Includes procedures for creating a local project. (MJP)

Discusses the origin, development, and current status of a history-geography-English integrated curriculum program for eighth-grade students. Summarizes the "pluses" and "minuses" of the approach. Describes classroom activities and student projects in the program. (CFR)

Reports on a content analysis of all pictures of music-related figures appearing in grades six, seven, and eight music textbooks published in 1988. Finds females underrepresented and stereotypes common. Calls for more research on equity in curriculum materials and gender-related issues in music education. (CFR)

Using ideas adopted from Project ARTIST (Astronomy-Related Teacher Inservice Training), a teacher develops a sixth-grade astronomy program which incorporates ancient folklore and sky stories from a variety of ethnic backgrounds. (ZWH)

Asserts that, although research on Lawrence Kohlberg's "just communities" has received much attention, descriptions of the application of this approach are limited. Describes how Kohlberg's theories are applied to sixth and seventh grade classrooms. Includes recommendations on the classroom environment, student journals, and report…

Provides 5 activities for levels K-2, 3-4, 5-6, 7-8, and for the family that incorporate data collection and interpretation in the decision-making process. Activities investigate taste preference, voter preference, meal preference at the school open house, three close presidential elections, and questions about the years and dates of presidential…

Describes four activities for grade levels K-3, 4-5, and 6-8 and for the family that explore statistical concepts using a manipulative familiar to students-SKITTLES candies. Concepts explored include frequency graphs, data collection and analysis, probability, measures of central tendency, averaging, and correlation coefficients. Includes…

Surveyed middle school principals to examine middle level programmatic characteristics, appropriateness, and current implementation. The study also examined teachers' perceptions of school climate. Program implementation, rather than principal's perceptions, affected school climate. Intramural programs affected school climate, influencing…

Presents four paintings and summarizes a discipline based art education approach to studying them. Each painting is followed by a brief text consisting of information about the subject and artist. The text also includes writing assignments, research questions, and related activities. The paintings include portraits by Goya and Joan Miro. (MJP)

Examines effects of an afterschool science program on minority female students' attitudes toward science, engineering, and mathematics. The program, which incorporated cooperative learning, lands-on activities, mentoring, and role models, positively influenced participants' attitudes to (and subsequent participation in) these subject areas.…

Using data from the National Education Longitudinal Study, this report examines eighth grade school variables that might predict college attendance for students whose parents have no college education (n = 2,521). The selected school variables are amenable to public policy and/or skilled leadership, and they include "school structure" (e.g.,…

Substantial research and theory suggests that smoking initiation is socially mediated, with both peers and parents playing important roles. To learn more about how parenting behaviors influence smoking initiation, students (n = 1002) from four middle schools were surveyed at the beginning of the sixth grade (T1), and the end of the sixth (T2) and…