Alternative schools for troublesome secondary students

Results of a field experiment indicate that a certain kind of secondary school program reduced the disruptive behavior and improved the scholastic performance of students who were about to be suspended or expelled from their conventional schools. The research indicates that the program was demonstrably effective only with those students who were not at the outset extremely depressed and anxious. The essential characteristics of the program are described. The findings document the social psychological processes by which the program achieved its goals. Implications are drawn for a typology of delinquency; causes of delinquent and disruptive behavior; stigmatization; the possibility of an educational program being effective without the direct involvement of disruptive students' families or friends; and for some recurring questions regarding the design of alternative educational programs.     

Caught between a rock and a hard place: disruptive boys’ views on mainstream and special schools in New South Wales,Australia

Students with disruptive behaviour in the Australian state of New South Wales (NSW) are increasingly being educated in separate ‘behaviour’ schools. There is however surprisingly little research on how students view these settings, or indeed the mainstream schools from which they were excluded. To better understand excluded students’ current and past educational experiences, we interviewed 33 boys, aged between 9 and 16 years of age, who were enrolled in separate special schools for students with disruptive behaviour. Analyses reveal that the majority of participants began disliking school in the early years due to difficulties with schoolwork and teacher conflict. Interestingly, while most indicated that they preferred the behaviour school, more than half still wanted to return to their old school. It is therefore clear that separate special educational settings are not a solution to disruptive behaviour in mainstream schools. Whilst these settings do fulfil a function for some students, the preferences of the majority of boys suggest that ‘mainstream’ school reform is of first-order importance.     

Research to practice: understanding the role of implicit bias in early childhood disciplinary practices

Racial inequity has long been an issue in the educational system. In recent years, researchers and policy makers have begun to recognize the role of implicit bias in the disproportionate number of African American children who are suspended or expelled from school. Particular attention is being given to the use of exclusionary practices in early childhood settings. This article defines implicit bias, its relationship to exclusionary practices in early education programs, and offers specific recommendations for teachers, practitioners, administrators, and policy makers as they attempt to reduce the effect of implicit bias on suspension and expulsion policies within states, districts, and schools.     

Using computer-assisted instruction to enhance achievement of English language learners

Computer-assisted instruction (CAI) in English-Language environments offer practice time, motivates students, enhance student learning, increase authentic materials that students can study, and has the potential to encourage teamwork between students. The findings from this particular study suggested that students who used computer assisted program had a greater chance of closing achievement gap and meeting NCLB requirements than those students who did not use computer-assisted instruction. Additionally, the students that used computer-assisted classroom instruction gained scores in reading and math. Based on these findings, teachers, school administrators, and other educational stakeholder should explore strategies for technology integration to close the achievement gap.     

PRINCIPAL ATTITUDES REGARDING ZERO TOLERANCE AND RACIAL DISPARITIES IN SCHOOL SUSPENSIONS

Zero tolerance school discipline practices have been associated with a national increase in suspensions, a practice that has had a disproportionate negative impact on Black students. The present study investigated an association between principal attitudes toward zero tolerance and suspension rates for White and Black students in 306 Virginia high schools. Black suspension rates were more than double White suspension rates. Regression analyses controlling for student poverty and school enrollment showed that principal endorsement of zero tolerance was moderately associated with suspension rates for both White and Black students, but was not associated with the size of the racial disparity. Paired‐samples t tests showed statistically significant differences in the types of offenses that resulted in suspensions, with Black students significantly more likely to be suspended for disruptive offenses and White students more likely to be suspended for alcohol‐ and drug‐related offenses.     

Aspiring School Administrators' Perceived Ability to Meet Technology Standards and Technological Needs for Professional Development

The merits of technology in general and of educational technology specifically are well documented. The use of educational technology has been shown to improve teaching and learning and the overall educational quality of schools. However, the successful integration of educational technology in schools hinges on school administrators' technology leadership abilities. The purpose of this study was to investigate aspiring school administrators' perceived ability to meet technology standards established by ISTE Standards for Administrators (formerly known as the NETS·A) and to determine which standards they wished to pursue for future professional development. Utilizing the ISTE Standards–A as a framework, a survey was created to decipher how aspiring school administrators perceived their own abilities to become leaders with foundational technology leadership skills. The findings showed that (a) the aspiring school administrators were more likely to indicate a need for professional development in technology utilization to meet the standards than they were to indicate their perceived current competence in meeting the technology standards and effectively utilizing technology in their schools; (b) when interests were examined by race, African American aspiring school administrators were more interested in pursuing professional development to enhance their abilities to perform the tasks than were Caucasian aspiring school administrators; and (c) there was a statistically significant difference between aspiring school administrators' average Perception and Interest scores. It appeared that in general, the participants perceived a greater need for professional development in technology standards than their perceived current ability to perform the standards.     

Doctoral Programs: What Factors Attract Students

ABSTRACT

The study surveyed (questionnaire) 222 doctoral business students from private and public universities in Northeastern United States. The objective was to identity important criteria used to select a university. In addition, this study compared the responses of students from these schools to determine whether selection criteria differ.

Using a Likert scale of important to unimportant, students from these universities rated ten of the 52 criteria important to their selection. They included: programs, academic reputation, degree marketability, faculty contact time, accreditations, assistantship/campus employment, financial aids, placement reputation, completion time, and library size. However, they rated academic reputation and completion time significantly different. The private school students rated academic reputation significantly (0.00) more important, whereas the public school students rated completion time significantly (0.03) more important.

To attract prospective private school students to public schools, public school administrators would benefit by emphasizing the quality and reputation of its faculty and programs. Private school administrators are likely to attract more students if they are able to improve the quality and increase the quantity of computer facilities. Moreover, they would profit from designing flexible programs and classes that would allow for a more rapid completion time.     

Information Access: A Project to Promote Interlibrary Information

Conclusion Library media specialists, teachers, students, university librarians, public librarians, and administrators have worked together resulting in the establishment of an information network linking major centers of information in the Cache Valley. Middle school and high school students can now access a much broader collection of current periodicals and reference materials. University library patrons and staff have access to curriculum materials for use in teacher education programs, children’s literature materials, and educational research. Public library patrons and staff have access to specialized periodicals and curriculum materials. The project has demonstrated that it is possible to “work together ” to build an information environment that benefits the entire community     

Allocation of students in public schools: Theory and new evidence

The allocation of educational resources to students of different socio-economic backgrounds has important policy implications since it affects individual educational outcomes as well as the future distribution of human capital. In this paper, we present a theoretical model showing that local school administrators have an incentive to allocate weaker students to smaller classes. Then, using a rich individual-level dataset on secondary public schools in Israel, we provide evidence that weaker students are, indeed, systematically placed in smaller classes, thus exhibiting a compensatory allocation scheme. Moreover, schools with enrollment levels just over cut-off points induced by a maximum class size rule are systematically weaker than schools with enrollment levels just under those cut-offs. This finding indicates that not only do local school administrators allocate students into classes in a compensatory manner, but they also manipulate the class-size rule to achieve such an allocation. Potential implications of these results are discussed.     

Special Education Integration: The Arezzo Approach

Interviews were conducted in three schools in Arezzo, Italy to determine progress in the integration of students with a disability in regular class settings. Thirteen parents, seven teachers and three school administrators were interviewed. Findings indicated strong teacher and administrative support for integration, a good collaborative relationship between regular and special education teachers, and a focus on social development in the elementary grades. Concerns were expressed about insufficient supportive services at the middle and secondary school levels as well as less tolerance for students with a disability. Arezzo has made significant progress toward integration but program development is needed at the secondary level.     

Transforming administration to support science in the schoolhouse for students with disabilities

I examine the role that administrators play in facilitating the development, adoption, use, and evaluation of scientifically based interventions within the school culture to support the educational outcomes of students with learning disabilities (LD). Two ways of transforming the administrative role to support science in the schoolhouse are presented; one considers the importance of including language in future legislation that acknowledges the role of administrators in school reform, and the other focuses on establishing a national research agenda addressing issues of leadership and special education. I argue that these 2 venues should serve to identify and to stimulate the use of evidence-based administrative practices that ultimately increase educational outcomes for students with LD, improve teacher instruction, and transform the leadership mission.     

French immersion: Bilingual education and unilingual administration

By virtue of their organization, growth, and continued success, French immersion programs represent more than a second-language learning methodology; they are and ought to be recognized as programs of bilingual education. This means that their effectiveness ought to be measured by generally accepted criteria of educational effectiveness. These include, among other things, the degree of staff integration in the school culture and the quality of leadership provided by the school principal. But the majority of schools offering bilingual education programs are administered by unilingual or by theoretically bilingual administrators; this can deprive the French component of much needed leadership and create situations in which the level of ambiguity is high and the possibility of integration into the school culture is low. An effort to gradually ensure that bilingual education benefits from bilingual administration would be a step in the direction of recognizing the maturity of French immersion.     

美国基础教育阶段择校的最新发展与实施成效

近二十年来,择校在美国规模不断扩大,形式日趋多样。除学券计划外,各种税收抵免和教育储蓄账户应运而生,一部分公立学校也打开校门,实施"开放入学"政策。每种择校形式内,又有不同的变式。不过,由于家长和学生的择校标准不同于决策者的假设,各校也想办法选择成绩较优或家庭背景较好的学生,所以择校在某种程度上没有实现预期的效果。它很少服务于最贫困、最需要帮助的学生,在推动公立学校改革方面作用有限。     

At-Risk Students Attending Second Chance Programs: Measuring Performance in Desired Outcome Domains

Meeting the educational needs of at-risk secondary students is a challenge for many states. Some states have blended school reform policies, such as school choice, with specific programs for students at risk of school failure. One blended school choice option that has been in operation for nearly a decade is Minnesota's Second Chance Option. This option allows students at risk of school failure the opportunity to choose alternative programs designed to meet their needs; however, little is known about the effectiveness of these programs. In this article, findings from a study examining a broad array of outcomes for students attending Minnesota's second-chance school choice option for at-risk secondary students are presented. Student performance was assessed in 7 outcome areas, using a model developed by the University of Minnesota's National Center on Educational Outcomes. Students at 3 representative alternative school sites were assessed in the fall and spring of an academic year to determine their level of student performance. This article addresses the performance of persisters (those who remained in the programs) and dropouts, the use of the model for accountability, and the effectiveness of second-chance programs.     

Science in the schoolhouse: the critical role of the school leader

School-level administrative support has been identified as an essential component of programs that promote research to practice. In this discussion, I address the critical role that school leaders play in supporting special educators and ensuring effective instruction for students with learning disabilities. Emphasis is placed on the need for teachers to be supported by administrators who are knowledgeable about special education and for administrators to receive the preparation and guidance they require to support science in contemporary schools.     

School demographic variables and out‐of‐school suspension rates: A quantitative and qualitative analysis of a large,ethnically diverse school district

This study examined out‐of‐school suspensions (OSS) in a large, ethnically diverse school district using both quantitative and qualitative procedures. Pearson product moment correlations and semi‐partial correlations were used to identify those school‐level variables that showed the strongest relationships to the duplicated OSS rate among elementary schools (n = 97) and secondary schools (n = 45). Additionally, interviews were conducted with administrators and student support personnel from the 24 schools in the district with the highest suspension rates and 24 demographically matched schools with significantly lower suspension rates. The majority of these schools served a high percentage of children from low socioeconomic backgrounds. Although the correlational analyses indicated that student demographic variables (e.g., percentage of White students, percentage of Black students, percentage of students receiving free or reduced price lunch) were strongly related to a school's suspension rate, the school comparisons showed that not all schools serving a high percentage of children placed at risk have high suspension rates. Implications of the findings for school discipline reform are discussed. © 2002 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.     

Assessment of special educational needs integration by the educational community in Spain

The study collected and contrasted the opinions of different sectors of the educational community about the functioning and integration of students with special educational needs. In order to do this, a broad questionnaire was sent to teachers of diverse educational stages, to counsellors, parents and to students, both with and without special educational needs. The objective was to examine the respondents’ approach to mainstream integration and their opinions about how their school operated. At the same time, the study examined their opinion concerning the work of the teachers, the learning and social development of the students, the relationships with families and the input of the education authorities. Barriers which create difficulties for educational integration were assessed.     

Does school choice increase the rate of youth entrepreneurship?

Because entrepreneurial activity is a key source of economic growth, promoting youth entrepreneurship has become a priority for policymakers. School choice programs force administrators and teachers to be more entrepreneurial in their jobs by encouraging innovation and by creating competition and a more business-like environment in K-12 education. Does going to school in this climate make students more likely to become entrepreneurs? In this paper we test whether youth entrepreneurship rates are higher in counties with school choice programs. We find that voucher programs create higher rates of youth entrepreneurship, while charter schools do not, relative to traditional public schools.