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Although the idea of online education is not new, the development of massive open online courses (MOOCs) brought the idea of using 100% online courses in higher education to the forefront of educational debate. As more universities offer 100% online programs, concerns about student retention and academic outcomes continue to linger. In addition to these concerns in general, there are questions regarding the increasingly large class sizes and the effectiveness of different ways of minimizing the impact of this size on both instructors and students. Academic coaching provides a potential way of addressing both concerns. In this model, trained coaches assist instructors with course related matters such as grading assignments, overseeing and grading discussion boards, and grading and providing feedback on written assignments. However, there are concerns regarding the effectiveness of the model on student academic outcomes and student satisfaction. The current study examined differences in student satisfaction and the role of Need for Cognition (NfC) in student outcomes. Results indicate that students with higher levels of NfC are more satisfied with professors, courses, and programs overall both when coaches are used and when they are not. [For the complete proceedings, see ED625798.]

The Literacy Design Collaborative (LDC) was created to support teachers in implementing college and career readiness standards. Teachers work collaboratively with coaches to further develop their expertise and design standards-driven, literacy-rich writing assignments within their existing curriculum across all content areas. Findings from multiple sources reveal positive results for the LDC intervention. Participants across all groups reported positive attitudes toward LDC and perceived a positive impact on student outcomes. Additionally, analysis of student outcomes confirmed participants' positive views. We found LDC had statistically significant effects on Cohort 2 middle school students' English language arts (ELA) performance, with an effect size of .15 for students receiving LDC instruction in all three core content areas: ELA, science, and social studies/history.

On July 28, 2006, a panel of experts briefed members of the U.S. Commission on Civil Rights on the putative benefits of racial and ethnic diversity in elementary and secondary education. Four experts presented written statements to the Commissioners that assessed the social science literature on this issue. They also addressed whether or not racial and ethnic diversity in public schools should be mandated by the state and whether the net benefits of state-mandated diversity are different from the benefits that this diversity may yield when achieved through purely voluntary behavior. The experts also presented a number of studies to the Commission assessing the putative educational and social benefits of racial and ethnic diversity in elementary and secondary education. This volume presents the following papers: (1) The Outcomes of School Desegregation in Public Schools (David J. Armor); (2) Testimony Prepared for the U.S. Commission on Civil Rights Regarding the Educational Benefits of Diversity in Elementary and Secondary Education (Arthur L. Coleman); (3) The Benefits of Racial/Ethnic Diversity in Elementary and Secondary Education (Michal Kurlaender); and (4) Demographic Perspectives on Diversity, Racial Isolation, and the Seattle School Board's Plan to "Cure" Residential "Segregation" (Stephan Thernstrom). A bibliography is included. (Individual papers contain figures, tables, exhibits, footnotes, appendices, and references.)

The following are among the 47 papers included: "Academic Performance and Retention of College of Agriculture Students" (Garton, Dyer, King); "Perceptions of Recent Graduates and Employers about Undergraduate Programs in the College of Agriculture and Natural Resources at Michigan State University" (Heyboer, Suvedi); "Survey of Early Leavers" (Fanno, Cole); "Selecting a Major in Agriculture" (Wildman, Torres); "An Assessment of Agricultural Literacy in K-8 Schools" (Igo, Leising, Frick); "Comparison of Elementary Teachers' Use of Agriculture in Their Teaching" (Wilhelm, Terry, Weeks); "Developing a Process for an Elementary and Middle School Agriculturally Based Curriculum" (Hikawa, Trexler); "Measuring the Ethical Cognition Effect of a Videotape Livestock Show Ethics Education Program" (Goodwin, Briers, Murphy); "Status of Community Service Learning in 4-H Programs" (Wyble, Kotrlik); "Teams in Agricultural Education" (Cummins, Townsend); "Using Multivariate Analysis Techniques to Identify Factors Influencing FFA (Future Farmers of America) Membership in High School Agricultural Education Programs" (Gliem, Gliem); "Economic Impact of Supervised Agricultural Experience Programs in Georgia" (West, Iverson); "Supervised Agricultural Experience" (Camp, Fallon, Clarke); "Changes in Missouri SAE (Supervised Agricultural Experience) Programs" (Graham, Birkenholz); "Integrating Science in Agricultural Education" (Balschweid, Thompson); "Developing a Web-Based System to Address Accountability and Reporting Needs for Cooperative Extension" (Radhakrishna, Pinion);"Confirming Perception" (Lippert, Radhakrishna, Plank); "Perceptions of the Louisiana Legislature toward the Louisiana Cooperative Extension Service" (Hodson, Kotrlik); "Assessing Farmers' Internships and Needs for Specialty Corn and Soybean Information in the Lower Illinois River Basin" (Swanson, Samy, Sofranko, Harper, Frerichs); "Perceptions of Stakeholders toward Linkages and Curriculum in Urban Agricultural Education Programs" (Trede, Russell); "Developing an Urban Agricultural Education Program" (Russell, Trede); Using the AgEd Network as an Instructional Tool to Integrate Technology in the Classroom" (Thompson; Nelson); "Higher-Order Thinking Skills versus Lower-Order Thinking Skills" (Edwards, Briers); "Career Choices and Factors Influencing Career Change among Agricultural Education Graduates" (Garton, Cartmell); and "Cognitive Abilities of Preservice Teachers" (Torres). Also included are critiques of each paper and 11 poster abstracts. (MN)

An evaluation was conducted of a comprehensive plan to restructure a primary school in Candler County, Georgia, into a non-graded, multi-age, continuous progress learning center. The project entailed restructuring the classroom, implementing a shared decision-making structure, developing a learning curriculum, and using portfolio assessment to monitor student progress. The project was evaluated on three objectives: academic success, positive self-esteem and socialization, and the project's shared decision-making structure. These objectives were evaluated according to a case-study design, with the inclusion of quantitative and qualitative techniques. Academic success was examined through the following instruments: the Iowa Test of Basic Skills, portfolio writing, an informal reading inventory, and teacher ranking. Parent questionnaires, teacher questionnaires, and teacher interviews were used to evaluate positive self-esteem and socialization. Teacher interviews, teacher workshops, teacher questionnaires, and parent questionnaires were used to examine the shared decision-making structure. The evaluation found that all three objectives were being met by the project. Caveats included the need for administrative support, teacher understanding and motivation, cooperation from other schools and the central office staff, and community support. (VL)

Past research is held to indicate a consistent relationship between participation in interscholastic athletics and educational orientations. This research is said to focus specifically on the "athletic success". Athletic success should be a stronger facilitator of the mobility attitudes of black youth, it is argued, because sports is fast becoming a viable avenue of mobility for blacks in the U.S. The data for this study come from a statewide probability sample of Louisiana high school seniors, collected in 1970. Variables incorporated in the analysis include socioeconomic status, scholastic performance, significant-other influence, athletic success, and educational aspirations. The results of a partial correlation and regression analysis are said to indicate that athletic success is significantly related to the educational aspirations for only the black respondents. This finding, along with others, is considered to lead to the conclusion that the student-athlete role provides behaviors that lead to higher-status educational orientations primarily for black youth; white youths' aspirations appear to develop more so in terms of relationships posited in current models of status attainment. Some suggestions are presented which modify achievement models for black athletes, and several alternative research strategies are outlined. (Author/JM)

Metaphors and metaphor usage infuse everyday classroom life, and student learning becomes affected and structured by the metaphoric constructs that teachers wittingly or unwittingly employ. This study is an initial inquiry into the nature of teacher use of metaphors in the classroom. The study attempts to identify some specific teaching/learning metaphors that teachers and students use in their daily interactions with each other in regular classroom situations. The study also attempts to examine how and the extent to which these discernible, interactive teaching/learning metaphors might positively or negatively affect the perceived degree of environmental robustness in these classrooms and to determine how they affect the quality of teacher performance in the classrooms. This study utilized observational data collected over a 5-month period. The classroom-based performance of beginning and experienced teachers in 100 classrooms was assessed using the System for Teaching and Learning Assessment and Review (STAR). The findings suggest that teacher use of specific teaching/learning metaphors is tied to various levels of percentage scores on key STAR indicators measuring high student engagement in learning and that these teaching/learning metaphors are also correlated with resultant levels of classroom robustness. Appendixes include: characteristics of high and low robustness classes, selected key STAR indicators, examples of clustering of supportive field data for metaphors identified, and a bar graph of the teaching/learning empowerment continuum. (IAH)