In a recent report entitled "All Together Now: Collaboration and Innovation for Youth Engagement,": the Commission on Youth Voting & Civic Knowledge concluded that civic education is a shared responsibility of schools and other institutions. Data suggests, however, that more work is required to provide all young people with the…

Preparing the next generation of Americans to engage in their communities civically and politically is a shared responsibility. Although civic education takes place every day in homes and community centers, our nation's K-12 schools are in a unique position to nurture and reinforce the civic development of all young people. States influence their…

Writing is an essential skill for participating in modern American society. Although it is crucial to careers and civic engagement, student writing falls far short of national expectations (College Board, 2004; NCES, 2012; Persky, Daane, & Jin, 2003). The Common Core State Standards (CCSS) seek to increase the rigor of writing instruction…

Discusses how issues involved in establishing the type of master teacher evaluation system called for in Tennessee's Comprehensive Education Reform Act apply to reading specialists: arbitrary selection of measures and criteria for assessing teacher effectiveness; utilization of alternative approaches including self-, student, and observer…

Peer evaluators and multiple data sources are effective elements of Tennessee's career ladder system, but the assessment of teaching remains far from simple. (Author/TE)

The paper addresses issues concerned with increasing state interest in encouraging public institutions of higher education to demonstrate educational quality through outcomes assessment and reports on the development and implementation of Tennessee's program of performance funding. Emphasis is on guidelines contained within a 5-year performance…

Annually, ACT provides a snapshot of the college and career readiness of ACT-tested high school graduates. This report is offered as a service to inform policymakers and practitioners about selected indicators of effectiveness and how that translates into readiness. It is designed to stimulate discussion, inquiry, and action. This report for the…

A mediated peer coaching program implemented in rural Middle Tennessee in 1984-85 was designed to improve classroom instruction within the constraints imposed by poor, rural schools. Participants were 35 teachers in 9 rural schools, each assigned to a peer coaching team consisting of teachers in the same school but with different grade and/or…

This document is an orientation manual for the Career Ladder Counselor Evaluation System, a part of the Tennessee Career Ladder Better Schools Program. The evaluation system for guidance counselors was developed by using the best ideas from educational research and from counselors in Tennessee. The system was field tested in the fall of 1985.…

This manual is designed to provide Tennessee School administrators and supervisors with the information needed to understand the revised Career Ladder Evaluation System, and prepare them for the evaluation at Career Levels I and II. The manual covers the following information: (1) improvements of the revised system; (2) assumptions and principles;…

This book discusses four approaches to incorporating student achievement in teacher evaluation. Seven chapters discuss: (1) "Teacher Evaluation and Student Achievement: An Introduction to the Issues"; (2) "What is the Relationship between Teaching and Learning?" (e.g., whether teachers are responsible for student learning and…

This manual is designed to provide Tennessee teachers with the information needed to understand the revised Career Ladder Evaluation System and prepare them for the evaluation at Career Levels I and II. It includes the following information: (1) improvements in the revised version (1985-86); (2) fundamental beliefs and principles; (3) levels of…

A study was done of the possible uses of Total Quality Management (TQM) for enhancing the quality and use of college outcomes assessment in postsecondary institutions in Tennessee. The study involved six meetings of a consortium of assessment coordinators in Tennessee over 3 years, and graduate and employer questionnaire development. Researchers…

This State model for teacher evaluation meets the requirements of Tennessee's Comprehensive Education Reform Act of 1984 (CERA). Special guidelines, approved by the State Board of Education for the beginning year of CERA (1984-85), are incorporated into the State model for local evaluation. Groups who must be evaluated during the 1984-85 school…

Performance indicators used for state funding, past and present, of public colleges in Arkansas, Colorado, Florida, Kentucky, Louisiana, Minnesota, Missouri, Ohio, South Carolina, Tennessee, and Washington are reviewed to explore their intent and implications and to provide information for policymakers considering introducing or revising…