This brief report summarizes a longer document with the same title. It reviews the reshaping of the college undergraduate curriculum in order to meet the new and compelling issues of the future such as accommodating diverse races and ethnic groups, incorporating global perspectives on the environment, and dealing more effectively with the human…

This digest documents the experiences of faculty, administrators, and staff at several colleges as they addressed a broad range of instructional technology issues. Included in the digest are several approaches suggested by instructors and staff affiliated with various community college technology programs. Plans for implementation, development,…

Through a series of organizational and instructional changes, comprehensive planning aims to make it possible for all children to reach the same high academic standards. Educators and parents of American Indian and Alaska Native (AI/AN) students, as well as other members of tribal communities, must participate in this planning to ensure that the…

This digest summarizes a longer document with the same title concerning the introduction of enduring innovations into a higher education organization. Organizational change involves three steps: (1) mobilization, (2) implementation, and (3) institutionalization. Without institutionalization, the innovation is likely to be terminated no matter how…

The makeup of student bodies in higher education has become more diverse, but students tend to be clustered in segments of the postsecondary system and in various levels and fields. Many campuses do not effectively integrate students who are different. Institutions that are successful in this area tend to: (1) focus on student success and provide…

Recent efforts to improve education have led to a new look at assessment. As pedagogy has changed to focus on learner-centered education, the need to make assessment an integral, on-going part of instruction has become obvious. Concurrently, federal initiatives to promote educational reform have required the provision of career development…

The system of school finance equity in Texas is described as it existed before the court case Edgewood Independent School District (ISD) v. Kirby, and the overhaul mandated by legal rulings in the evolving Edgewood case is reviewed. In Texas, as elsewhere, the system of school finance has historically been based on the local property taxes…

Blue ribbon commissions in the United States from 1965-1983 are discussed with attention to what makes a commission effective, the history of blue ribbon commissions, features of a commission, whether these commissions are useful on campus, and criticisms of blue ribbon commissions. Factors that contribute to the effectiveness of a blue ribbon…

By 1992, according to a study by the Council of Chief State School Officers, more than 3.5 million computers were in U.S. elementary and secondary schools--a ratio of one computer for every 13 students. In addition, 99 percent of all schools across the country reported that they provide their students with some access to computers. Sometimes…