A study was conducted to improve the link between basic skill instruction and entry into various vocational training programs. Data were collected from the following sources: current professional literature; developers and publishers of adult basic education (ABE) instructional materials; consultations with experts in the fields of adult literacy,…

This summary report presents methodologies, results, and conclusions of a two-year evaluation model implemented by an Alberta, Canada, rural school district to provide information for administrative and public decision making. An introductory chapter enumerates district goals for students and the model's objectives. Chapter 2 outlines how survey…

Descriptive correlational research employing a mailed questionnaire was used to study perceptions of agricultural education professionals regarding Swaziland's preservice teacher education program in agriculture. Areas examined were student selection, student teaching, inservice education, teacher educators, coordination and linkage with other…

This survey project of 129 randomly selected school systems in Ontario, Canada, investigates: (1) dominant patterns among secondary principals' practices and their effectiveness in the improvement of school processes and outcomes; (2) differences in practices between elementary and secondary school principals; (3) factors determining secondary…

In view of the emphasis on money as a motivator mentioned in reports examining theoretical notions about teacher motivation, this paper focuses on the efficacy of using salary to attract quality teacher candidates. Although standarized testing and internship programs often supplement inadequate certification requirements, critics question the…

This study examined instructional leadership in eight diverse secondary schools in four urban, suburban, and small-city school districts in one western state. The aim was to gain access to a set of schools that provided both variety in instructional leadership and diversity in school size, organization, grade level, faculty and student…

A variety of adults were surveyed on alternative strategies for the State of Louisiana's minimum competency testing program. Both individual and group interviews were conducted with teachers, local school district supervisors and program administrators, parents, and state board of education members. Participants discussed what a state testing…

The development of continuing education programs for school administrators has traditionally relied on the formal survey and the utilization of small samples of practicing administrators to provide direction to program planners in designing inservice activities. The purpose of this study was to investigate the feasibility, validity, and…

This paper reports on a study of the 1980 Maryland State Department of Education school improvement project utilizing Mastery Learning. It examines the instructional process implementation, the impact of one pilot school, and the statewide program through observation, surveys, interviews, document analysis, and participant self-reports. Data were…

The purpose of this study was to investigate the effect of group counseling using structured activities on the self-concept of disadvantaged postsecondary students enrolled in vocational-technical schools. Volunteers meeting Comprehensive Employment and Training Act (CETA) and Basic Educational Opportunity Grant (BEOG) definitions of…

A 20-year retrospective study indicates that the Cleveland Scholarship Program (CSP) has been significant in enabling lower income students to complete a college education at rates higher than those reported for the United States as a whole. CSP provides advisors who work individually with financially disadvantaged seniors in all Cleveland (Ohio)…

A project consisting of two followup studies, a literature review, and a pilot study was conducted to evaluate the occupational orientation curriculum and occupational orientation teacher education programs currently in existence in Texas and to recommend changes needed to update them. Various survey instruments were administered to participants…

The effectiveness of an instructional improvement project in the Greeley-Evans Schools, Colorado, was studied. Teachers were provided inservice education in a class called the Essentials of Instruction. Recognizing that receiving training was not the same as being an implementer of the innovation, the Levels of Use instrument identified teachers…

The Action Research on Change in Schools (ARCS) project was a collaborative action research study that involved two levels of research: a specific research project in each of two junior high schools in Michigan and New Hampshire, and a simultaneous study of the collaborative action research process itself as it relates to teachers' individual…

The results of different types of reading achievement measures were compared for 58 low-income urban black third graders. Two formal tests were administered: the norm-referenced California Achievement Tests (CAT), and the criterion-referenced Alabama Basic Competency Test (ABCT). Informal measures included the Houghton-Mifflin Informal Reading…