Decentralization and an increased emphasis on community and parent participation represent significant education reform trends over the past decade. These reforms take place in the context of increased emphasis within Education for All (EFA) on improving education quality and outcomes and on strengthening accountability for results. They require…

The purpose of this study is to determine the effectiveness of an individualized program for learning-disabled children. The subjects participated individually prescribed learning activities, which involved small-group interactions directed toward the growth and development of perceptual skills, perceptual-motor skills and self-concepts, and…

This guide presents the Future Farmers of America (FFA) 2000 Model of Innovation award winners' projects. Chapters demonstrated abilities to identify goals and objectives, create a workable plan of action, attain and evaluate results, and identify items learned and ways to improve. Chapter 1 discusses the FFA National Chapter Award program that…

Increasingly the different ways in which learning can be conceptualised alongside debates within the field of human resource development (HRD) regarding its nature and purpose, potentially lead to confusion regarding how learning is to be assessed in the workplace. This article identifies some of the complexities associated with assessing learning…

This report describes the nongraded program for instruction that was developed by faculty and administrators in the public elementary schools of Scarborough, Maine. The program was designed to provide parents with a choice of educational placement for their children. Sections of the report offer background information on the program and an…

In 1977 the Dallas Independent School District devised a 5-year state-mandated improvement plan for increasing student test scores in priority goal areas. This paper describes the planning process as it evolved, the problems faced by large districts, and the 5-year student achievement results. The original plan contained eight priority goal areas,…

Preplanning to insure sex-fair evaluation of student performance in physical education should include: (1) establishment of instructional and performance objectives for each activity; (2) development of performance standards which take into account ability levels and documented biological differences between the sexes; and (3) a well-defined…

The Free University of Amsterdam's system of internal institutional evaluation uses specific achievement measures at various levels in each field of study to assess student progress and evaluate program effectiveness. (MSE)

A project to develop an interdisciplinary course (ARSC 10/11) for teaching science to college students not majoring in science is described. Concept modules were developed for a two-semester format consisting of three hours of lecture and two hours of laboratory per week. Important science themes were identified to promote an understanding of…

An evaluation of a Des Moines program, in which the relationship of student background and program achievement was examined, is summarized. It was found that more instruction in English was beneficial in the first year of schooling, but had diminishing effects during the second and third years. Implications for similar programs are discussed. (MSE)

Delineates key features of four European projects designed to consider the effects of assessment on student motivation and academic achievement. Focuses on the experiences and needs of less successful students and how assessment may contribute to poor performance. Highlights concerns for changes in education that will promote high-risk student…

Universities are encouraged to embed key skills in their undergraduate curricula, yet there is often little support on how to identify skills development and progression. This paper describes a tool that facilitates colleagues in auditing key skills and career/employability skills within individual modules and mapping these skills across degree…

School motivation and achievement for an individual is the product of a complex set of interacting goals, goals which may be more or less significant to individuals from different cultural backgrounds. This paper describes a project which examines the nature of goals held by students from different cultural groups, the compatibility of these goals…

A series of six models were devised and tested to address the structure of elementary school achievement in language, work study, reading, and mathematics skills. The models were based on two assumptions: first, that information processing strategies of children would govern their basic skills performances; and, second, that the basic skills would…

One of a series of experiments attempting to overcome practical constraints on testers is described. This test was based on rehearsed communicative situations that were recorded by groups of students. The subjects of the experiment were 250 students in their first year of study for a joint language degree who were following a 12-week spoken…