Middle school educators face many challenges in today's education and political environment due to the focus on excellence as measured by achievement tests. This book discusses how middle schools can provide a strong standards-based academic program while, at the same time, remaining focused on the student-centered principles upon which the middle…

This book uses planning forms and examples to help media specialists and teachers focus on ways to effectively and purposefully add technology. The 22 collaborations connect with standards-based education in language arts, math, science, and social studies. Ideas for whole-class projects are also included. Each unit example begins with a completed…

This book explores some of the underlying issues related to the changes taking place in British higher education. Individual chapters focus on the development of higher education in Britain, the various purposes it serves, how to assess it, and how to improve delivery. Part 1 addresses the dilemmas of mass higher education, and traces the…

In 1989, the Kentucky Supreme Court declared that the state's public school system was unconstitutional and ordered the Kentucky legislature to create a new system of public education. The Kentucky General Assembly then enacted the Kentucky Education Reform Act of 1990 (KERA). This book sets forth the policy assumptions underlying KERA and…

Designed for general and special education administrators, teachers, and other education professionals, this book offers a "big picture" of high expectations, assessment, and accountability for students with significant disabilities. Chapters focus on the following eight steps involved in the development and administration of alternate…

This book considers critically the many issues surrounding competency-based education and training (CBE/T) and provides practical advice on its appropriateness and application to educational and training programs. Part A places the whole issue of CBE/T in its appropriate contexts. Chapters 1-3 examine the concept of competence and its articulation…

A consensus exists regarding the need to improve law enforcement and to upgrade the quality of police officers through the imposition of higher educational standards. Three rationales for educational upgrading include: (1) to improve effectiveness in performing crime control functions through better motivation and greater ability in applying…

This book defines what rubrics are, and how to construct and use them. It provides a complete introduction for anyone starting out to integrate rubrics in their teaching. The authors go on to describe a variety of processes to construct rubrics, including some which involve student participation. They demonstrate how interactive rubrics--a process…

This yearbook's focus is the connection between state responsibility and local control. Its purpose is to analyze the evolving balance between state responsibility for funding K-12 education and local autonomy in operating these schools. The goals of this analysis are twofold; the book seeks to characterize how this relationship has changed, both…

Drawn from papers presented at the sixtieth Annual Meeting of the American Council on Education, this volume represents the collective knowledge and experiences of 26 higher education leaders. Nine areas of concern to higher education are treated in depth: higher education in the future, the cost of a college education, students as consumers,…

Written to emphasize the harmful consequences of placing the total burden of bringing up the young on the family and the school, to suggest the coordination of adult society with schooling, to renew an interest in cognitive and ethical learning, and to emphasize the need for professional competence, this book discusses the alienation of youth from…

The fall 2004 and spring 2005 issues of Journal of Music Teacher Education, the online journal of MENC's Society for Music Teacher Education, in one print edition, includes a special issue on the future of music education, with articles about certification practices, second-career music teachers, music education philosophy and research for future…

The newest publication in the Spotlight series, this book gathers articles from state music educators association journals that give music teachers ideas on how to include special needs students, discuss why special learners benefit from music education, offer suggestions for dealing with specific types of special needs students, and address…

In this anthology, rural Alaskan English teachers in the Bread Loaf Rural Teacher Network describe their experiences implementing new state education standards while continuing their commitment to learner-centered and place-based practice. The book presents narratives about teaching grounded in knowledge and understanding of students and…

This book presents proceedings and papers from a conference on racial and ethnic disparities in K-12 education and identifies key issues for policy and research. Part 1 summarizes the conference in six chapters: (1) "Introduction"; (2) "Education and the Changing Nation"; (3) "How People Learn"; (4) "Social…