A review is a tool of "recasting" of both literature and "the lived"--that location of social relations that mediates the recognition, reckoning, and witness of experience. The reviewer-researcher can be seen as a grammarian of the order, both handler and maker of the research tool. (SLD)

Reports the results of a meta-analysis that integrates research on undergraduate science, mathematics, engineering, and technology education since 1980. The meta-analysis of 39 studies demonstrates that various forms of small-group learning promote achievement, improve attitudes toward learning, and increase persistence in these fields. Contains…

Reviews the nature of phenomenographic research and its alleged conceptual underpinnings in the phenomenological tradition. Discusses similarities with grounded theory and considers conceptual and methodological difficulties in phenomenographic research. Contains 162 references. (SLD)

Analyzes current conceptions of science achievement for K-12 students and considers equity implications for science achievement and assessment in the context of standards-based and systems reform. Reviews documents on science concept standards and proposes using a cultural anthropological perspective to develop a view of science achievement and…

Interviews with 78 high school students and 22 teachers in five high schools suggest that violence occurs at predictable locations and times in and around the school building. The locations were generally undefined public space not supervised by any teacher. Discusses implications for the prevention of school violence. Contains 98 references. (SLD)

Proposes a solution to the learning paradox (how learning develops from prior learning) that is based on the work of C. Peirce and J. Dewey. Ideas, as opposed to schemas or postmodernist discourse, are viewed as the real carriers of meaning. Abduction offers the best chance of coming to terms with the paradox. Contains 78 references. (Author/SLD)

Seven articles comment on the proposed resolution of the "learning paradox" of how people make meaning and learn from prior learning. The reviewers find much of merit in the proposed reliance on the work of J. Dewey and C. Peirce, but they criticize many aspects of the paper, especially its brief treatment of the learning paradox itself. (SLD)

This study compared college students' ratings of special education courses, offered on and off-campus, that used different instructional methods (including electronic media). End-of-course student evaluations indicated that global ratings for instructor, teaching skill, and communication were similar across courses and across locations (on-campus…

Introduces seven models to analyze the multifaceted conception of teacher effectiveness, including goal and task, resource utilization, working process, school constituencies satisfaction, accountability, absence of problems, and continuous learning. Each model represents a perspective that describes certain factors which are closely related to…

On the 79th anniversary of the Journal of Educational Research, this article republishes the announcement that began volume 1, number 1, January 1920, of the journal. It also discusses the journal's work over the past 79 years. An appendix lists titles and authors published in the journal during the years 1920, 1934, and 1993. (SM)

Investigated the concurrent validity of various PLACE (Program for Licensing Assessments for Colorado Educators) tests, noting how they fared on judgments of more contemporary notions of validity. Analysis of seven iterations of PLACE tests from five Colorado institutions supported the construct validity of the PLACE. This paper reports the…

Evaluated a project between an elementary school and state university in which international parents from the community were trained as instructors of Chinese, Japanese, and Korean language and culture, following up on instruction provided by native-speaking graduate students. Interviews and observations indicated that students were very positive…

Investigated the occurrence of grade retention across all socioeconomic classes in urban and suburban populations, focusing on the effects of alcohol abuse, school suspension, violence, and lack of discipline in the home. Surveys of 243 African-American adolescent boys indicated that there was a positive association between number of suspensions…

Explores developmental disabilities using a post-disciplinary approach through social construction and metaphors drawn from social cartography. Considers how the cartographies drawn by special education and other human services practices provide a rationale for continued dehumanization and oppression. (Contains 178 references.) (Author/SLD)

Reviewed 183 written sources related to prior knowledge. Findings show that prior knowledge generally had positive effects on student performance, but effects varied by assessment method. Discusses the implications of assessment measures when examining the effects of prior knowledge. (Contains 207 references.) (SLD)