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Background: National ranking from the triennial Programme of International Student Assessment (PISA) often serves as a barometer of national performance and human capital. Though excessive student- and school-level covariates (n > 700) may prove intractable for traditional least-squares estimate procedures, shrinkage methods may be more suitable for subset selection., Aims: With a focus on the United States, this paper proposes sparse regression for PISA 2012 to discover salient student- and school-level predictor variables for mathematical literacy achievement., Sample: The sparse regression analysis was conducted on 10 top-tiered OECD countries/economies, Canada, and the United States in mathematical literacy on the 2012 PISA. Two- and three-level hierarchical regression analyses were performed on Canadian and US students (N = 26,522) along with five of the ten top-tiered countries/economies (N = 58,385)., Methods: Using the 'least absolute shrinkage and selection operator' (LASSO) technique, the study (1) identified salient predictor variables of mathematical literacy performance for the top-tiered countries/economies, Canada, and the United States and (2) used these salient variables to perform two- and three-level hierarchical regression on data from Canada and the United States along with five top-tiered countries/economies. Weights and replicates were used to account for complex sample design. A weighted, two-level confirmatory factor analysis was performed to identify latent constructs. Missing data were handled through multiple imputation., Results: Separate two-level hierarchical models accounted for 32-35% student-level and 58-70% school-level variance in Canada and the United States, respectively; three-level models accounted for 33% of level-one variance, 62-65% level-two variance, and 13-44% of level-three variance for the US/Canada and US/Canada/top-tiered students, respectively. Following top-tiered countries/economies, Canadian students had high levels of self-efficacy, were more likely to encounter advanced concepts in class, were less activity/small group-centred, and were more likely to consider truancy a learning hindrance. Factor analyses revealed a positive relation with rigour and class organization (teacher-centred) for top-tiered countries and Canada, though not for the United States. For all countries, there was a strong relation between rigour and self-beliefs., Conclusion: Compared to top performers, a less rigorous curriculum, coupled with class and school factors, may explain lag in US performance., (© 2018 The British Psychological Society.)

Examines the cultural implications of school assignments. Papers written in 1898 by senior class members of the Platteville Normal School in Wisconsin; Rhetorical demands of school writing assignments; Cultural work that the writing can accomplish.

The authors examine nine indicators of quality of life in the 277 U.S. Standard Metropolitan Statistical Areas (SMSAs) in terms of their impact on the decision to migrate. The factors considered were utilized in the 1985 publication "Places Rated Almanac" and include climate, housing, health care, crime, transportation, education, recreation, arts, and economics. "The purpose of this paper is both to analyze several alternative methods by which the nine 'Places Rated' indicators have been combined in previous studies, and to estimate a new system of weights for combining such indicators from a multivariate model of metropolitan out-migration." In this article, the authors examine out-migration of metropolitan households during the years 1975-1980. "Coefficient estimates from a multivariate model of out-migration form the basis for a ranking of metropolitan areas in the third section. Also included are comparisons among this and other studies of both the implicit weights employed against the 'Places Rated' scores...to derive both overall measures of urban life quality, and how such quality varies by city size.", (excerpt)

Presents a comprehensive conceptual statement on career education introduced by the Office of Education in the U.S. Means of developing and expanding the local school systems concept of career education.

Purpose This paper highlights the fluidity with which youth make decisions about engaging with digital technologies including online social media. Specifically, the purpose of this paper is to explore the possibilities that literacy curriculum that centers digital technologies can have for students from immigrant communities through tracing the case of a Bangladeshi–American girl named Sabina.Design/methodology/approach Grounded in a transliteracies frame, this qualitative case study explores the digital literacy practices of youth in an urban public secondary school in the USA. Data collection included participant observation across various spaces including an eighth grade digital media studies class, school cafeteria and hallways, participants' homes and online communities. Further data included formal interviews, informal conversations and digital and print artifact collection. Data were analyzed through the lenses of flow and space–time path.Findings The findings of this paper highlight how Sabina made space for social networking using digital technologies on her own terms as well as how the ways that she collaborated through the use of digital technologies created opportunities for her to be an active participant in her social worlds across home and school contexts.Originality/value Analyzing Sabina's digital literacy practices across diverse social spaces offers insights for educators to create opportunities for diverse youth to leverage digital technologies to support skills such as collaboration and civic engagement, which have been identified as defining characteristics of twenty-first century literacies. This case points to the imperative for teachers to create connected learning classrooms that offer opportunities for youth to use digital technologies to support their efforts to make change in the world on their own terms. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Countering the drive to erect walls between nations and communities, the burden is increasingly on educators to develop in students essential skills and dispositions for a more hospitable future. Global education is essentially aimed at addressing the realities of increasingly networked societies and porous exchanges of knowledge, capital, and products among people and groups around the world. This paper examines how global education is enacted in two schools in Singapore and the United States. Given that a central characteristic of the twenty-first century is globalization, global education is inevitably embedded in the discourse of twenty-first century competencies utilized by policymakers worldwide. However, while global education has typically been studied as a singular subject such as Human Rights or integrated into History, Social Studies, or Civics Education, this study differs as it examines two schools that have adopted a whole-school approach to global education. That is, global education is embedded in the culture of schooling and infused across curricula subjects. The first part of the paper provides an overview of global education and its two key emphases – globalism and global citizenship. The second part discusses the tensions emerging from observations of global education in the two schools. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Copyright of Brazilian Journal of Occupational Therapy / Cadernos Brasileiros de Terapia Ocupacional is the property of Cadernos de Terapia Ocupacional da UFSCar and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

Purpose: Higher education institutions play an important role in the economic growth of any country, through skills and productivity of their graduates. Employers have some expectations about the skills the graduates possess when they graduate out of universities. The purpose of this paper is to examine the skills employers look for in graduates before they hire them. Design/methodology/approach: Using a structured survey instrument, this paper gathered data from 50 organizations employing over 50 people. The data consisted of 21 skills the employers rate as important. These skills were categorized into four dimensions: analytical skills, career professional and readiness skills, communications skills, and personality, leadership skills and team/group work. After checking the reliability of the scale, χ2 test and rank correlation were used to analyze the importance of these skills. Findings: The findings from a study of employers in the northeastern part of USA suggest that the top six skills and competencies rated with highest importance by employers were: interpersonal skills/works well with others; critical thinking/problem-solving skills; listening skills; oral/speech communication skills; professionalism; and personal motivation. Of all 21 skills, the highly ranked skills needed were interpersonal skills followed by critical thinking and problem solving and listening. Research limitations/implications: The present research is based on self-report measures and, hence, the limitations of social desirability bias and common method bias are inherent. However, adequate care is taken to minimize these limitations. The research has implications for the higher educational institutions and researches in the field of education. Practical implications: In addition to the employers, this study contributes to higher educational institutions. The study suggests that employers look for interpersonal skills and problem-solving skills before making hiring decisions. Educational institutions need to focus on enhancing these skills in classrooms by emphasizing the teamwork. The implications for both academicians and practitioners are discussed in the paper. Social implications: The findings from the study help in creating a fruitful social environment in organizations. Originality/value: This study provides new insights about the changing pattern of skills students need to secure before seeking employment. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose Increased school autonomy and accountability have been a common denominator of national reforms in otherwise heterogeneous governance systems in Europe and the USA. The paper argues that because schools serving disadvantaged communities (SSDCs) often have lower average performance, they are more often sanctioned or under closer scrutiny, but might also receive more additional resources. The purpose of this paper is to therefore analyze whether SSDCs have more or less autonomy than schools with a more advantageous context in four countries with heterogeneous autonomy and accountability policies.Design/methodology/approach The paper is based on the data from the Programme for International Student Assessment 2012 school and student questionnaires from Finland, Germany, the UK, and the USA. The choice of countries is based on different governance models described by Glatter et al. (2003). The data are used to identify SSDCs and analyze the reported autonomy in resource allocation and curriculum and assessment. Using regression analyses, patterns are analyzed for each country individually. They are then juxtaposed and compared. Differences are related back to the governance models of the respective countries.Findings The results indicate an association between the communities the schools are serving and the autonomy either in the allocation of resources, or the curriculum and assessment. SSDCs appeared to have a little more autonomy than schools with a more advantageous context in Finland, Germany, and the UK, but less autonomy in the USA. The comparison suggests that in the USA, autonomy is rather a reward for schools that have the least amount of need, whereas in the other three countries it could be a result of strategies to improve schools in need. The paper discusses possible explanations in the policies and support structures for SSDCs.Originality/value The effects of increased school autonomy and accountability on student achievement have been discussed at length. How different accountability policies affect the autonomy of schools with the highest needs has so far not been studied. The study can be understood as a first step to unravel this association. Following steps should include in-depth investigations of the mechanisms underlying increased or diminished autonomy for SSDCs, and the consequences for school improvement in these schools. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose - The purpose of this paper is to examine the role of sheepskin effects in the return to education in Japan. Design/methodology/approach - The paper provides a short description of the Japanese schooling and recruitment system. It then describes the data set and the empirical approach. Estimation results are presented for the various specifications. The baseline specification closely follows existing studies for the USA to facilitate comparability across the two countries. The paper further investigates whether there are significant firm-size differences in the estimated sheepskin effects and whether sheepskin effects disappear with increasing job tenure. Findings - The estimation results indicate that sheepskin effects explain about 50 percent of the total returns to schooling. The paper further finds that education as a signal is only important for workers in small firms with the size of these effects being similar to comparable estimates for the USA. Finally, the estimated degree effects decrease with firm tenure, in particular for small firms. These results could be explained by the particular recruitment system of large firms in Japan, which makes university diploma as a screening device unimportant for large firms and the admission policy of Japanese universities. Originality/value - By investigating the role of sheepskin effects in a labor market that differs substantially from the labor market in the USA, the paper provides additional insights to the human capital theory-screening hypothesis debate. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

There is ample evidence to suggest that American schools perform worse than schools in many other countries. The U.S. ranks toward the bottom of the industrialized nations on international tests of academic achievement in science and mathematics. Not only may American schools perform worse but they may do so at the same time as they use more resources than other schools systems. In essence, American schools may not only be poor in quality but less efficient. This paper will explore some of the evidence on education efficiency. It will suggest that in many ways the assumption is correct, American schools are less efficient. It will suggest that the reason for the inefficiency of American schools is the difference in the 'demand to learn' between American and other school children. But the paper will also explore evidence that suggests that American schools are not less efficient and in one new way of looking at the problem, this paper will argue that American schools are more efficient than the schools in the Republic of Korea, one of the world's leading school systems. The paper will conclude with some advice on the proper role which international comparisons may play in the design of domestic education policy. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose – The aim of this paper is to explain how errors in policymaking contribute to the minimal impact that structural, curricular and cultural changes have made on teaching practice in American schools. Design/methodology/approach – Drawing on the author's research legacy, the paper extends an historical analysis to explore and explain current dilemmas of change in schools and schooling. Findings – Over the last century, educational reforms have most often led to first order classroom change, represented by the development of hybrids of old and new teaching practices. Second order change at the classroom level has proven elusive. Factors at the policymaking level that explain the minimal impact on classroom practice include a misplaced trust in structural reform, an understanding of schools as complicated rather than complex systems, and the tendency not to distinguish teacher quality from the quality of teaching. Originality/value – The paper proposes that the lack of impact of reform on classroom practice is explained in large part by errors in assumptions and thinking that policymakers commit, a focus seldom explored in research. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose - The E-Rate program has been widely applauded for helping American schools achieve almost 100 percent internet connectivity, up from 14 percent in 1996. However, mismanagement and complex administration problems have tainted the program's fame, making it a target for criticism by many commentators, scholars and even governmental agencies. Previous research has suggested that the complex and multi-stage application process may prevent some school districts from availing of E-Rate funds due to lack of technical expertise and administrative support. The objective of this paper is to examine the patterns of distribution of E-Rate funds, especially across the rich-poor and rural-urban divides, using nationwide data. Design/methodology/approach - A total of eight states were selected, two each from four categories defined based on the degree of urbanization and per capita personal income: rural rich, rural poor, urban rich and urban poor. From these states, a total of 343 school districts were randomly chosen, roughly equally from the four groups. The E-Rate funding data for 2006 were obtained from the Universal Service Administration Company (USAC) database and information on each school district from the National Center for Educational Statistics (NCES). Findings - The results indicate a mixed picture on how well the program has fulfilled its policy intent of supporting the most disadvantaged school districts. For example, the percentage of free/reduced lunch eligible students was not a significant predictor for the amount of E-Rate funds, although this is a critical threshold for deciding the discount levels. While the poverty level of the district, revenue per student, and locations were not significant, only the percentage of minority students and ratio of total staff to total number of students in the district displayed positive and significant effects. Contrary to some of the previous results, this nationwide sample did not reveal any significant relationship between districts' locations and funding amounts. However, it is evident that there are clear differences between groups. Particularly, rural and poor states had less funding compared to other groups in 2006. Practical implications - It has been suggested that the complex and multi-stage application process may prevent some school districts from availing of E-Rate funds due to lack of technical expertise and administrative support. With the data of one state, Pennsylvania, the findings partly supported the hypothesis by showing that rural and poor schools continue to get less funding compared to their urban and richer counterparts. Originality/value - The paper extends the scope of previous empirical study to a nationwide sample, and analyzes the competing influences on the patterns of distribution of E-Rate funds. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

William Tate proposed that critical race scholars in education look to moral and spiritual texts to unpack and interrogate the workings of race and other forms of marginalization in schools. While Tate did not offer the ways in which this vision is manifest, the participants in this study situated themselves within a religio-spiritual worldview through which they sought social justice in schools. The authors in this paper highlight a theoretical framework by an inclusive reading of Critical Race Theory as 'ordinary theology' to explore how Black female principals interrogate gendered and raced practices and promote social justice in schools. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper explores the use of HLM analysis in determining the implementation effects of two science curriculum units on student learning. It also compares HLM results with prior results from ANCOVA analyses. HLM analyses were considered as an alternative to ANCOVA because student data were nested within classrooms. The data for this study are from the Scaling-up Curriculum for Achievement, Learning and Equity Project (SCALE-uP). The sample consists of Grade 6 and Grade 7 students from five matched pairs of middle schools in a large, diverse, metropolitan school district in the US. The HLM null model indicates that approximately 15% of the total variance in student gain scores was found between classrooms. Curriculum treated as a classroom factor was significant for both units tested, as was also the case when treated at the individual level in ANCOVA. However, there were large differences in the effect sizes reported by the two analysis techniques. A major implication is that when the students are nested in classrooms and schools, researchers should consider multi-level analysis and account for classroom/school contexts. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

BULLOUGH VL. Nursing Inquiry 2004; 11: 161–165 How one could once become a registered nurse in the United States without going to a hospital training school Distant learning in nursing is both a new and old concept. This paper examines an early example of correspondence schools in nursing, namely the Chautauqua School which over the course of its existence enrolled over 20 000 students. Its closing was due in large part to the opposition of organized nursing which had become institutionalized in the hospital training school. It was not until the 1990's when license recertification was required that long distant nursing again assumed importance. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Texas evaluates, accredits, and financially rewards schools based on student test scores. Test scores increased dramatically following this implementation of high stakes testing. This paper examines whether homebuyers valued these test score increases. The results show little or no relation between changes in test scores and changes in total housing value in a district. Strikingly, improved performance on college entrance exams is associated with increased total housing value. Using the college entrance exams as a benchmark, the results on the state test suggest that high stakes testing failed to increase perceived school quality. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Many US biomedical PhD programs receive more applications for admissions than they can accept each year, necessitating a selective admissions process. Typical selection criteria include standardized test scores, undergraduate grade point average, letters of recommendation, a resume and/or personal statement highlighting relevant research or professional experience, and feedback from interviews with training faculty. Admissions decisions are often founded on assumptions that these application components correlate with research success in graduate school, but these assumptions have not been rigorously tested. We sought to determine if any application components were predictive of student productivity measured by first-author student publications and time to degree completion. We collected productivity metrics for graduate students who entered the umbrella first-year biomedical PhD program at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill from 2008–2010 and analyzed components of their admissions applications. We found no correlations of test scores, grades, amount of previous research experience, or faculty interview ratings with high or low productivity among those applicants who were admitted and chose to matriculate at UNC. In contrast, ratings from recommendation letter writers were significantly stronger for students who published multiple first-author papers in graduate school than for those who published no first-author papers during the same timeframe. We conclude that the most commonly used standardized test (the general GRE) is a particularly ineffective predictive tool, but that qualitative assessments by previous mentors are more likely to identify students who will succeed in biomedical graduate research. Based on these results, we conclude that admissions committees should avoid over-reliance on any single component of the application and de-emphasize metrics that are minimally predictive of student productivity. We recommend continual tracking of desired training outcomes combined with retrospective analysis of admissions practices to guide both application requirements and holistic application review. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to understand young children’s knowledge of visual literacy elements as well as their ability to comprehend newly introduced visual literacy concepts. The study also examined existing support for visual literacy programs from parents and educators.Design/methodology/approach The study explored the knowledge of basic visual literacy elements of young children enrolled in two private schools in the New York City metropolitan area. The authors interviewed 17 children, aged four to six years old, about fine art paintings using a semi-structured interview format. Children’s responses were qualitatively analyzed to determine their initial level of visual literacy and their ability to learn and retain the concepts of visual literacy after receiving basic instruction. The children’s educators and parents completed online questionnaires that were quantitatively analyzed to determine their level of support for visual literacy programs.Findings The findings show that young children exhibited extensive knowledge of simple visual literacy elements (color, shape, line), and limited understanding of more abstract elements (perspective and salience). Children’s knowledge of visual elements improved after instruction. Parents and educators expressed support for incorporating visual literacy instruction in early childhood education.Research limitations/implications The study relied on a sample of children and adults drawn from two private schools. The sample’s demographics might have affected study findings. More studies are needed using a larger and more diverse sample.Practical implications The study suggests that young children are ready to receive instruction on visual literacy elements using art images. Children reacted positively to the images and were engaged in the discussions about them, supporting the use of fine art paintings as an instrument to introduce visual literacy concepts to young children. Survey of children’s parents and teachers indicated strong interest in, and support for such programs.Social implications With the increase of visual information production and consumption, it is important to introduce visual literacy early in life. The study advances research in methods for developing visual literacy instruction for young children.Originality/value There are no previously reported studies that have examined pre-kindergarten children’s knowledge of basic visual literacy elements and reactions to visual literacy instruction. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The goal of this paper is to estimate peer influence in video gaming time among adolescents. Using a nationally representative sample of the U.S. school-aged adolescents in 2009–2010, we estimate a structural model that accounts for the potential biases in the estimate of the peer effect. Our peer group is exogenously assigned and includes one year older adolescents in the same school grade as the respondent. The peer measure is based on peers’ own reports of video gaming time. We find that an additional one hour of playing video games per week by older grade-mates results in .47 hours increase in video gaming time by male responders. We do not find significant peer effect among female responders. Effective policies aimed at influencing the time that adolescents spend video gaming should take these findings into account. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A common policy approach to reducing childhood obesity aims to shape the environment in which children spend most of their time: neighborhoods and schools. This paper uses richly detailed data on the body mass index (BMI) of all New York City public school students in grades K-8 to assess the potential for place-based approaches to reduce child obesity. We document variation in the prevalence of obesity across NYC public schools and census tracts, and then estimate the extent to which this variation can be explained by differences in individual-level predictors (such as race and household income). Both unadjusted and adjusted variability across neighborhoods and schools suggest place-based policies have the potential to meaningfully reduce child obesity, but under most realistic scenarios the improvement would be modest. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper presents data from the Program for the International Assessment of Adult Competencies with a focus on the interrelationships among health information seeking behavior (HISB), and health status or use of preventive health measures for U.S. adults both with and without a high school diploma. Key results of ordinal and binary logistic regression analyses indicated that, after controlling for demographic factors, (1) adults with a high school diploma use more text-based health information sources while adults without a high school diploma use more oral sources, (2) using the Internet as a source of health information is more strongly related to reporting excellent/very good health status than having a high school diploma, (3) those without a high school diploma who use the Internet report the largest increase in health status over any other health information source, and (4) for those with learning disability or vision problem, a high facility in reading English is an important predictor of whether the Internet is used as a health information source. The Internet appears to play a key role in both enhancing health status and enabling use of preventive measures for those with and without a high school diploma; although, individuals without a high school diploma who use the Internet for health information derive substantial benefit in health status. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Copyright of Annee Sociologique is the property of Presses Universitaires de France and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

Preface: The No Child Left Behind Act (NCLB) required each state to develop their own method to evaluate individual schools' improvement every year, and states also need to set up an index, called the adequate yearly progress (AYP), as a goal for schools to meet every year. However, what might be the possible factors impacting schools fail to make AYP? Purposes: The purposes of this paper are employing the factor analysis to identify factors which can explain the variation of percentages of schools being identified as in need ofimprovement Under NCLB regulations. Method: Three educational Databases were used. The correlation and regression analysis are used to examine the degree of relationship between these factors. Results: The percentage of minority students is the main factor impacting the school performance. That is, schools with higher percentage of minority students would more likely fail to make AYP. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

School uniforms have been utilized by a number of schools in attempts to increase discipline and academic performance. This paper seeks to explore the relationships between gender, gender performance, and school uniforms through exploring writing on discipline, performance, and uniforms and then exploring some specific contemporary policy on school uniforms in the US. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

Existing research demonstrates that black population size in a given area correlates with the passage of racially restrictive policies in that area. This paper examines the mechanisms through which minority population size translates into exclusionary policies. It does so by examining a little-known but critical aspect of US civil rights history: the development of policies which allowed white communities to close their public schools entirely rather than desegregate. Using comparative-historical methods to build on existing quantitative studies, this analysis demonstrates that, while black population size does correlate with the passage of restrictive policies, the adoption of school closing policies was primarily a political strategy used to counter rising black political mobilization. That is, whites were not responding to a demographic threat per se or to increasing contact with blacks, as extant work might suggest. Rather, restrictive policies were a response to increasing political activity and mobilization within black communities. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In the United States, public housing developments are predominantly located in neighborhoods with low median incomes, high rates of poverty and disproportionate concentrations of minorities. While research consistently shows that public housing developments are located in economically and socially disadvantaged neighborhoods, we know little about the characteristics of the schools serving students living in public housing. In this paper, we examine the characteristics of elementary and middle schools attended by students living in public housing developments in New York City. Using the proportion of public housing students attending each elementary and middle school as our weight, we calculate the weighted average of school characteristics to describe the typical school attended by students living in public housing. We then compare these characteristics to those of the typical school attended by other students throughout the city in an effort to assess whether students living in public housing attend systematically different schools than other students. We find no large differences between the resources of the schools attended by students living in public housing and the schools attended by their peers living elsewhere in the city; however, we find significant differences in student characteristics and performance on standardized exams. These school differences, however, fail to fully explain the performance disparities amongst students. Our results point to a need for more nuanced analyses of the policies and practices in schools, as well as the outside-of-school factors that shape educational success, to identify and address the needs of students in public housing. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Social capital is argued to grow out of social relations and to provide resources to actors engaged in purposive action. One environment where the resources generated have been shown to contribute to positive outcomes is education. Previous research has found social capital in the family and the community to be associated with higher student test scores. Since students, teachers and principals interact at school over the course of a year or longer it is reasonable to assume that social capital may also emerge within individual schools. Any resource produced as a result of these interactions may also be valuable to producing positive outcomes. Drawing on data from Chicago Public Schools in the United States, this paper examines principal and teacher perceptions of social relations within the school that are consistent with social capital theory. Statistical tests are run to see whether social capital within a school is associated with student test scores. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The paper deals with the concept of quality, in general and the manner in which it is perceived in education. For the educational process, quality is not produced exclusively by school, as a provider of educational services, but by the beneficiaries and the purchasers of education. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Teacher licensure is a regime where schools are forbidden from hiring teachers who have not completed a program of study in a teacher education program and/or other preparation requirements. This paper specifies a theoretical model of a school hiring teachers who are either traditional-completed a program of study in a teacher education program or alternative-entered teaching through an alternative path. We combine the implications of the theoretical model with the empirical literature on teacher labor markets to reach conclusions about how labor market policies would impact teacher quality. Perhaps the most important conclusion is that it is very likely that a regime of teacher licensure would lower teacher quality and student achievement. The key reason why licensure would lower teacher quality is that licensure fails to make the important distinction between marginal and average quality in hiring decisions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article presents the author's criticism of the paper "The Future of Educational Change: System Thinkers in Action," by Michael Fullan, an educational researcher, published within the issue. According to the author, Fullan's ideas on capacity building and sustainability are not relevant to schools which serve poor children in the U.S. and elsewhere. He states that scholars like Fullan should provide guidance to educational leaders to deliver proper service to poor students.

Introduction Medical education in the USA today is remarkably varied despite the shared mission of training doctors. Six medical schools A brief introduction to 6 institutions illustrates the variety of education available, while providing some specific details of how schools differ and how the mandate of any particular school may differ from that of another. Private schools include Dartmouth Medical School, Duke University School of Medicine, and Mount Sinai School of Medicine. State-supported schools include the University of Arizona College of Medicine, Oregon Health and Science University School of Medicine, and Southern Illinois University School of Medicine. Change General remarks are made about changes over recent years in three separate areas of influence. New schools Forty new medical schools were established between 1960 and 1980; a brief explanation is provided of the reasons for this and how it was achieved. New disciplinary emphases in training doctors A few of the numerous new emphases that have been introduced into the medical school curriculum are discussed briefly. Curriculum reform A small sample is given of ways in which particular medical schools have reformed their curricula over the years. What went into the most influential curricular reform is presented, along with mention of what are perhaps the most unusual curricular paths today. Conclusion The paper concludes with an assessment of where reforms have brought US medical education by the beginning of the 21st century and what needs yet to be accomplished. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The special education profession in the USA has witnessed a recent struggle between researchers who defend a positivistic approach to knowledge and practice and ‘postmodern’ special educators who challenge that approach. An analysis based on a sociological theory of heresy provides insight into the social and professional dynamics operating in conflict between postmodern heresy and positivist orthodoxy. This struggle for power within the profession has implications for inclusive education in the USA. Specifically, given the preponderance of the orthodox group within the American sub-field of emotional/behavioural disorders, this paper explicates the implications for the inclusive education of students labelled emotional/behavioural disorders in American schools. Heresy is a fight for the heart and soul of a profession. (Wolpe, 1994, p. 1136) [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Despite the substantial body of research on the psychological and social effects of racial segregation in schools on African Americans, few studies have considered the possibility that more racially inclusive schools might reduce the risk of extremely negative adult life experiences such as incarceration. Yet such a connection is made plausible by research linking black racial isolation in schools to variables that are often associated with incarceration rates, including concentrated poverty, and low educational and occupational aspirations and attainment. In this paper, we apply methods first developed by labor economists to assess the impact of racial inclusiveness in schools on individual incarceration rates for 5-year cohorts of African Americans and whites born since 1930. We find strong support for the conclusion that blacks educated in states where a higher proportion of their classmates were white experienced significantly lower incarceration rates as adults. Moreover, our analysis suggests that the effects of racial inclusiveness on black incarceration rates have grown stronger over time. These longitudinal effects are consistent with the argument that the educational climate of predominantly black schools has deteriorated in more recent decades. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper examines factors associated with the adoption of evidence-based substance use prevention curricula (EBC) in a national sample of school districts. Substance abuse prevention coordinators in public school districts (n = 1593), which were affiliated with a random sample of schools that served students in Grades 5-8, completed a written survey in 1999. Results indicated that 47.5% of districts used at least one EBC in their schools with middle school grades. Substance use prevention coordinators reported they had the greatest input in decisions about curricula. In a multivariate analysis of factors positively associated with district-level decisions to adopt evidence-based programs, significant factors included input from a state substance use prevention group, use of information disseminated by the National Institute on Drug Abuse or Center for Substance Abuse Prevention, use of local needs assessment data, consideration of research showing which curricula are effective and allocation of a greater proportion of the coordinator's time to substance use prevention activities. State and federal agencies should increase their efforts to disseminate information about evidence-based programs, targeting in particular the district substance use prevention coordinator. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Middle-class parents have often been characterized as individualistic in their endeavors with schools and have been shown to advocate to the cultural advantage of their own children with questionable consequences or counter results for the children of others. This research paper situates the activity, influence, and multiple perspectives of the middle class upon school activity, even within a reform effort characterized by and supportive of diversity and community. School people and parent leaders in this research operated under the mandate of “promoting partnerships to increase parental involvement and school participation to encourage the social, emotional, and academic growth of children.” Findings feature contrasting elements of middle-class activity influencing and structuring home-school relations within a diverse school community. The research illuminates the tensions and possibilities within this urban community, raises questions, and offers alternative interpretations of middle-class activity to a greater degree than usual. The Bakhtinian concept of heteroglossia allows interpretations of the actions and motivations among parents, providing options when parent populations comprise contrasting social groups. The conclusion not only highlights middle-class standards at work within partnership activities but also raises questions about how to best utilize leadership potential of strong cadres of parent volunteers in activities of organizations like PATHWAYS and Parent Teacher Organization. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]