Sample Abstract #1 The effects of a collaborative peer tutor teaching program on the self-concept and school-based attitudes of seventh-grade students at a large urban junior high school were explored…The study consisted of the 282 subjects enrolled in the seventh grade at a large urban junior high school. A self-concept scale was used to measure self-concept in [subjects. Another] scale was used to measure student tendency to drop out of school. Data were collected at two points during the semester. A post hoc analysis of subjects revealed that students in the program demonstrated significant improvement in dropout tendencies… “Effects of Collaborative Peer Tutoring on Urban Seventh Graders,” by Roswal, Mims, Evans, Smith, Young, Burch, Croce, Horvat & Block, (1995), cited in Patten, M.L., Educational & Psychological Research (1997), p. 144.

Sample Abstract #2 …The purpose of this study was to explore the environment for literacy in day care centers, its relationship with traditional measures of daycare quality and its influence on children’s cognitive and language development. Observation of the environments in the 30 community-based day care classrooms sampled revealed relatively impoverished environments. Correlation and multiple regression analysis indicated that settings of higher day care quality also had higher quality environments… “Quality of the Literacy Environment in Day Care and Children’s Development,” by Dunn, Beach & Kontos, cited in Patten, M.L., Educational & Psychological Research (1997), p. 88.

Sample Abstract #3 In a sample of 31 women and 35 men, those who scored higher on the Self-defeating Personality Scale reported having “dropped out” of useful activities more often and scored as less assertive on the Assertiveness Self-report Inventory. Women were more likely than men to report having experienced at least one self-defeating relationship. Attempts to replicate gender differences reported earlier were partially successful. The results provide additional validation for the Self-defeating Personality Scale… “Further Validation of the Self-defeating Personality Scale,” by McCutcheon, cited in Patten, M.L., Educational & Psychological Research (1997), p. 101.

Sample Abstract #4 The study analyzed the criteria used by an experienced teacher to acquire the knowledge necessary to teach. An interpretive analytic framework and case study methodology were used in this yearlong project with a midcareer teacher. Data were collected using a variety of ethnographic techniques, including: nonparticipant observations, artifact and document analysis, stimulated recall from videotapes, and formal and informal interviews… “Learning on the Job: An Analysis of the Acquisition of a Teacher’s Knowledge,” by Schempp, cited in Patten, M.L., Educational & Psychological Research (1997), p. 1.

Sample Abstract #5 …This study examines the school perspective of a set of families whose children dropped out. Working from audiotape-recorded interviews with 3 or more members of 12 families, the researchers describe a perspective that included a jaundiced view of education, a hostile view toward schooling, and a history of poor school performance at least two generations old… “Dropping Out: Another Side of the Story,” by Okey & Cusick, cited in Patten, M.L., Educational & Psychological Research (1997), p. 13.

Sample Abstract #6 … little is known about parents’ expectations for their adolescent children in the areas of future living arrangements, employment/education goals, and social relationships. The researchers also wanted to know if there were differences in the expectations of mothers of adolescents with severe disabilities and mothers of non-labeled adolescents. Forty mothers were interviewed and the data were analyzed… “Mothers’ Expectations for Their Adolescent Children: A Comparison Between Families with Disabled Adolescents and Those with Non-Labeled Adolescents,” by Lehman & Baker, cited in Patten, M.L., Educational & Psychological Research (1997), p. 33.