No description available.

This study examined the relationship between oral language proficiency and reading achievement, between birth order and reading achievement, between parent income and reading achievement, between sex and reading achievement, between parent type and reading achievement of third grade students in the Atlanta Public School System of Atlanta, Georgia. Test instruments used were the California Achievement Test and the Paradigmatic-Syntagmatic Language Inventory Scale Biographical data was obtained from school records. The data analysis techniques utilized was the Pearson Correlation Coefficient. The findings showed significant correlation between birth order and reading achievement, between oral language proficiency and reading achievements. The correlation between parent income and reading achievement, between parent type and reading achievement had a positive relationship. There was a low negative relationship between sex and reading achievement.

Purpose This study was designed to identify the expressed attitudes of middle school teachers toward mainstreaming handicapped children into the regular classroom. Four null hypotheses were tested as a result of this study. These hypotheses were based on the variables of academic costs and socio-emotional costs of segregation, sex, age range and years of experience as a teacher. These variables were used to determine if there were factors which influence middle school teachers' attitudes toward mainstreaming the handicapped. Method A descriptive survey method was used in this study. The data were collected from the Mainstreaming Questionnaire, developed by Dr. Liora Schmelkin, Assistant Professor, Department of Counseling, Psychology and Research in Education at Hofstra University, Hempstead, New York. A total of forty-five subjects responded. The data were analyzed and the t test was used to determine if the differences in the teachers' scores were statistically significant. The statistical significance was measured at the .05 level. Findings The findings of this study indicated that there was a significant difference in the expressed attitudes of middle school teachers toward mainstreaming handicapped children based on academic costs and socio-emotional costs of segregation. Teachers were positive toward academic costs and negative toward socio-emotional costs. The findings also indicated that there was no significant difference at the .05 level in the expressed attitudes of middle school teachers toward mainstreaming handicapped children based on the sex, age range and years of experience of the teachers. Three of the null hypotheses delineated and tested in this study were accepted. Conclusions The findings of this study gave bases for the following conclusions: 1. Middle school teachers' attitudes are positive toward academic costs and negative toward socio-emotional costs of segregation in mainstreaming handicapped youngsters. 2. The sex of a middle school teacher does not impact upon one's attitude toward the mainstreaming of handicapped youngsters into regular classes. 3. The age range of middle school teachers does not affect one's attitude toward the main- streaming of handicapped youngsters into regular classes. 4. The years of experience as a teacher does not affect one's attitude toward the main- streaming of handicapped youngsters into regular classes. Implications The findings and conclusions implied that certain factors impact upon one's attitude in determining positiveness or negativeness toward mainstreaming handicapped children into regular classes. The findings and conclusions also implied that sex, age range and years of experience as a teacher does not affect one's attitude. Recommendations The findings, conclusions and implications gave bases for the following recommendations: 1. Studies which assess teacher attitudes toward mainstreaming should be conducted at the middle school level. 2. This study should be replicated using a larger sample and additional variables such as grade level of teacher, race, etc. 3. The findings of this study should be disseminated to school systems, research journals and parties involved in mainstreaming handicapped children into regular classes. 4. Specific inservice training should be pro- vided to middle school teachers dealing with variables that would help to increase positiveness toward socio-emotional costs of segregation of mainstreaming handicapped children.

This study explored the training and professional practice of school psychologists in Sweden. A survey of Swedish school psychologists was conducted with data gathered by means of a questionnaire, the Swedish School Psychology Questionnaire (SSPQ). Data analyses focused on the demographic characteristics, training, and professional practices of Swedish school psychologists. An analysis of the differences between training and professional practice, and a discussion of professionalization and professional attitudes of Swedish school psychologists, were also included. Survey findings indicated that there was no special training for school psychologists, and that the majority of school psychologists had the equivalent of a master's level degree in psychology. Rankings of the importance of various role functions during training and professional practice were also compiled. With few exceptions, t test analyses indicated significant differences in the relative importance of these role functions during training and practice. An analysis of the correlations between school psychologists' rankings of the more global role functions of assessment, treatment, consultation, organizational development, and research during their respective training, professional practice, ideal job, and perceived level of competence, reveal weak relationships between these four conditions, with the lowest correlation being between training and current job. Attitudes of professional autonomy, as well as findings on training, practice, and professional memberships and journal subscriptions suggest that Swedish school psychologists meet the criteria of a professional. Analysis of one year and five year career plans indicated that although most school respondents see themselves working as a school psychologist in the short term, only 45% anticipated working as a school psychologist in five years, with the majority of those leaving the field indicating that they intend to seek employment as a psychologist in a non-school setting. The results were discussed in relation to studies of school psychologists in other countries, particularly the United States. Limitations of the present study were discussed, as were topics for future research.

This research provides a complex evaluation of a Market-Driven Implementation course developed by a large multinational corporation in support of a transformational change effort. Research questions included: (1) How did an educational unit of a large organization support the implementation of transformation? (2) What antecedents were considered when developing the transformational change program? (3) How did the change-related outcomes achieved compare to the goals and objectives of the course developers? (4) How did the educational unit serve as a change agent in the implementation of the transformation process? (5) How effective was the educational process itself? (6) How effective was the educational program in achieving participant adoption of the innovation? The research method included analysis of data gathered from previous Market-Driven Implementation course evaluations, course documents, participant products and tests, and structured interviews with people who played key roles in the development and implementation of the course. Findings indicate that this course was an appropriate "kickoff" for a long-term process leading to transformation. A comparison of original expectations with the actual outcomes showed achievement of two out of three major objectives. However, action was not achieved to the full extent hoped for by developers. But perhaps if market-driven is a change and change is a journey, then this course should not be held solely accountable for achieving full adoption of the market-driven concepts and goals. Instead, this course could perhaps be better seen as one effective step in an ongoing process, the final outcome of which will depend on follow-up activities that take place in the coming years.

The purpose of this study was to empirically investigate the transition process of a K-8 school vs. a 7-8 school as it relates to 7th grade females' attitudes, self-esteem and grades in the area of mathematics. The experimental hypotheses were designed to answer the following questions: (1) What are the transitional effects on female students' self-esteem? (2) Is there any difference in math attitudes between K-8 female students and middle school (7-8) female students regarding the importance of math for their future? (3) What are the transition effects on female students' math grades? The research design included the fall population of female 7th grade students from one 7-8 middle school (School A) and two K-8 schools (B-1 and B-2). A questionnaire composed of self-esteem measures and a math attitudes survey were administered five weeks after the start of the 1989-90 school year, and again, three weeks prior to the end of the 1989-90 semester. The findings of this study indicated that there are no transitional group differences relating to self-esteem. Transition effects, as reported by Occasion 1 and 2 data, yielded no visible effects of self-esteem by the transition, with Group A and Groups B-1 and B-2 reporting similar effects. For math attitudes, pre-transition effects were significant but the group differences were not. However, when looking at the K-8 separately it was noted that math attitudes had decreased significantly from pre-transition to post-transition whereas there were non-significant differences noted for middle school students on all four variables. It was noted that pre-transition math grades were related to post-transition math grades, however, the group effect (K-8 vs. middle school) evidenced no statistical differences on transitional effects as they relate to math grades. The results of this research concludes that there is no difference in 7th grade females regarding self-esteem, math attitudes and grades regardless of what type of school structure--K-8 or middle school.

The purpose of this study was to examine the effects of the Academic Study Skills Program (ASSP) on 7th grade students' Self-Concept, Academic Aspiration, Academic Anxiety, and Grade Point Averages. The differences on Self-Concept, Academic Aspiration, Academic Anxiety, and Grade Point Averages were compared with students who received the ASSP with students that did not receive the ASSP. Gender comparisons on Self-Concept, Academic Aspiration, Academic Anxiety, and Grade Point Averages were also examined between the students who received the ASSP. The ASSP in this study consists of six components: Organizational Skills, Test Taking Skills, Listening Skills, Time Management Skills, Note Taking Skills, and Following Directions. Each of these skills were taught on a daily basis for a nine week period to one group of students. A second group of students did not receive instruction in the six components of the program as a structured class. The sample consisted of 79 7th grade students. Thirty-two students received the ASSP program. Forty-seven students did not receive any special treatment. Both groups of students were given a pre-test and a post-test. The Academic and Social Environment Scale (ASES) was administered to both groups again nine weeks later. Grade Point Averages for Languages Arts, Math, and Science were computed for each student at the beginning of this nine-week period and at the end of the same nine-week period. The findings of the data analyses did not indicate significant differences between the two groups in the variables examined. However, there were some differences noted between males and females within the ASSP group in the variables of Academic Aspiration and Academic Anxiety. Although the findings of this study did not show the ASSP treatment as having a significant impact on the students in this study, there is enough evidence to suggest that an ASSP can be beneficial to students. Further studies of this nature should be pursued.

The purpose of this study was to examine the relationship between high school interscholastic athletic team participation and self-esteem when considering three indexes of academic achievement. A self-report student survey was designed to elicit demographic and academic achievement information, including gender, ethnicity, grade point average, number of missed school days, and number of behavioral referrals during the last school year. Additionally, the Rosenberg (1965) Self-Esteem Scale and the Savin-Williams and Demo (1983) Self-Esteem Inventory were incorporated to measure levels of self-esteem. The sample included 477 seniors from two comprehensive high schools in southwest Arizona, evenly split across gender and athletic status (participant and non-participant). Analyses of the data indicated that both the Rosenberg and Savin-Williams self-esteem measures yielded similar results in that males scored significantly higher than females on the self-esteem measures, and that students participating in high school interscholastic athletics scored significantly higher than did non-participating students. In examining the data when considering the indexes of academic achievement, females, on average, have higher GPA's than males, and high school athletes have significantly higher GPA's than their non-participating peers. Results also reported that males miss fewer school days than females, and athletic participants miss significantly fewer school days than non-participants. Additionally, on average, males receive more behavioral referrals than females, and again, athletic participants scored significantly better than non-participants as they also receive fewer behavioral referrals. In knowing that self-esteem differences exist, additional analyses focused upon the indexes of academic achievement while controlling for these known self-esteem differences. Results indicated that when factoring out the self-esteem differences the same results were maintained. Students participating in high school athletics have higher self-esteem scores, maintain higher grade point average, miss fewer school days, and receive fewer behavioral referrals.

The primary purposes of this study were to (1) verify the criteria for selection of variables that are measures of research activity; (2) replicate for 1987 the development of a composite measure of research activity index (RAI) for the top 100 research universities in the United States; (3) cluster the top 100 research universities according to the Carnegie Foundation's classifications and rank each university by its respective RAI within the cluster; (4) evaluate the strengths and weaknesses of the RAI and compare the results to those of previous studies; (5) pilot the development of a component Fields of Science and Engineering Research Activity Index (FSERAI) for the top 100 research universities in two specific fields of science (physical and social sciences) and rank the universities according to their respective component FSERAIs; and (6) examine a productivity quotient for each of the top 100 research universities. A review of the literature provided the eleven variables used in the development of the composite RAI. The statistical instrument used to develop the Research Activity Index Score (RAIS) was a subroutine of factor analysis known as principal components analysis. The RAI scores were produced for each institution and ranked in descending order. Ultimately, two comparisons were made. First, the RAIs for the year 1987 were compared with previous RAIs for the years 1980 and 1985. Second, the RAIs for the years 1980 and 1985 were recalculated exclusive of the personnel variables unavailable for the year 1987. Institutions were then clustered according to Carnegie Foundation classifications and were ranked by their respective RAIs within each category. The same basic design, used to produce the composite RAI, was used to produce the composite FSERAI. Of the seventeen variables initially gathered, eight were used in the derivation of the component FSERAI. Ultimately, 48 institutions were ranked in the physical sciences and 67 were ranked in the social sciences. Lastly, a relative productivity index for each of the top 100 research universities was produced.

The purpose of this inquiry was to generate a conceptual framework, rooted in philosophy and social theory, suitable for developing and evaluating educational programs for youths at-risk. Logically, practice in any field should follow research and research should be guided by theory. Numerous researchers in the at-risk field had noted an absence of theory-based research into the effectiveness of programs or interventions. A review of the literature revealed limited work along the lines of theory construction in this field. An analysis of John Dewey's conception of qualitative experience was undertaken. Qualitative experience was seen as a potentially powerful, largely overlooked arena for improving the educational opportunities of at-risk youths in theoretically predominant schools. In spite of its centrality in his philosophy, "...neither Dewey nor his followers made appropriate use of it in shaping early progressive or subsequent education" (Villemain, 1959, p. 21). Experimentalist foundations including ideas of Charles S. Peirce were explored. The contributions of several philosophers, especially Francis Villemain, were examined for their bearing upon understanding the qualitative aspects of experience. T. Frank Saunders' model for structured inquiry was selected as a unifying instrument for relating theoretical and qualitative affairs in a program development framework. A three dimensional, parallel pairs model was suggested for program evaluations. The resulting models permit exhaustive elaboration of at-risk categories, definitions, and meanings for program development purposes as well as the most comprehensive evaluation of programs possible. These models may be used by educators as guides for developing and evaluating interventions for youths at-risk. The ideas of experimentalist philosophers examined herein on the qualitative aspects of experience may provide a theoretical field for further inquiry in the at-risk arena.