Although curriculum issues still command reformers' attention, researchers recognize that academic success is tied to home and community support. Alliance for Achievement is a school-community management program that addresses the relationships among schools, homes, and communities based on locally defined and commonly held educational values. The…

Research of cognitive scientists is resulting in new learning theories through which students can move from novice to expert. How cognitive scientists work and how their results are applied are discussed. Reciprocal teaching, as implemented in the Springfield (Illinois) schools, provides an example of a successful research-based technique. (SLD)

For individuals who have complex communication needs and for the interventionists who work with them, the collection of empirically derived data that support the use of an intervention approach is critical. The purposes of this study were to continue building an empirically derived base of support for, and to compare the relative effectiveness of…

Illinois' school-reform act of 1985 authorized the development of an Administrators Academy for training principals to evaluate teachers and for training superintendents to evaluate principals. Renewal of school administrators' certification was contingent upon attendance. Some practitioners, educators, and state association directors began to…

As a follow-up to phase 1 in reports 1-2, this report presents the second and third phases of a project which examined changes in seven Illinois family literacy programs, assisted the sites in implementing evaluation systems, and tested the usefulness of an evaluation framework. In phase 2, structured and conversational interviews and site…

A workplace literacy survey was developed and distributed to 4,104 private-sector businesses throughout Illinois to gain a complete and statistically reliable profile of workforce literacy programs. Employers returned 1,340 usable responses. Findings indicated that 53 percent of Illinois firms reported a need to upgrade employees basic skills, yet…

Following a 5-year planning and development cycle, Illinois has completed its first year of full implementation of a statewide, comprehensive, coordinated system of early intervention services for eligible infants and toddlers and their families under provisions of the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA). Among accomplishments noted…

A project in Illinois created a 17-member committee, reviewed literature, and conducted a telephone survey of all 51 state home economics supervisors in the United States to create a conceptual framework for secondary home economics. The framework was reviewed and refined by the participants and is being published. Additional materials developed…

This report describes residents' efforts to generate urban change and arrest the decline of their community, Edgewater, a suburb of Chicago, Illinois. The report also examines how events in Edgewater affected and were affected by developments in Uptown (the adjoining predominantly commercial district) and in the Winthrop-Kenmore Corridor that…

This document contains Phase I of the Illinois Department on Aging Human Services Plan for Fiscal Years 1986-1988. It describes planning efforts related to past, current, and future service delivery systems for Illinois' aging services network. The introduction describes the Department on Aging's programs and the service network within which they…

This paper addresses a decline in educational standards and discusses the role of curriculum. After defining the problem, it presents the evidence, pointing to the following factors: (1) decreasing student achievement after the fourth or fifth grade; (2) a curriculum that reflects and perpetuates this decline, e.g., by setting course requirements…

This document, developed by the Illinois State Board of Education, identifies five goals for learning in the social sciences, and provides sample learning objectives for grades 3, 6, 8, 10, 12, which are consistent with these goals. The state goals for learning are broadly stated expressions of what the Illinois State Board of Education wants and…

The Special Education Parents Alliance created an employment project seeking jobs in the business community for special education graduates and other persons with disabilities. The project serves learning disabled, educable mentally handicapped, trainable mentally handicapped, and physically disabled persons in DuPage County and portions of west…

Designed for use by employment skills training operators and educators, this report provides information on competency-based education (CBE) and its use in Illinois. First, some of the main features of CBE programs are outlined, i.e., their emphasis on the interests, needs, and strengths of students and on providing those skills that the student…

The Illinois School Code requires that each student be taught the role and contributions of blacks and other ethnic groups in America. In this handbook aids are provided for elementary and secondary teachers striving to present meaningful ethnic studies learning experiences to their students. Definitions and desirable goals for ethnic studies…