A study investigated the views of 81 teachers, administrators, and assessment personnel about issues stemming from the participation of students with disabilities in large-scale assessments. Findings indicate local personnel are giving increasingly careful consideration to appropriateness of curriculum choices, assessment options that match…

Neoliberalism claims that privatization, marketization, uniform standards, and accountability--some important dynamics surrounding globalization in education--increase choices and quality in education. However, numerous studies show that the market has consistently devalued alternatives; increased the power of dominant models; and exacerbated…

The purpose of implementing an assessment and accountability program in an urban school district is to improve student learning of worthwhile content. Current levels of achievement in most U.S. urban districts are unacceptably low. Average achievement test results conceal the fact that achievement levels of students of color are substantially…

There is concern that now, as state and federal governments are increasing school accountability requirements and relying on school administrators to promote improvement, schools and districts will not be able to attract and retain enough qualified people to fill these positions. This report develops a conceptual structure for understanding the…

This article chronicles the evolution of legislation for Texas open-enrollment charter schools to their implementation by demonstrating how these schools have (or have not) used their freedom from state-mandated requirements to develop innovative learning environments as well as to bring innovative curricula into the classroom. The investigative…

Although education pays off handsomely in the United States, children from low-income families attain less education than children from more advantaged families. In this article, Cecilia Elena Rouse and Lisa Barrow investigate why family background is so strongly linked to education. The authors show that family socioeconomic status affects such…

The Commonwealth of Virginia overcame an environment of each institution for itself to craft an accountability process oriented around state needs.

The Sunnyside Independent School District Board of Education selected Dr. Juan Martinez (pseudonym) as its new superintendent of schools by an unusually cohesive 7-0 vote in 2002. In describing the superintendent search, the local paper characterized the board as highly politicized and often divisive. So the board's unanimity in appointing Juan to…

The changing environment in which academic freedom is practiced and the new challenges confronting it are examined including: retrenchment and the crisis in state funding; national reform and accountability; the politicization of expertise; and the rise of new research funding patterns that emphasize government-university-industry partnerships,…

Testing programs enacted by the state legislature are changing and improving Florida's educational system in five areas: (1) setting standards for students; (2) making schools more accountable; (3) creating growth through competiton; (4) evaluating educational programs; and (5) assuring the competency of educators. (BS)

Reviews the National Commission on Secondary Vocational Education's findings regarding present attitudes, developing trends, and desirable goals associated with vocational education. Topics of discussion include vocational education's worth, status, flexibility, popularity, accessibility, equity, curriculum, teachers, program standards,…

Discusses "A Nation at Risk" in relation to the responsibility of college science teachers regarding the report, specifically the recommendations on content, standards and expectations, and teaching (including teacher education). Considers questions of leadership and the support of science education as political issues in the presidential and…

Assessment generally refers to large-scale, system-wide measurement programs for pupil diagnosis; pupil certification; program evaluation; research; accountability; resource allocations; or teacher evaluation. The purpose of assessment should determine the test content, construction, administration, and examinees sampled. Assessment methods for…

Forming positive working relationships with the legal and law enforcement communities early in one's campus judicial affairs career can prevent difficulties in handling cases of a sensitive nature such as cases of sexual assault. (Author)

Examines the Boston University/Chelsea project and explores how privatization intrinsically results in decreased openness and accountability. Discusses the historical background of Boston (MA) and its schools to decipher Chelsea's economic dependency, and repeated the falls into receivership and privatization. Includes a discussion on Boston's…