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March 1, 1996
Vol. 53
No. 6

Resources

Findings from The Condition of Education 1994

Findings from The Condition of Education 1994: High School Students Ten Years After A Nation at Risk (No. 1), The Educational Progress of Black Students (No. 2), America's Teachers Ten Years After A Nation at Risk (No. 3), Thomas M. Smith, National Center for Education Statistics, U.S. Department of Education.
Over the past decade, high school students have been enrolling in more numerous and more difficult courses, and have been learning more in mathematics and science, according to booklet No.1 of this three-part set. This follow-up to the scathing 1983 critique of education in the United States also brings bad news: Black students continue to lag behind white students in many areas, a gap that becomes particularly apparent between ages 9 and 17. But fewer black students are dropping out than a decade ago, and their parents are no less likely than those of white students to be involved in their schooling. Findings also show that teachers are better educated and they make more money: between 1980 and 1994, the average public school teacher's salary increased from $30,528 to $36,495.
Available from Superintendent of Documents, P.O. Box 371954, Pittsburgh, PA 15250-7954. (202) 512-1800; fax (202) 512-2250. S/N 065-000-00667-7. 1995. 14-22 pp. Paperbound, $30 for the set.

Handbook of Research on Improving Student Achievement

Handbook of Research on Improving Student Achievement, edited by Gordon Cawelti.
Contributors to this practical resource include experts in all major disciplines taught in elementary and secondary schools, including the arts, foreign language, health education, language arts, oral communication, and mathematics. The research findings are accompanied by specific applications to the classroom, as well as references. By taking this cross-disciplinary approach, the handbook encourages readers to try promising approaches from other subject areas. It also addresses generic practices, such as parent involvement, direct teaching, teaching of learning strategies, tutoring, and mastery learning.
This project was sponsored by the Alliance for Curriculum Reform, a group of 30 major professional subject-matter organizations that advocate voluntary national curriculum standards.
Available from the Educational Research Service, 2000 Clarendon Blvd., Arlington, VA 22201. (703) 243-2100; fax (703) 243-8316. 1995. 174 pp. Paperbound. $20 to teachers, administrators, board members, and other concerned persons in school districts or certain agencies; $40 to others (bulk discounts available).

How and Where Communities Can Begin to Address Youth Violence

How and Where Communities Can Begin to Address Youth Violence, compiled by Laurel Dean and Judy Wallace, Department of Applied Behavioral Sciences, Human Development and Family Studies, Cooperative Extension Service, University of California, Davis.
Recurrent themes in this annotated list of publications and organizations are early intervention; education of the whole child; character formation; and strengthening families, schools, and communities. Among the scores of resources aimed at educators: Alcohol and Drugs in the Public Schools and First Teachers: Parental Involvement in the Schools (National School Boards Organization); Crisis Intervention in the Schools and Student Aggression (Guilford Publications, New York); Gang Intervention Handbook and Growing Up, Developing Self-Esteem (Iowa State University Cooperative Extension Service, Ames); and Rebuilding Schools as Safe Havens (Regional Educational Laboratories, Oak Brook, Ill.).
Available from Publications, Division of Agriculture and Natural Resources, University of California, 6701 San Pablo Ave., Oakland, CA 94608-1239. (800) 994-8849; (510) 642-2431 from within California. 1995. 100 pp. Paperbound. $5.

Multicultural Education in New York State

Multicultural Education in New York State, Spring 1995 issue of the New York State ASCD semi-annual journal, Impact on Instructional Improvement, Henry F. Williams, guest editor.
The 12 contributors to this issue—including principals, department heads, and prominent educators—agree that there is no one model for multicultural education. Their varied angles range from a review of Multicultural Mathematics, the National Council of Teachers of Mathematics paperback; to a grade-by-grade look at multicultural infusion approaches; to textbook criteria proposed at the 1990 "Winds of Change" conference.
Impact's fall 1995 issue previewed "Curriculum for the 21st Century," and the spring 1996 Impact will explore "Inclusion in the Classroom."
Available from the New York State ASCD, 4 Captain Faldermeyer Court, Stony Point, NY 10980. (914) 942-1263. Spring 1995. Vol. 24, No. 2. 48 pp. Paperbound. $5 per copy; $4 each for 10 or more.

A Fine Line

A Fine Line: Losing American Youth to Violence, Charles Stewart Mott Foundation special report.
This is a special section reprinted from the foundation's 1994 Annual Report. The cover says it all: a yellow "Do Not Cross" police line, which is echoed by the plastic wrapping. The foundation has for many years offered grant support for violence prevention, including $5 million to the Children's Defense Fund in 1994 to create an African-American leadership network focused on children's needs. Among the three projects highlighted in this articulate and intelligent report is the Resolving Conflict Creativity Program of Roosevelt Middle School, 50 miles north of San Diego. This school-based, K–12 violence prevention curriculum is one of only a few such programs that has been subjected to at least some evaluation.
Available from Charles Stewart Mott Foundation, 1200 Mott Foundation Building, Flint, MI 48502-1851. 1995. Publications hotline: (810) 766-1766 (e-mail: infocenter@Mott.org). 44 pp. Paperbound. Free. Readers are also encouraged to contact the foundation if it "can be a resource on this issue" (810) 238-5651.

Planning for Effective Staff Development

Planning for Effective Staff Development: Six Research-Based Models, Meredith D. Gall and Roseanne O'Brien Vojtek.
This monograph, a substantially revised edition of Effective Staff Development (Gall and Renchler 1985), combines concise, readable analyses of recent research with practical wisdom. The six models are the expert presentation, clinical supervision, skills training, action research, organization development, and the change process. The authors go on to spell out staff development objectives for teachers and students, as well as for curriculum change and school restructuring.
Available from ERIC Clearinghouse on Educational Management, University of Oregon, 1787 Agate St., Eugene, OR 97403-5207. (800) 438-8841; fax (503) 346-2335. 1995. 54 pp. Paperbound. $6.95 + $3 shipping.

Supporting Beginning Teachers

Supporting Beginning Teachers: A Handbook for School Administrators, Ardra L. Cole, Francis A. Squire, and E. Patricia Cathers.
This practical resource features conversations with beginning and experienced teachers and school administrators, and a series of realistic scenarios. Topics include the changing needs and concerns of first year teachers; preparation; the workplace; roles of the principal, assistant principal, and department head; and such thorny issues as assistance vs. assessment, when and when not to intervene, and responsibility to others in the school. There's also a chart of approaches to support and development, planning worksheets, orientation checklists, and a bibliography.
Available from The Ontario Institute for Studies in Education, 252 Bloor Street West, Toronto, Ontario, Canada M5S IV6. (416) 533-5490. 1995. 64 pp. Paperbound.

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