The use of literature discussion groups is enjoying increasing popularity in many language arts classrooms. Most research investigating this instructional practice has focused on the intellectual abilities necessary for students to conduct their own literature discussions (i.e., supporting opinions, asking questions). What has been missing in such research is how social and cultural factors might also influence how students engage in discussions. The purpose of the present study was to investigate what occurs when students conduct peer-led literature discussions and how the particular factor of social status influences the discourse and participation patterns in such discussion groups. Two literature discussion groups in a fifth-grade classroom were videotaped as they participated in their discussions. One group contained all female members and one was a mixed-gender group. Each group discussed their book for six days. All members of the class completed a sociometric measure to obtain student-perceived status of classmates. Constant-comparison and content analyses were used to analyze the descriptive data. The two groups differed in the purposes and the frames of reference they used to guide their discussions. The all-girl group focused on text-related purposes and utilized personal connections to discuss the book. The mixed-gender group's discussion was dominated by social talk and predominately used text-bound references to discuss their book. Social status influenced the participation patterns differently for the two groups and appeared to be related to the distribution of status within the group. The findings suggest that social factors such as gender and status influence how students negotiate participation and discourse patterns when leading themselves in literature discussions. The all-girl group's use of personal connections when discussing the book presents a possible alternative conception of what has traditionally been viewed as "girl-talk." The results also suggest that motivational (i.e., how much the group likes their book) and text (i.e., genre) factors are potentially influential factors in determining how students conduct discussions of literature.

This study investigated principals of low-SES urban Hispanic elementary schools to determine whether they have a sense of, utilize, or differ in their utilization of family and community resources in parent involvement programs. This study also explored the perceptions of parents in relation to the nature of parent involvement programs and the roles of the principals in developing those programs. Was there a "fit" between what the principals say is happening and what in fact is happening? This study also explored the concepts of family and community contributions to parent involvement programs to suggest ways to improve practice. The findings indicate that when elementary school principals understand and value family and community resources parents become more open to involvement in the schooling of their children. Further, when mechanisms are in place for parents to share these resources or knowledge in the classrooms, this involvement becomes an empowering experience which facilitates parent involvement on more meaningful levels. Parents who are empowered through the actions of principals and through their own actions become self-empowered to participate in school decision making processes. They then appropriate leadership roles wherein they become responsible and accountable for the education of their children. They have become empowered to be true participants and take ownership in the education of their children.

The potential advantages of year-round schooling include expanded enrichment, improved remediation, higher achievement, greater community satisfaction, increased pay to teachers and, depending upon the plan, reduced class size. Why then aren't all schools implementing such schedules? What influences the decision? Findings from this case study suggest that decision-making is influenced by the structure of the calendar choice, which includes the culture and climate of the setting, values, and individual circumstances. The data collected in this case study support the following conclusions: (1) People who selected the optional modified calendar (with 176 school days, two intersessions, and a seven-week summer vacation) were more likely to agree that: (a) additional time is needed for education, (b) the change in the calendar may reduce dropout rates and delinquency, (c) review time is reduced by the modified calendar, (d) the modified calendar reduces burnout in students and teachers, (e) seven weeks is sufficient for summer vacation, and (f) the optional/modified calendar is an improvement which allows study inside during the southwest's hot weather and play outside during the more comfortable weather. (2) Marked contrasts existed between values and environmental circumstances for parents who chose traditional and those who chose optional calendar plans. It appeared that optional calendar proponents emphasized value issues. (3) Child custody issues did not surface as a dominant factor in this case study of calendar choice. (4) Child care needs, while considered important, appeared to be a lower order concern, possibly due to the structure of choice presented in this case study (with a free Parks and Recreation Program offered and low-cost day care made available at the school site).

This study explored two areas: (1) teacher implementation of aesthetic and critical activities in the classroom; and (2) the nature of fourth and fifth grade students' responses during such activities. A series of lessons were designed and taught to fourth and fifth grade students. The study had two goals: (1) to solicit responses from the students that would illustrate their cognitive levels and their stages of understanding art; and (2) to provide a venue by which the researcher would assess her ability to design and facilitate philosophical and interpretive activities. Data from the study indicates that these students recognize expressive qualities of portraits, understand basic symbolism, apply the concept of figurative expression to their own abstract representations, and give clearly stated reasons for their aesthetic beliefs. Reflections on the teacher's participation in the study indicate need for fine tuning of questioning and facilitating strategies, and a greater historical knowledge of art and aesthetic theories.

No description available.

<p> Programs and reforms have come and gone in the educational arena with little impact on student performance. The problem at the school of study was the students' perception of their sense of belonging and the sense of the school as a community and the students' academic performance did not show adequate growth. The study took place in a mid-western suburban elementary school serving 440 students kindergarten through fifth grade. </p><p> The significance of the study was to examine the impact of a Goal-Setting Worksheet, along with regular teacher-student conferences, as a strategy to improve the overall school climate and academic achievement as measured by climate survey results, standardized test scores, attendance rates, and office referrals. </p><p> The process allowed teachers and students in 3rd, 4th, and 5th grade the opportunity to work together to complete the Goal-Setting Worksheet by setting goals, establishing a plan of action, and providing feedback through conferences throughout the goal-setting period. Students assessed their progress and worked with the teachers to determine if the student needed to revisit their goal or establish a new goal. The purpose of this process was to increase the students' perception of their sense of belonging and academic achievement. </p><p> To determine if there was a change in the students' perception of school climate, students took the Caring School Community climate spring survey and the pre and post School Climate survey. Academic performance was measured by comparing scores on the Missouri Assessment Program Communication Arts and Math test and the Gates-MacGinitie Reading Test. Survey results and academic scores were compared over a four year period. </p><p> The results were that the implementation of the goal-setting worksheet and teacher-student conferences to school climate did not yield the desired change at the school of study in the areas of overall school climate or academic achievement. However, the understanding of the value of the two has influenced the staff to continue the desire, process, and pursuit to improve the students' perception of the school climate and increase academic performance. Because of the limited timeframe of the study, further investigation of this process is recommended.</p>

<p>The study set out to investigate the relationship between parental literacy levels and the literacy abilities of their children who were Grade 3 learners at a primary school in an impoverished area. The study initially hypothesized that there is a correlation beteen the literacy level of parents and the literacy abilities of their children. More specifically, it assumed that the higher the lieracy leevls of the parents, the stronger the literacy abilities of their Grade 3 child would be.</p>

This thesis comprises two parts. In the first part an overview is given of the Standard Model, Supersymmetry and R-hadrons. R-hadrons are predicted within the framework of the Split-SUSY theory, in which the gluino can have a sufficiently long lifetime to hadronise into so-called R-hadrons. These will then propagate through the ATLAS detector as (meta)stable particles. The R-hadrons, which interact strongly, have the property of changing electric charge in interactions as they move through matter. In this thesis a strategy to search for R-hadrons with the ATLAS detcector is developed. The second part describes the ATLAS detector and the developement of the digitizer system of the ATLAS hadronic calorimeter. The digitizer system is the digitial readout system, in which data is read out from the detector to data buffers via an optical link. In the LHC environment, the operation of radiation-hard circuitry is essential. Therefore a quality control program was used to control that the design conforms to the requirements of radiation tolerance. An important part of the work was to test the devices to study their functionality and properties. This work is described in this thesis.

<p> Student retention has been consequential to students through an assortment of disparaging labels derived from the retention process. It served to marginalize the academic status of those students considered for retention through such practices as ability tracking, inferior labeling, and other discriminatory measures, as they moved through their respective academic journeys. And while both research current to the time of this writing and past research continued to be overwhelming in its stance that such policies and procedures were filled with negative unintended consequences, there was still little or no effort to abate such practices (Allensworth, 2004). This research explored whether student retention policies and procedures at the elementary level were addressed and exercised with consistency, practiced with fidelity, and fully understood by all who participated in the retention decision-making process. Furthermore, were those who are tasked with the decision to retain, doing so in a manner that provided each student considered for retention a process of fairness and equity. The researcher examined the impact of absence of systematic retention procedures through the lens of a mixedmethods research study of a large Midwest metropolitan school district. This study utilized two instruments to acquire data for the proposed research questions. The <i> Teacher Retention Belief and Knowledge Questionnaire,</i> used by Witmer, Hoffman, and Nottis (2004), followed by interviews of selected elementary principals and district assistant superintendents. The findings from this research proved inconclusive with regard to responses to intervention strategies, resource availability for retained students, and the employment of then-current research literature and practices as part of the student retention decision-making protocol.</p>

<p> In this mixed-methods study, the researcher investigated teacher fidelity of implementation with cooperative learning structures, according to the Kagan Framework, related to students&rsquo; academic achievement and perceptions of cooperative learning. An analysis of the variations in teacher implementation of cooperative learning structures utilizing the Kagan Framework, based on the fidelity checklists, was completed during the study. In addition, the researcher examined the differences in mean achievement scores during baseline (i.e., traditional teaching practices) and intervention (i.e., cooperative learning structures) weeks, a correlation of relevant data points, and a discussion of teacher interviews, surveys, checklists, observations, and student surveys. To investigate teacher fidelity of implementation the researcher employed an A-B-A-B, single-case research design to examine the outcomes of the three Kagan structures (Flashcard Game, Quiz Quiz Trade, and Numbered Heads Together) on pupil performance measured by formative and summative assessments and students&rsquo; self-assessments of their word knowledge. Three teachers (i.e., Teacher A, B, and C) with various levels of experience in using cooperative learning structures and 48 students served as participants. The findings indicated high student achievement with Teacher B&rsquo;s students, while student achievement in Teacher A or C&rsquo;s classrooms were inconsistent. Teacher B&rsquo;s implementation (98.4%) of cooperative learning structures, according to the Kagan Framework, resulted in statistically significant student achievement during intervention weeks. Furthermore, the researcher noted relationships between student confidence levels and student achievement scores for Teacher B&rsquo;s students for all baseline and intervention weeks. Teacher A&rsquo;s and Teacher C&rsquo;s implementation of cooperative learning structures deviated frequently and resulted in inconsistent student achievement during intervention weeks. In addition, for students in Teacher A and C&rsquo;s classrooms, the relationships between student confidence levels and student achievement scores were inconsistent and students lacked confidence in their own knowledge and actual achievement. Qualitative data showed overall teachers perceived the cooperative learning structures as valuable instructional strategies that engaged and motivated students to learn. The researcher suggested school districts must ensure high teacher fidelity of implementation according to the defined components of strategies and programs to guarantee consistent academic achievement for students.</p>