Discusses the value of delineating standards by which progress toward achieving excellence may be judged. Specifically mentions the differences between the educational goals of parents and teachers in an Indiana community. Advocates that teachers and principals be held reponsible for effecting change. (CB)

Analyzes problems of horizontal and vertical transfer of training skills to the school setting in terms of teachers' lifelong learning in the profession. Research findings support the necessity of reforming most teacher training programs to encourage learning the theoretical underpinnings of the profession and to provide a social context for…

Written in the form of a letter to a fifth grader, this essay explains why school is important and how to get the most out of schooling. Topics include getting along with teachers; home projects to enliven math, reading, science, and spelling; and the importance of appearance, breakfast, supplies, and sleep in preparing for school. (CB)

Describes a classroom economics system for fifth graders based on real-life experience. Income earned in assigned "jobs" may be spent for future fixed expenses, unexpected opportunities and expenses, and immediate entertainment. Students learn social skills as well as how to bank, buy stock and insurance, cope with unemployment, manage a store,…

Reviews approaches to the study of temperament and ways in which knowledge about temperament can be helpful in planning day care and counselling parents. Discusses the nine dimensions of temperament developed by Thomas, Chess, and Birch (1965) to describe infants and children and standardized instruments for measuring temperament developed by…

Summarizes 10 recent ERIC documents about accountability, standards, and professionalism in the area of young children's education and care. Each document is briefly annotated, and information for ordering the complete document is provided. (CB)

Identifies technological changes and the implications of computer-based learning for students and classroom activities. Presents person-oriented goals that teachers might implement in the classroom (based on a vision of the future) and encourages individual teacher's self-appraisal to close the gap between real and idealized classroom functioning.…

In this interview, Neil Postman responds to questions about the destruction and preservation of childhood by such influences as television, computers, the woman's movement, and academics for young children. Emphasizes roles and responsibilities of parents, teachers, and schools in maintaining tradition and culture amid changing social values and…

Discusses the influences of parental alcoholism on children's daily lives, generally, and learning problems, absenteeism, and adjustment problems, specifically. Suggests that schools are one of the most promising settings for identifying and intervening with children of alcoholics as a target group. (DST)

Explores three categories of sibling relationships that are well represented in children's literature and child development research: resentment of the new baby; competition between/among brothers or sisters; and siblings' prosocial behaviors. Relates each category to social/psychological research and examples of quality books for children. (DST)

Discusses the value of tool-use activities to help toddlers develop emerging skills, experience creative expression, and understand means-end relationships. Provides examples of opportunities for using objects as tools, including language acquisition, self-help activities, dramatic play, sensory experiences, and object manipulation. (DST)

Addresses attitudes toward reading resulting in beginning reading instruction in the kindergarten and preschool curriculum. Argues that previously accepted notions of the necessity of reading readiness are no longer viable and encourages home and classroom support for the acquisition of reading abilities through written and oral language. (DST)

Provides an annotated book list for use by elementary school teachers. Emphasizes children's involvement in word play and word games as a means to strengthen the language arts program. Specific areas covered include word play and word games, riddles, jokes, rhymes and verse, sounds and words, and word histories. (DST)

Provides rationale for using trade books rather than textbooks for instruction in content areas. Describes a specific teaching strategy, which includes readiness, reading, and responses for encouraging the development of thinking skills and independent learning. (DST)

Discusses students' inability to make the connection between manipulative materials and pencil-and-paper calculations in mathematics instruction. Outlines the development of mathematical ideas through the concrete, representational, and abstract phases of instruction. An annotated bibliography listing teacher resources for representational-level…