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Based on data mainly from California, Arizona, and Michigan charter school studies, the paper evaluates charter school effectiveness in the four aspects (student achievement, student demographic, school funding, and teacher efficacy and empowerment) with the result that one (student achievement) meets expectation (ME); two (school funding, teacher efficacy and empowerment) narrowly meet expectation (ME--); one (student demographic) needs improvement (NI). The result shows that charter schools are not as successful as what has been claimed by the politicians. The paper offers some recommendations and concludes that unless charter schools begin living up to some of the assumptions that have so far propelled them, it is time to reassess this magic bullet of school reform. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper discusses how much of the gap in learning between poverty-stricken students and advantaged students in the US is related to a lack of educational resources and poor teaching quality. It discusses how some school systems have been able to overcome the challenges of poverty and how high-quality teaching can alleviate the effects of poverty. This article also recommends ways to solve the problems related to inequalities in American schools for disadvantaged students and explores successful school systems for disadvantaged students both in the US and abroad. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Using data collected as part of the National Survey of Student Engagement (NSSE), this study examines differences between the grades, time spent preparing for class, involvement in co-cur-ricular activities, time spent socializing and overall enjoyment of their college experience of working and non-working students at a mid-sized public university. Several demographic correlates of student employment are also examined. Throughout the paper, specific attention is focused upon the differences that exist between students who work on-campus and those who work off-campus. Results show that there are very few differences between working and non-working students. As the number of hours that student work increases, however, the number of hours that they spend socializing decreases. Seniors and men also tend to work more hours than first-year students and women. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The purpose of this paper is to explain the hypercompetitive new reality in the global marketplace, discuss cultural changes in the United States leading to declining student performance and graduates who are unprepared for a competitive work environment, and provide helpful ideas to educators functioning as coaches and mentors. We found extensive support from many authors and sources expressing concern about the lack of preparation, complacency, and denial that interfere with the recognition of the new reality and the urgent need to properly coach and mentor students who will enter the workforce. Unless a country's culture and educational system prepares students to effectively compete in the workforce, the country's productivity will decline with unfortunate consequences for its economy and the standard of living of its citizens. There is evidence suggesting that this situation is already happening in the United States. Educators should coach and mentor students to understand the challenges they will face and motivate them to prepare for those challenges. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The intent of this paper is to describe the development of a freshman year course within a learning community and with a service learning component. Furthermore, it attempts to understand how participation in such a course may influence students' learning experiences and perceptions about community service. The study consisted of a pre- and post- questionnaire that was administered to 25 freshmen enrolled in the course. Results indicate that that a freshman year course within a learning community and with a service learning component can be an important aspect of students' academic, and social adjustment while it fosters community engagement at the same time. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The No Child Left Behind Legislation has altered the landscape of elementary schools across the nation. This alteration has left many educators and parents wondering whether children are being robbed of their childhood in order to meet the legislation's many mandates. Across the nation, traditional school days, instructional programs, and programs such as recess, music, and art, along with programs for the gifted and educationally disabled, have been eliminated or altered beyond recognition. This paper addresses those concerns by citing evidence of the potential harm to students and by interviewing stakeholders who have direct involvement with the children as either teachers or parents. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper investigates gender differences in the academic ethic and academic achievement among college students. We used survey data collected from students at a medium-size state university in the Southeast. Results of our analysis indicate that women are more likely to possess an academic ethic than men and that women also tend to have higher GPAs. Furthermore, regression analysis with GPA as the dependent variable revealed differences between men and women in terms of significant predictors. For women, active participation in student clubs or groups was positively associated with GPA. For men, employment was negatively related with GPA. We used Coleman's (1988) concept of social capital, Chodorow's (1978) psychoanalytic feminist theory, and Gilligan's (1982) theory of women's development in an attempt to build a potential theoretical explanation for these findings and to guide future research. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

During the 1990s many school districts abandoned school desegregation initiatives and quietly resegregated the public schools. In 1986, the city of Norfolk ended mandated busing for desegregation and returned to neighborhood schools. This shift resulted in the creation of 11 schools that were more than 95 percent African American. After 17 years of resegregation, the achievement gap between resegregated schools and desegregated schools continues to exist.. The purpose of this paper is to examine the trends in the achievement gap between resegregated and desegregated schools in the Norfolk Public schools District. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]