Predictability of graduation from the Community College of the Air Force was studied in a sample of 518 master sergeants. Armed Services Vocational Aptitude Battery (ASVAB) electronics scores and gender were significant predictors; age, ethnicity, major, and ASVAB mechanical, administrative, and general scores were not. (SK)

Observation of eight associate-degree students in a service-learning project revealed the following about service learning: it was progressive-education opportunity; established a realistic working environment; enabled problem solving; developed learning through experience, awareness, and collaboration; and broadened students' perspectives. (SK)

Interviews with 12 older (ages 60 to 78) and 12 younger (ages 38 to 53) administrators showed that they had similar perceptions of the physical features and privacy issues in the workplace that facilitate or impede work. Structural accommodations may not be necessary for older workers, but attention to design and privacy issues is necessary for…

Disadvantaged Mexican dropouts aged 16-22 (n=25) and 25 Hispanic elementary students completed dropout-prediction instruments. Elementary students were unable to consider their future and self-report was not viable for them. Among dropouts, pregnancy and moving around were salient predictors. Modifications of the instruments were recommended. (SK)

Describes the state of contingent employment in the United States and Europe; identifies economic, psychological, and social consequences; and suggests how workers can be prepared for it in terms of occupational content, career management, and family/work relationships and choices. (SK)

Observations of mentor-apprentice interactions in a secondary youth apprenticeship program revealed the following: (1) apprentices had opportunities for socially shared, hands-on applied activities; (2) mentors instructed, demonstrated, coached, and explained; (3) no mentors had formal training in instruction; and (4) apprentices were able to…

Linear modeling of data from 591 Iowa secondary students (grade point average, state percentile rank, and Work Keys test scores) revealed disparities in prior academic achievement and Work Keys math scores between students in applied academics and students in traditional academic courses. (SK)

Technology education practitioners (n=225) identified how often 27 mental processes were used in solving technological problems. Analysis resulted in five factors: researching the problem, searching for solutions, creating innovative solutions, analyzing data, and evaluating results. (SK)

Concerns perceptions held by prospective teachers about an experimental science content course. A phenomenological perspective guides the study's design. Phenomenological inquiry is the search for the understandings and meanings that the involved participants hold about an object, person, or situation. (SAH)

Focuses on two aspects of the use of concept cartoons in preservice science teacher education: evaluating their use as a teaching and learning approach, and challenging student teachers' perceptions of how constructivist principles might be implemented in the classroom. (SAH)

Discusses the use of rubrics in one preservice secondary science teacher methods course. Defines the term 'rubric' and provides a rationale for using rubrics. Discusses how rubrics were used in one science methods course and concludes with comments about the possible benefits and detriments of using rubrics in science education courses. (SAH)

Examines three questions: (1) What are science teachers' belief-based affects concerning the implementation of thematic instruction in the classroom; (2) Do teachers' belief-based affects influence their intent to implement thematic instruction; and (3) Are there any relationships between demographic variables and model variables? (SAH)

Describes the Future Teachers' Research Program (FTRP), the several strategies that were employed for exploring its impact, and the results of those investigations. The program has been operating since 1990, offering the opportunity to explore how research experiences contribute to teacher preparation and whether that research experience enhances…

Explains what collaboration in education means and presents a study conducted in an interdisciplinary course in which preservice teachers were responsible for developing a CD-ROM on Cystic Fibrosis that was to be used by upper middle grade students. Discusses the impact of the interdisciplinary collaboration on student learning. (YDS)

Explains the relationship between middle school practices and teachers' self-efficacy beliefs. Studies the differences in science teacher efficacy and outcome expectancy, and compares teachers' self efficacy levels in middle and junior high schools. (Contains 57 references.) (YDS)