In 1985 the Arizona Legislature established a 5-year Career Ladder Program for teachers. The purpose of the pilot is to determine if student academic achievement is enhanced through recognizing and developing high levels of teacher performance and through a "promotion system based on comptence". The overall research and evaluation…

Research for this paper was undertaken to determine whether the black suburban growth during the 1970's was primarily a process of dispersal or concentration--that is, did blacks disperse into exclusively white neighborhoods or did they tend to concentrate in suburbs that already contained significant black populations. Census data from 1970 and…

In response to a request by the United States Senate Committee on Labor and Human Resources, the General Accounting Office (GAO) examined the methodological soundness of current population estimates of the number of homeless chronically mentally ill persons, and proposed several options for estimating the size of this population. The GAO reviewed…

Several reference librarians respond to the Hernon and McClure study on the accuracy of library reference services. Highlights include problems with the methodology used (unobtrusive observation), and performance factors not addressed by the study. Comments by Hernon and McClure address these responses and ways to improve reference services are…

Issues involved in applying the needs assessment model of the Colorado Social Health Survey to planning and management in Massachusetts are reviewed. The methodology in this special issue provides a new paradigm for mental health needs assessment in general and will be valuable in the Massachusetts plan specifically. (SLD)

Described is an ongoing study of monozygotic and dizygotic twins, separated in infancy and reared apart. Discussed are the procedures and results of this study with interpretations of the results. The effects of parenting, education, and other interventions are considered. (CW)

Utilizing the regression-discontinuity research design, this article explores the effectiveness of a developmental English program in a large, multicampus community college. Routinely collected data were extracted from existing records of a cohort of first-time college students followed for approximately 6 years (N = 1,473). Results are consistent…

Third in a series, the monograph summarizes the key evaluation issues, design approaches, and statistical techniques used in conducting the 1980-1983 impact evaluation of Indian Education Act Title IV Part A programs. The monograph describes the major problems in evaluating the program to determine the degree of its positive contribution to…

This report is based on selected surveys of research practices used in eight countries (Canada, France, Germany, Japan, The Netherlands, Sweden, the United Kingdom and the United States). It is designed as a technical approach to help both scientists and decision makers unfamiliar with these procedures to define the most relevant practices in…

Despite years of litigation the desegregation of United States public schools remains unfinished. Even after court-ordered desegregation, a school district may remain segregated through various practices such as ability grouping and selective discipline of minority children. These second generation discrimination or resegregation practices have an…

This survey was conducted to provide the National Science Foundation with baseline information on current computer use in the nation's major research universities, including the actual and potential use of supercomputers. Questionnaires were sent to 207 doctorate-granting institutions; after follow-ups, 167 institutions (91% of the institutions…

This research project estimated migrant and seasonal agricultural workers in four Midwestern States in 1988, using the Public Health Service's definitions of such workers. Researchers collected federal agricultural data and state reports on migrant education programs and crop patterns, and considered other potential data sources. Numerous…

Describes the many sources of data available to school districts for enrollment planning and suggests a way to use them in planning new facilities. Among the sources cited are census data; building permits; migration; and surveys of districts, utilities, and residences. (MLF)

This study examines personality characteristics of women in nontraditional careers, investigates deviations over a decade, and compares personality profiles of women to profiles of general adult men. Four occupational groups from an original 1972 study are examined--real estate, management, accounting, and university professors--and further…

According to researchers, the principal's leadership and the perceptions of the school staff are important in effective schools. A method for uncovering personal perceptions called ethnographic semantics is described. Findings from a study in which this methodology was used are presented. Includes three tables and two figures. (MD)