A mother reports on her daughter's former drug abuse, the inability of school officials to recognize and deal effectively with drug abusers, possible reasons for this inability, and recent legal decisions that require districts to provide counseling. She concludes by offering suggestions for dealing with problems of abuse. (IW)

Offers 10 principles of classroom discipline that can serve as general guidelines for teachers. These are: focusing, direct instruction, monitoring, modeling, cuing, environmental control, low-profile intervention, assertive discipline, I-message, and positive reinforcement. (IW)

In response to a California State education reform bill that requires professors of methods courses to return to the classroom once every three years, a university profesor of 15 years taught 9th-grade English in Watts. This essay presents nine tips for others who anticipate their own return to teaching. (IW)

Responding to a critique of their earlier article, authors Levin and Meister, joined by Glass, attempt to clarify some of the issues and to correct implicit misunderstandings in the critique, while detailing the application of cost-effectiveness to educational interventions. Twenty footnotes are appended. (IW)

Discusses the history and development of teaching machines, invented to restore the important features of personalized instruction as public school class size increased. Examines teaching and learning problems over the past 50 years, including motivation, attention, appreciation, discovery, and creativity in relation to programmed instruction.…

Discusses a collection of 75 research studies reporting great differences in one or more teaching productivity indices when two teaching methods and/or management systems are compared. In 26 percent of the sample cases, conventional instruction proved superior; the remaining 74 percent showed nonconventional methods such as programmed or…

Summarizes "First Lessons," the author's 1986 report on elementary schooling. Acknowledges society's complexity, the nation's ethnic and socioeconomic diversity, parents' importance, and changing family structure. Examines curriculum content and quality, principal and teacher effectiveness, and school policy issues, including the need for rigorous…

Praises United States Secretary of Education William J. Bennett's 1986 report as a readable, provocative document that restores central importance of elementary education. Disagrees with two improvement suggestions: elimination of teaching experience for principals and disregard of class size as an important variable. Sees improved instructional…

Praises United States Secretary of Education William J. Bennett's 1986 elementary education report for presenting worthwhile observations on values, parents' responsibility, and teachers' professional roles. Criticizes Bennett's omission of implementation strategies, especially concerning the federal government's role in assisting minority and…

Comments on the author's participation in the Elementary Education Study Group and on United States Secretary of Education William J. Bennett's 1986 report, "First Lessons." Praises Bennett's appreciation of poor families' efforts to help educate their children and his call for more challenging curriculum content and higher academic standards for…

Summarizes 15 years of National Assessment of Educational Progress data on reading and writing in elementary schools. While reading performance has improved over the 1971-1984 period for black and Hispanic 9- and 13-year-olds and for younger disadvantaged children, writing results are less encouraging. Effective writing instruction may require…

The best elementary schools celebrate individual differences among students. Mindful of the need for creative adaptation, this article summarizes qualitative indicators of effective schools, including happy environment, varied learning styles, mutual regard between children and adults, school readiness and enthusiasm, well-articulated mission,…

Explains the merits of "brain-compatible" learning, especially Proster Theory. Describes a pilot program at a New Jersey elementary school that transformed conventional, graded classrooms into "multi-teacher interactive learning units" that promote thinking in terms of programs and patterns. Summarizes pedagogical changes and students' improved…

Continues the argument against tracking and ability grouping in schools. Traces circumstances and beliefs leading to this system of handling student diversity and shows how these factors obstruct schools' efforts to achieve two highly valued goals: academic excellence and equal opportunity. Suggests alternative approaches. (MLH)

Like other institutions, schools are occupied by people whose duties and liberties are in conflict. Understanding the Bill of Rights can help resolve school problems as well as major social problems outside the court system. Students should value the first eight constitutional amendments as not tied to majority rule and should study them…