This study assessed the attitudes of three groups that participated in Upward Bound, a newly instituted academic advisory program at Tomball High School in Texas. It also provided a baseline of data to measure students' academic performance. The three groups, 300 high school freshmen, 115 of their parents, and 33 full time faculty, responded to…

Examples of what it means to apply the standards developed by the National Council of Teachers of Mathematics (NCTM) in actual classrooms are provided, with profiles of 10 teachers who translate the standards into real and workable classroom practices. The following chapters are included: (1) "Introducing the NCTM Reform Documents"; (2)…

The concept of the mole and its relationship to chemical algebra is difficult for many high school chemistry students to master. This paper describes a study of the use of proportional reasoning when teaching mole relationships and its effect on developing critical thinking skills. The Test of Logical Thinking (TOLT) was used as a pre- and…

Students can learn to solve problems of qualitative integration and differentiation independently of their study of formal calculus or algebra. This exploratory study investigated the basic intuitions that elementary school children construct in their daily experience with physical and symbolic change. Elementary school children (n=18) were…

An interdisciplinary curriculum program was introduced at a suburban high school almost 1,700 students when the school became eligible for a Chapter 1 program grant for academically at risk students. The interdisciplinary program, which integrated English, Algebra, Biology, and World History, developed and was expanded to all students, including…

The integrated learning activities in this guide were developed by a committee of educators from Osceola District Schools, Orange County Public Schools, and Valencia Community College (Florida) for a tech prep curriculum. Included are 32 communications-related activities, 30 mathematics activities, and 10 science activities. Each activity includes…

An introductory course for the engineering technologies may be offered for secondary school credit, two-year college credit, or combined secondary and college credit to provide a necessary bridge between high school and college. The course curriculum combines an overview of the different engineering technologies with some actual knowledge and…

The hypothesis that enhanced knowledge of assessment rubrics by teachers and thus by students results in improved student achievement was studied in the context of the development of mandatory high school assessments for the Maryland State Department of Education. Rubrics were under development to score constructed-response items in the content…

Traditionally, vocational mathematics and precollege mathematics have been separate in schools. This book illuminates the interplay between technical and academic mathematics. This collection of essays by mathematicians, educators, and other experts is enhanced with illustrative tasks from workplace and everyday contexts that suggest ways to…

This paper has two goals. The first is to present a model of the acquisition of a concept image of function. Theories describing the objectification of function are outlined through two different but related paths, and both stem from the conception of function as a process. The first path to objectification involves the generalization of the…

Block scheduling has grown rapidly in recent years. In North Carolina, 77 schools started block scheduling in 1995-96, bringing the total number of blocked schools in the state to 207. A previous evaluation compared 1995 End-of-Course (EOC) Test scores for block-scheduled (blocked) and nonblocked schools. This report presents results of the…

This study investigated the role of problem structure and metacognitive control in the analogical transfer of performance of 40 13- and 14-year-old gifted and highly gifted math students. Average and above average 16-, 17-, and 18-year-olds served as comparison groups. Students were given three algebra problems with solutions, followed by two…

This study involving 29 students enrolled in an 8-week summer Algebra II class for minority students was undertaken to determine the relationship between the kinds of symbolic forms used in problem-solving instruction and students' problem-solving processes and performance. All subjects were Black or Hispanic and were about to enter grade 11. For…

This paper describes a study of the connections between beliefs about mathematics, autonomy, and knowledge structures in mathematics. Assumptions underlying the study were (1) that students' beliefs and knowledge are constructs of the individual and play a dynamic role in the learning and doing of mathematics; and (2) that autonomy theoretically…

The relative contribution of students' capability to perceive structural versus surface similarity on their motivation transfer was studied. It was hypothesized that surface similarity would lead to greater transfer of self-efficacy among tasks due to its readily perceptible nature. More specifically, it was hypothesized that the perception of…