America's most popular science curriculum, the Next Generation Science Standards (NGSS), fails students. This report details how the popular curriculum omits basic tenets of science, including the scientific method, and provides recommendations to correct deficiencies in the NGSS.

This article outlines a case study of creating a system of quality assurance in Belize while also building the capacity of teaching staff in order to support the process of establishing quality standards in tertiary education. This case study outlines the process of establishing the first quality assurance system in the nation's history as well as…

How can academic libraries ensure their standards collections meet the teaching and research needs of science and engineering faculties? Nowadays, most academic libraries face financial constraints that greatly impact collection development. This article documents an academic library's experience with standards collections and the investigation…

Internationalisation has transformed into mainstream strategy in higher education and is increasingly seen as adding value to the life of universities through improving its quality. But how do we assess the quality of internationalisation? This article evaluates a pilot project that aimed to qualitatively assess the internationalisation of…

This policy brief examines standards-based approaches that hold promise for shaping a common vision of skilled teaching commensurate with the national goal of preparing all students for college and careers. Numerous studies confirm that teachers are the most significant school-based factor in improving student achievement, particularly for the…

A quality educational program begins with the development of quality courses. This article describes a pilot project conducted by the Centre for Teaching and Educational Technologies (CTET) at Royal Roads University (RRU) to define quality for online courses and to create a review practice that ensures continuous improvements based on reliable…

This report covers the third year of Chapin Hall's process evaluation of the Prime Time Initiative of Palm Beach County, Florida, a system-building effort to strengthen the quality of after-school programs in the county. During the past two decades, the after-school field has expanded enormously, partly in response to increasing concern about…

This feasibility study assesses the potential of optical technology in the development of accessible bibliographic and location data networks both in Canada and within the international MARC (Machine-Readable Cataloging) network. The study is divided into four parts: (1) a market survey of cataloging and interlibrary loan librarians to determine…

Education in contemporary society is no longer the selective enterprise for which a product evaluation approach is appropriate. Process evaluation, however, complements a new view of education--education offers all students opportunities for individual growth. A process approach focuses on what is understood. Focusing on learning activity and…

This pilot study of facilities from which the Texas Department of Human Services (TDHS) purchased day care services gathered and analyzed data for use in developing day care service control standards by means of which the quality of purchased day care services could be systematically assessed. Random samples were selected from contract centers,…

Setting standards on performance measures is discussed in the context of the State Collaborative on Assessment and Student Standards (SCASS) initiative supported by the Council of Chief State School Offices. The usual item-based methods for standard setting, the methods developed by Nedelsky (1954), Angoff (1971), and Ebel (1972), were developed…

The National Center for Restructuring Education, Schools, and Teaching is working with the New York State Education Department to develop an assessment system that addresses both instructional and accountability concerns. The new system is intended to move the state to a system of performance assessments used in the service of ongoing teaching and…

The Youth Incentive Entitlement Pilot Projects (YIEPP) demonstration was a large-scale test of a school-conditioning guaranteed jobs program for teenagers from low-income families. Unlike previous youth employment programs, the YIEPP linked school and work by offering jobs to all youth who met the eligibility criteria and who also agreed to remain…