This report provides a brief overview of efforts to establish standards, assess those standards, hold schools and students accountable for meeting the standards, and provide interventions to students who do not meet the standards. It argues that holding students accountable for passing standards' assessments is premature, that teachers should be…

This paper examines the potential benefits of standards-based instruction for English language learners (ELLs), presents a backward mapping process for designing standards-based instructional units, and reviews the design of two standards-based units for ELLs. Most of the document is in the form of a table to make the standards-based process…

Establishing a solid standards-and-assessment system is only the first step toward the ultimate goal of bringing all students to the standards. But without this first step, all others will fall short. The paper explains the essential role of standards and assessments in improving student achievement and offers solutions to challenges districts…

Issues that dominate debate about teacher education--teacher supply and demand, quality of college programs, and academic standards--may not be at the heart of the problem. The author argues for extended teacher education programs and increased public support for teacher salaries and college programs. (PP)

The author contends that limiting instructional innovation and upgrading academic standards will benefit both high-risk and traditional community college students. He presents results from instructor surveys and studies favoring the more traditional teaching, grading, and testing methods and includes suggestions for improving study skills and…

Addresses teacher qualifications and certification as mandated by the No Child Left Behind Act. Teachers must know the subjects they teach. Briefly discusses teacher-preparation programs; teacher-retention rates; different pathways into teaching; teacher pay; and districts' role in assigning out-of-field teachers. (Contains three graphs.) (WFA)

Highlights the historical aspects and issues surrounding equity in urban school mathematics. The author briefly describes five articles that examine the significant problems facing urban school mathematics reformers as well as how to address these problems, including several examples of school reform efforts. (GR)

This article reviews the research related to minimum competency testing (MCT) as a requirement for high school graduation for students with learning disabilities. It examines whether inclusive MCT requirements lead to positive educational outcomes, raises issues of accommodations and alternative diplomas, possible increased dropout rates, and…

Current developments in the delivery of advice, guidance, and counselling to students in higher education are outlined. A range of possible consequences for higher education of the introduction of occupational standards in the advice, guidance, and counselling field is identified. Issues that higher education institutions and awarding bodies will…

Action research is defined as systematic classroom-based inquiry to solve teacher-perceived problems. It has been a component of education, particularly professional staff development, for the past century under several names although geography educators in the United States have rarely used it for this, or any other, purpose. This paper reviews…

This EdSource report summarizes the Initial Findings issued in October 2005 from a two-year study conducted by EdSource, Stanford University, University of California-Berkeley, and American Institutes for Research (AIR). In addition, this report includes information collected during the study but not previously reported (from superintendent…

To explore the policy implications of the Third International Mathematics and Science Study (TIMSS), the National Institute on Educational Governance, Finance, Policymaking, and Management of the Office of Educational Research and Improvement (OERI) in the U.S. Department of Education, and the Consortium for Policy Research in Education held a…

This document consists of a series of five briefing papers on the state of art education. The first paper, "Multiethnic Art Educators: An Endangered Species," (Esther Page Hill) discusses the problem of diminishing numbers of art educators of African, Hispanic, Asian, and Native American ethnic groups even as the number of minority students grows.…

During the 1970's, the National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP) conducted two assessments of art abilities (1974-75 and 1978-79) and two of music skills (1971-72 and 1978-79) of 9-, 13-, and 17-year-olds, giving a picture of trends in performance over the course of the decade. State assessments were also conducted by Connecticut and…

A response is given to the recommendation of the Georgia Governor's Education Review Commission that the grade point average (GPA) requirements for admission to undergraduate teacher education programs in Georgia be raised from the present 2.5 to 2.7. Brief summaries are presented of five studies dealing with the relationship of GPA for admission…