Showing papers on "Primary education published in 1982"

The Role of the Elementary School Principal in Program Improvement

Abstract: In the search for factors that influence school effectiveness, the role of the elementary school principal has emerged as critical. Yet the bulk of past research focused on that role has provided limited insights to explain how principals go about improving the effectiveness of their schools; surprisingly few studies have asked that question directly. Using a framework for planned change, this study assessed the status of knowledge about effective and ineffective principal behaviours. Obstacles that principals face in their attempts at school improvement were also reviewed. Results point to areas of existing knowledge in which confidence can be placed and to useful approaches to subsequent research

Programs of School Improvement: An Overview.

Abstract: E ducators have become increas ingly convinced that the charac teristics of schools are important determinants of academic achievement. Since 1978 an extraordinary number and variety of school improvement pro grams have concentrated on a school effects interpretation of the relationship between achievement and family back ground. Such programs represent a ma jor educational reform and derive from a fairly rapid educator acceptance of the research of Brookover and Lezotte (1977), Edmonds(1979), ftutter (1979), and a number of others who have stud ied characteristics of both effective and ineffective schools.

Parent Involvement: A Survey of Teacher Practices

Abstract: The Elementary School Journal Volume 83, Number 2 ? 1982 by The University of Chicago. All rights reserved. 001 3-5984183/8302-0009$01o.00 Teachers approach their instructional tasks with a variety of perspectives and strategies that emphasize certain aspects of teaching and deemphasize others. For example, some teachers teach language skills using organized games, while other teachers teach the same skills by direct instruction. Teachers adopt different approaches to the same subject matter partly because their teaching situations differ. Their students may have different learning problems or their classrooms may have varied resources and facilities. Even in the

Collaboration between Teachers and Parents in Assisting Children's Reading.

Abstract: Summary. A collaboration between teachers and parents was organised so that every child in two randomly chosen top infant classes at two schools (one class at each school), randomly allocated from six multiracial inner-city schools, was regularly heard reading at home from books sent by the class teacher. The intervention was continued for two years, i.e., until the end of the first year in the junior school. Comparison was made with the parallel classes at the same schools, and with randomly chosen classes at two schools, again randomly allocated, where children were given extra reading tuition in school. This report presents cross-sectional analyses which show a highly significant improvement by children who received extra practice at home in comparison with control groups, but no comparable improvement by children who received extra help at school. The gains were made consistently by children of all ability levels.

Valid Measurement Procedures for Continuous Evaluation of Written Expression

Abstract: The process of continually monitoring progress on IEP (individualized education program) objectives, modifying programs, and evaluating the effects of program modifications may well be the key to developing appropriate educational programs in the least restrictive environment. To test that hypothesis, the Institute for Research on Learning Disabilities at the University of Minnesota is engaged i~ research on approaches to developing individual education programs that emphasize continuous evaluation. of adjustments lP a student's program as the basis for improving services [Deno, Mirkin, & Shinn, 1979). A vital first step in the investigation was to answer two questions: First, what behaviors can be measured to monitor the effectiveness of learning disabilities services? Second, can procedures for measuring those behaviors be developed that are sufficiently valid and efficient for use in a formative evaluation system? A review of the literature revealed six approaches to scoring a writing sample that seemed promising as valid and easily obtainable indices of written expression. The first, Hunt's (1966) mean T-unit length, describes grammatical maturity. A second approach involves counting the number of words in a composition not found on Finn's (1972) undistinguished word list. We called these \"mature words.\" Support for the third measure, total number of words written in a composition, was reported by Myklebust (1965) and confirmed by factor analysis (Slotnick, 1972). Page (1968) argued that word length is related to one's skills in written expression; word length comprised the fourth index. Finally, the fifth and sixth pro.

The Effective Instruction of Comprehension: Results and Description of the Kamehameha Early Education Program.

Abstract: A READING PROGRAM for young children, which features systematic instruction in comprehension, has been developed for Polynesian Hawaiian children who have a potentially high risk for educational failure. The program (KEEP) was assessed in terms of three experiments: (1) a successive-cohorts analysis demonstrated the KEEP program superior to a phonics-based program; (2) an experimental vs. control design demonstrated superiority of the KEEP-laboratory school program over matched public school controls; and (3) when installed in public school classrooms, the KEEP program was superior to control classrooms under conditions of random student assignment. The program is described fully, with emphasis on its comprehension orientation, small-group format, direct teacher instruction, systematic instructional objectives, criterion referenced testing, and quality control of teacher performance. The KEEP program is carefully adapted to the cultural needs and abilities of Hawaiian children. Implications for development of instructional programs for other minority children are discussed.

Awareness of Text Structure: Effects on Children's Recall of Expository Text.

Abstract: THE PURPOSE of this research was to examine whether good and poor readers in elementary school are aware of text structure and whether an awareness of text structure influences recall. Twenty good readers were selected from both third grade and fifth grade, and 20 poor readers were selected from fifth grade. All subjects read and orally recalled two expository passages. Recalls were analyzed to determine how closely structure found in the retellings resembled the author's structure, as well as for proportionate retelling of superordinate and subordinate idea units. The results indicated that fifth-grade good readers are more aware of text structure and recall proportionately more total and superordinate idea units than fifthgrade poor or third-grade good readers. Further, fifth-grade poor readers displayed some awareness of text structure and recalled proportionately more superordinate ideas than third-grade good readers. Third-grade good readers did not display an awareness of text structure and recalled more subordinate than superordinate idea units. These results suggest that some young readers are aware of text structure and this awareness is correlated with recall of important textual information.

Mutuality in boys' friendship relations.

Abstract: NEWCOMB, ANDREW F., and BRADY, JUDITH E. Mutuality in Boys' Friendship Relations. CHILD DEVELOPMENT, 1982, 53, 392-395. Secondand sixth-grade boys were paired with a friend or an acquaintance (N = 120), and each dyad completed a problem-solving task under 1 of 3 incentive conditions-cooperative (shared rewards), competitive (proportional rewards), or no reward contingencies. Communicative exchange, affective expression, synchrony of taskoriented behavior, and task performance were examined for evidence of purported mutuality in children's friendship relations. Greater mutuality and social responsivity characterized the interactions of friends as compared with the interactions of acquaintances; however, developmental differences in responsivity and mutuality were not apparent in these 2 age groups. The reciprocal exchange between friends was present regardless of reward contingencies and appeared to culminate in better task performance for friendship pairs. The characteristics and function of mutuality in children's friendship relations were discussed.

Intellectually Talented Boys and Girls: Educational Profiles

Abstract: *We thank Robert M. Benbow, Lynn M. Daggett, Thelma V. DeCarlo, Lola L. Minor, Susan Perkins, and Paula Zak for helpful comments on this manuscript. In the 1920s Terman began his monumental longitudinal study of gifted children (Burks, Jensen, & Terman, 1930; Oden, 1968; R. R. Sears, 1977; P. S. Sears, 1979; Sears & Barbee, 1977; Terman, 1925; Terman & Oden, 1947, 1959), and Hollingworth began her classic investigation of children with IQs of 180 or more (Hollingworth, 1942). Both concluded that gifted children tended to become highly effective and productive adults. Fifty years later, the Study of Mathematically Precocious Youth (SMPY) initiated a similar investigation, but of mathematically gifted children and with an added component of providing educational facilitation for the students studied (Cohn, 1980; Stanley, 1977). The study was designed to be longitudinal, with a new cohort of junior-high-school students each year. An important aspect of any longitudinal research program is to describe the subjects initially because that provides baseline data. For the SMPY program, this characterization

Time Spent in Learning: Implications from Research

Abstract: Common sense suggests that the amount of time spent in learning is an important factor in determining a student's achievement. Theories of instruction and research findings confirm this observation. Many different measures of time have been examined, ranging from the number of days in a school year to the number of minutes students actually spend working successfully on specific tasks. This paper provides an overview of the research findings on time that are most relevant for administrators and teachers. Implications of this research for improving the use of time are also discussed. Three of the measures of time to be discussed concern the availability of time for instruction: school year, school day, and allocated time for a subject area. Much early research on time was concerned

Institutional Constraints and External Pressures Influencing Referral Decisions.

Abstract: Institutional constraints and external pressures perceived by public school teachers as influential in making referrals were identified in this research. Organizational factors, such as LEA procedures or the teacher's perception of the professional competence of referral recipients, and availability of services were cited as institutional constraints on referrals. Outside agency influences, federal or state requirements, and concerns of parents were cited as external pressures that influence referrals. The implications of these findings are discussed with regard to teacher concerns and professional practice.

A Naturalistic Study of Instructional Assistance in Primary-Grade Reading

Abstract: This role is implicit in much that is written about instruction. For instance, it is reflected in Good's (1979) call for \"active teaching,\" in Rosenshine's (1979) \"high structuring\" concept, in Gage's (1978) belief that teachers should facilitate student interaction with instructional materials, and in the lists of recommended steps that teachers should follow when implementing direct instruction (Anderson, Evertson, and Brophy 1979a). Teacher assistance is also implied in various models of instruction and learning. For example, Gagne and Briggs (1974) provide a definition of instruction that includes an event described as \"learning guidance.\" Carroll (1963) accounts for the assistance concept when he includes \"quality of instruction\" in his model of school learning, and Strasser (1967) implies that