The purposes of this study were to examine the relations of both family and school contexts on students' academic achievement and to explore the mediating effects of students' perceptions of their motivations and academic self-competence between the family and school contexts and achievement. Participants were 230 fifth-and sixth-grade students. Students' perceptions of parenting style (demandingness and responsiveness), parental involvement (parental values and involvement in school functions), teaching style (teacher control and responsiveness), and school atmosphere (school responsiveness and supportive social environment) significantly predicted their school achievement; however, students' motivations and self-competence mediated the relations between students' contexts and their academic achievement. Furthermore, parental values, teacher responsiveness, school responsiveness, and supportive social environment predicted students' motivations and academic competence above and beyond parenting style, parental involvement, and teacher control. The importance of students' supportive relationships and the internalization of the messages conveyed to them underscore the need for a contextual view by school psychologists when consulting with parents and education staff regarding achievement concerns. © 2001 John Wiley & Sons, Inc. Over the past 20 years, researchers have made considerable advances in their understanding of the contextual factors that influence children's school achievement; yet, that knowledge is only recently influencing psychological practice in the schools. Individual influences of parent, teacher, and school factors on achievement are well documented in the educational and developmental literature (Eccles, Wigfield, & Schiefele, 1998;Steinberg, 2000): students' school achievement is related to their perceptions of parenting style and parental involvement (e.g., Carlson, 1990;Dornbusch, Ritter, Leiderman, Roberts, & Fraleigh, 1987;Grolnick & Ryan, 1989;Paulson, 1994;Stevenson & Baker, 1987;Wentzel, 1994), to teaching style and the classroom environment (e.g., Goodenow, 1993;Ryan & Grolnick, 1986;Rutter, 1983;Wentzel, 1997), and to school climate (e.g., Epstein & McPartland, 1976;Roeser, Midgley, & Maehr, 1994). However, an ecological perspective of child development (Bronfenbrenner, 1979(Bronfenbrenner, , 1986 would suggest that understanding children's perceptions of any single context is not sufficient for understanding children's performance in school. Despite continued suggestions to study the influence of the combination of contextual factors (Anderman & Anderman, 2000;Bronfenbrenner & Crouter, 1983;Epstein, 1983;Steinberg, 2000), few multicontextual studies of children's achievement have been conducted. Microsystem models (see Bronfenbrenner & Crouter, 1983 for a description of ecological models of research) are used most frequently in establishing the relations of any given context (family, classroom, or school) with children's achievement. However, mesosystem models, defined as "one tha...

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The purposes of this study were to examine the perceived congruence among middle school students' perceptions of parenting style, teaching style, and school atmosphere and to examine differences between resulting clusters of students on the importance of grades, academic competence, and school achievement. Participants were 230 fifth- and sixth-grade students whose perceptions of their contexts were cluster analyzed. Students who perceived congruent authoritative parenting and teaching styles accompanied by high parental involvement and a positive school atmosphere had the highest achievement outcomes. Students who perceived incongruent styles between their parents and teachers (neglecting parenting and authoritarian teaching) accompanied by low parental involvement and a negative school atmosphere had the lowest achievement outcomes. No gender or socioeconomic differences were found among the clusters. The importance of studying students' achievement within multiple contexts is discussed.

Recent studies have provided evidence for the reliability and validity of Hare's Psychopathy Checklist, Revised (PCL-R) for forensic samples. The present study investigated PCL-R psychometric properties among Caucasian and African-American adolescent males from forensic and school settings. The clinical utility of the PCL-R was investigated in terms of predicting future delinquency above and beyond data that are more readily available. Good reliability and validity for the PCL-R were found. PCL-R Total and Factors scores were greatest for participants with conduct disorder, followed by those with oppositional defiant disorder, with the smallest scores observed for participants with neither disorder. In a 1-year follow-up, PCL-R scores accounted for a unique proportion of the variance in juvenile criminal justice sentencing above and beyond the baseline number of delinquent acts recorded in juvenile criminal justice records and above a baseline disruptive behavior diagnosis continuum score. Compared to conduct disorder diagnosis, the PCL-R psychopath threshold score provided much better sensitivity with only slightly worse specificity for predicting delinquency during the 1-year follow-up.

The current study examined the effect of high school graduation exams on states' graduation rates, states' aggregated SAT scores, and individual students' SAT scores. Three data sources were used: One source identified states requiring a standardized test for graduation; the NCES provided state aggregated data on graduation rates for the class of 2002; and the College Board provided its 2001 SAT database for all test-takers. After controlling for students' demographic characteristics (e.g., race, family education and income, GPA and class rank), regression analyses revealed that states requiring graduation exams had lower graduation rates and lower SAT scores. Individually, students from states requiring a graduation exam performed more poorly on the SAT than did students from states not requiring an exam. The impact of high stakes tests' on students' motivation to stay in school and on the teaching of critical thinking skills (tested by the SAT) are discussed.Education Policy Analysis Archives Vol. 13 No. 6 2 A major event impacting an adolescent's passage into adulthood is graduation from high school. The high school diploma is a credential of responsibility, perseverance, and completion of years of education. It is a tool for potential employers, it is a stepping-stone for higher education, and it is a status symbol and certificate of self worth. Current educational policies, including those contained in the No Child Left Behind federal mandate, seek to improve the educational quality for the nation's schools. However, educational accountability, could threaten the future of many adolescents. High schools requiring standardized examinations for graduation and diplomas could be putting some of their students at a disadvantage by encouraging dropping out of school, or by focusing the curriculum in a way that facilitates performance on the exam at the expense of critical thinking skills, including those assessed by the SAT. On the other hand, the implementation of graduation exams may improve students' performance on other high stakes tests, such as the SAT, by helping to motivate students to achieve more demanding standards and provide them with valuable test taking experience.Minimal research has looked at the effect of high stakes testing on graduation rates, and only one study has attempted to look at the effect of high school graduation examinations on SAT scores (Amrein & Berliner, 2002). Furthermore, studies that do explore the relations between high stakes tests and students' achievement outcomes often ignore the confounding effects of demographic factors such as race, family income, and student ability (GPA and class rank). The purpose of the current study was to examine the effect of high school graduation exams on states' graduation rates, states' aggregated SAT scores, and on individual students' SAT scores. In addition, several demographic factors known to impact students' test results and graduation rates were included. High Stakes TestsThe American Educational Research Association (2000...