Interaction of race with other variables on achievement in school

This study was concerned with academic performance in black and white children and the interactions of race with other variables on school achievement. Subjects were 334 blacks and 637 whites in grades three to six. Data consisted of general background information and grade equivalent scores on the California Achievement Tests. They were analyzed using multiple re- gression analysis of variance. Results indicated that blacks scored lower than whites and fell farther behind as they progressed from grade to grade. Significant interactions were revealed for sex, social class, family structure, and teachers. Means for black children were generally less variable than for white children.     

Heterogeneity or Homogeneity

While research has focused on the effects of diversity on individual and group level outcomes, there has been little inquiry concerning the organizational level. Cox (1994) states that the most frequently asked question by executives regarding workforce diversity involves how it affects the performance of organizations. In order to manage the growing diversity of the workforce, organizations need to implement systems and practices so that the potential advantages of diversity are maximized and the potential disadvantages are minimized (Cox, 1994). While the goal of these programs is organizational success, from a human resource perspective they introduce unique challenges. In particular, these challenges relate to activities such as the socialization of culturally diverse employees. Therefore, in an effort to increase understanding of the effects of cultural diversity on organizational performance, this paper examines the moderating impact of socialization tactics on the relationship between cultural diversity and firm performance.     

Perceptions of Reform-Based Teaching and Learning in a College Mathematics Class

This study investigated, from the students',professor's, and researchers' perspectives, the effects of a reform-based introductory undergraduate mathematics course, and the efforts of a mathematics professor to teach such a course. The class had been designed for teacher candidates of middle school mathematics and science (Grades 4 to 8) but was open to all qualified students. We addressed the following research question: What perceptions about learning and teaching mathematics emerged through the participants' experiences in a reform-based mathematics course? Results of the analysis of the data suggested that the teacher candidates and the professor took an important first step toward enculturation into a reform-based vision of mathematics learning and teaching. Implications for mathematics faculty and teacher education faculty interested in promoting reform-based mathematics are presented.     

Towards an Internet‐based Education Model for Caribbean Countries

Advances in the development of the Internet infrastructure can be used within developing countries to enhance the delivery of high quality education to their citizens. The mechanisms used to deliver educational material, over the Internet, range from the very sophisticated Virtual Classrooms (VCs) in which students in cyberspace interact in near real‐time with instructors at remote sites, to the basic non real‐time delivery of lecture contents. In Caribbean territories where the concentration of high‐quality teachers and teaching facilities are in and around urban cities, VCs can be used to enhance the access of students in remote areas to the materials, experiences, and facilities provided at the urban centers. We present a model for virtual classrooms, which is specifically geared toward Caribbean territories. This model leverages the usage of alternative low‐cost technology to offer VC environment to teaching institutions in remote rural districts via the Internet.     

Using guided notes with academically at‐risk high school students during a remedial summer social studies class

This study evaluated the effects guided notes on the performance of academically at‐risk high school students during a remedial summer American History class. The study compared students' own notetaking strategies with that of short‐ and long‐form guided notes. Three students were selected for data collection due to their low baseline notetaking accuracy and quiz scores and a history of severe learning problems: One was enrolled in special education programs for developmental disabilities and the other two were enrolled in English as a Second Language programs (ESL). A modified ABAB reversal design with an imbedded alternating treatments design during intervention (A. E. Kazdin, 1982) was used to compare the effects of students' notetaking accuracy and daily quiz scores while taking their own notes with the effects of responding under the short‐ and long‐form guided notes. The results indicated that both guided notes procedures were successful at increasing the accuracy of students' notes, improving session quiz scores, and were overwhelmingly preferred when compared with students taking their own notes. Differences were the number of concepts written correctly. Practical considerations and implications for adoption in the classroom were discussed. © 1999 John Wiley & Sons, Inc.     

Development and factor structure of a self-report measure for assessing internalizing symptoms of elementary-age children

The development and factor structure of the Internalizing Symptoms Scale for Children (ISSC), a new self-report measure for assessing internalizing symptomatology in children, is detailed. Development of the ISSC was driven by the lack of a children's self-report instrument designed specifically to assess the broad domain of internalizing symptomatology, as well as research findings showing a high degree of comorbidity among internalizing syndromes (e.g., depression, anxiety, somatic complaints, social withdrawal). Thorough and methodologically rigorous procedures were employed during the development of the ISSC to ensure strong content validity as well as clinical utility. Exploratory and confirmatory factor analytic procedures were utilized on the 54-item ISSC research protocol, resulting in a strong two factor solution for the 48 items retained. Factor 1, Negative Affect/General Distress, includes items that indicate the presence of internalizing symptoms, or in some cases, the absence of optimistic or functional emotional states. Factor 2, Positive Affect, includes items describing positive affect incompatible with internalizing symptoms, or in some cases, items that reflect the absence of internalizing symptoms. Results of the factor analyses are discussed in terms of previous research on affectivity and specific internalizing syndromes or disorders. Potential uses of the ISSC, as well as further research needed, are described. Implications of the present investigation for future assessment and classification studies in the area of child psychopathology are reviewed. © 1997 John Wiley & Sons, Inc.