This article provides an overview of policymaking in relation to state and local district testing and accountability and concludes by identifying continuing policy issues and strategies for local implementation of standards-based secondary education that aligns with current testing and accountability policies. Governance models for curriculum…

This guide is designed as an in-house tool for postsecondary educational institutions to evaluate the efficiency and effectiveness of their administration of financial aid programs in compliance with federal laws and regulations. References to current regulations or, where final regulations have not yet been issued, to statute, are included for…

This guide is intended for college and university administrators responsible for designing and implementing a model for assessment of student outcomes and institutional effectiveness. The first chapter explains use of the handbook and introduces the institutional effectiveness paradigm on which it is based. The second chapter explains the model…

This program improvement guide is designed to assist district and school level interdisciplinary planning teams to improve career/vocational programs for students with disabilities. Its focus is on the integration of best practices within the educational program continuum to achieve positive student outcomes. The guide includes three sections.…

This document is intended to assist South Dakota schools in the development and implementation of Gifted Education Plans, and includes state laws and rules pertaining to gifted education, guidelines for reporting, and explanations of the necessary components of a district's written plan. A brief statement of philosophy addresses characteristics of…

English and Spanish versions of a guide to testing reform are presented. The guide explains alternatives to standardized testing for educational assessment and shows how these new methods of evaluation will improve education. Standardized tests are used for an increasing number of purposes in the school system, but there is no proof that their use…

A project undertaken to field test the Institutional Report Form (IRF), a tool designed to measure the potential for student consumer abuse in postsecondary educational institutions, is described. The IRF was designed by the American Institutes for Research for use by state licensing agencies, and the field test was intended as a federal technical…

The Alberta Standards for Special Education are effective in September 2003 and require school boards to effectively identify and deliver programs for students with special needs in grades 1-12. Emphasis is on consistent and enhanced educational practice within the Canadian province so that students with special needs will receive appropriate…

This document, in French, presents the Alberta Standards for Special Education, which are effective in September 2003 and require school boards to effectively identify and deliver programs for students with special needs in grades 1-12. Emphasis is on consistent and enhanced educational practice within the Canadian province so that students with…

Stressing the importance of collective efforts among families, early childhood care and education programs, communities, and policymakers in supporting the learning and development of children, this resource guide provides a framework for understanding and communicating a common set of developmentally appropriate expectations for young children…

More than 50 years ago, in Brown vs. Board of Education, the Supreme Court unanimously ruled that sending children to separate schools solely on the basis of race was unconstitutional. Seven years prior, the Supreme Court ruled in Mendez vs. Westminster and the California Board of Education that Mexican American children could not be denied access…

A study examined alternatives to retention or social promotion. Chapter 1 considers the short-term and long-term consequences of each alternative and concludes that neither improves declining graduation rates, declining ability to meet employer requirements, or the achievement gap between white students and students of color. Chapter 2 recommends…

Many colleges and universities are engaged in new efforts to assess the outcomes they produce. As a first step, these institutions usually examine their mission statement, goals, and objectives. These form the foundation for assessment but they are also fundamental tools for enhancing institutional effectiveness in general. This handbook was…

The English language training (ELT) program self-review document provides a framework for systematic and consistent self-evaluation of local ELT programs, using specific quality indicators. The document is divided into eight sections, each defining a major component or area of responsibility for effective ELT operation: program planning;…

Since 1977, school budgetary problems have been created by a decline in state and federal tax revenues combined with a greater demand for services and declining student enrollment. The serious erosion in the fiscal health of the 50 states over the last few years means that competition for tax dollars will increase, leaving government with the…