The influences of elementary school context were studied with 88 preservice teachers student teaching in 2 different university field programs. Data support the benefits of pluralistic school experiences for future teachers and suggest that contextual conditions unique to a particular school may influence preservice teachers' learning and…

Distance learning in graduate courses was studied from the perspectives of three professors and their students in the studio and at remote sites. Identifying differences in the perceptions of studio students, remote students, and teachers, this study highlights issues requiring research and debate as distance education becomes more prevalent. (SLD)

The phasing out of the Teacher Performance Assessment Instrument (TPAI) in Georgia is described, with particular attention to litigation involving a teacher who lost her certificate after failing the TPAI. Other reasons for phasing out the TPAI are discussed. (SLD)

The incidence of three types of behaviors consistent with nonattending in completing surveys was studied with 1,240 elementary school students, 3,541 students in grades 5 through 12, and 2,688 teachers. While the proportion of missing items did not seem to be a problem, there is evidence of patterns that indicate nonattending behavior. (SLD)

This paper explains how different factors affect classical reliability estimates, such as test-retest, interrater, internal consistency, and equivalent forms coefficients. The limitations of classical test theory are explored, and the advantages of generalizability theory are discussed. Concrete examples are used. (SLD)

This document consists of the first five volumes (10 issues) of the serial "Research in the Schools," a nationally refereed journal published by the Mid-South Educational Research Association and the University of Alabama. It publishes original contributions related to research in practice, topical issues in education, methods and techniques,…

The Appalachia Educational Laboratory designed and implemented a long-term staff development program to increase and sustain teacher knowledge of and use of classroom questioning techniques to produce higher levels of student learning. Evaluations from 41 middle and secondary schools establishing the effectiveness of this program are reported .…

The hypothesis that reading instruction designed to incorporate students' preferred reading styles resulted in greater achievement gain when compared to controls was tested with 198 third and sixth graders. Results support the hypothesis that incorporating reading styles in reading instruction result in greater achievement gain. (SLD)

When children with Attention-Deficit Disorder (ADD) with and without hyperactivity (total n=28) were compared for behavior, results differentiate the two ADD subtypes into a more externalizing dimension (ADD-hyperactivity with and without conduct disorder or oppositional defiant disorder) at school or home and a more internalizing disorder (ADD…

Ten dimensions of teacher concern were identified through a factor analysis of 568 inservice teachers' responses to the Teacher Concerns Checklist. Studies of test-retest and alpha coefficient reliability and concurrent validity of these dimensions supported their use in research on teacher concerns. (SLD)

Attitudes toward high-stakes testing and score enhancement strategies of 4 cohorts of preservice teachers (total n=268) were determined. Findings suggest that preservice teachers can make acceptable judgments about appropriateness for the extremes of score enhancement strategies but are less able to do so in the intermediate range of the continuum…

A qualitative inquiry describes the sociocultural aspects of an urban elementary school serving as the context for a reading/language arts early field experience and examines how the sociocultural factors of this school contribute to the professional development of the preservice teachers who work there and their three supervising teachers. (SLD)

The relationship of students' study skills to their locus of control, social interdependence, academic preparation, age, and study time was studied with 266 college students. Study skills were related to locus of control, age, expected course grade, and study time. The need to address attitudinal and motivational variables in study skills programs…

The six Holland-based Interest Scale scores yielded by the Harrington-O'Shea Career Decision-Making System (CDM) (T. Harrington and A. O'Shea, 1982) were related to sex, race, and performance on the Kaufman Adolescent and Adult Intelligence Test for 254 adolescents and young adults. CDM scores did not relate to most of the variables studied, and…

Describes Invitational Education theory, illustrates it, and describes its application with seven middle schools. Invitational Education is based on the interrelationships among people, places, policies, processes, and programs. Ways in which the Invitational Education process differs from the usual "factory" approach to education are explored.…