Programmed achievement using a within-class control

College students operated under different contingencies in the same classroom. The Programmed Achievement (PA) condition required students to evidence criterion performance (100% mastery) on 12 Chapter quizzes. Failure to evidence mastery performance on any of the quizzes resulted in the loss of a letter grade off the final course grade. The control condition involved a more traditional college classroom structure where students took chapter quizzes with no requirement to evidence mastery. A third group of low achievement students, identified at midterm, operated under control conditions the first half of the semester and were subsequently shifted to the PA contingency the second half of the semester. The results revealed only a slight superiority for PA students over controls and both PA and Control students demonstrated significantly better performance when compared to that of low achievement students prior to midterm. However, following the PA shift these subjects evidenced performance equivalent to that of the other two groups. Procedural and theoretical implications of these data were discussed.     

Cognitive Theory and the Use of Computers in the Primary Classroom

Research investigating the role of computers in the primary classroom is closely linked to the body of knowledge concerned with theories of learning and child development. Research is presented as an attempt to provide scientifically supportable reasons why computers are effective in education. Having established a theoretical base for computer use in primary classrooms, this paper then examines the educational application of cognitive theory to classroom instruction.     

Imagining Democratic Futures for Public Universities: Educational Leadership Against Fatalism's Temptations

At current rates, almost all U.S. public universities could reach a point of zero state subsidy within the next fifty years. What is a public university without public funding? In this essay, Kathleen Knight Abowitz considers the future of public universities, drawing upon the analysis provided in John Dewey's Democracy and Education. Knight Abowitz conducts an initial institutional analysis through two broad prisms: that of the political landscape that authorizes universities as public institutions, and that of the present political–economic context of public education in general and public universities in particular. Dewey's conception of democratic education is then explored; his arguments regarding aims, experience, thinking, and social intelligence provide important tools for imagining the democratic futures of public universities today.     

Longitudinal Relations Among Parenting Styles,Prosocial Behaviors,and Academic Outcomes in U.S. Mexican Adolescents

This article examined parenting styles and prosocial behaviors as longitudinal predictors of academic outcomes in U.S. Mexican youth. Adolescents (N = 462; Wave 1 M_age = 10.4 years; 48.1% girls), parents, and teachers completed parenting, prosocial behavior, and academic outcome measures at 5th, 10th, and 12th grades. Authoritative parents were more likely to have youth who exhibited high levels of prosocial behaviors than those who were moderately demanding and less involved. Fathers and mothers who were less involved and mothers who were moderately demanding were less likely than authoritative parents to have youth who exhibited high levels of prosocial behaviors. Prosocial behaviors were positively associated with academic outcomes. Discussion focuses on parenting, prosocial behaviors, and academic attitudes in understanding youth academic performance.