It is time for the field of evaluation to recognize that the ability to serve policy depends as much on what is understood about how politics works as it does on the quality and appropriateness of evaluation methods. Evaluations must be defensible as the political mix changes. (SLD)

Few analyses have examined what testing's political status means for how those outside the education establishment view externally mandated tests and what they expect them to accomplish. This article provides such an analysis by first elaborating on the notion that testing and accountability have become political issues. It then describes the…

This paper examines political influences on assessment programs and their effects on local school systems. Specifically, it describes North Carolina's political climate and examines the impact of political influences on educational assessment in the state. The political climate in North Carolina has produced a plethora of state-mandated tests,…

This monograph examines policy formation practices of the Illinois International Education Policy Study Committee (PSC) concerning implementation of the Illinois Higher Education International Education Act. In the first section, a review of the literature on various aspects of policy and policy considerations is offered including a definition of…

This paper examines the cultural politics that arise when the decision is made to place health services in schools and suggests ways in which the different discourses that surface regarding program implementation might be reconciled. The policy analyses for the paper were based on a 2-year statewide evaluation of a supplemental school health…

This study is a history of the societal-problems approach in social studies education as revealed in secondary school social studies textbooks used in Problems of Democracy courses from 1895 to 1985. The central thesis is that the definition of the problems approach and the problems selected for study by educators as illustrated by the textbooks…

New Zealand shares with other Southeast Asian nations two sets of problems which stem from the presence of several distinct communities in one geographical/political area: the first relates to treatment of linguistic minorities, indigenous and immigrant; the second is that of social or regional dialects which, while not totally distinct from an…

Educational policy analysis consists of a "troika" of major components--politics (or power), technology (ideas), and service delivery (workers). Three case studies of New York City programs illustrate how the components interact in different situations. The city's School Improvement Project aims to make schools more effective in teaching…

A study was conducted to test identical models of the political learning process with data concerning national and local issues. These models hypothesized ways in which political learning from mass media is affected by such factors as strength of information flow, political system level, individual media exposure, interpersonal discussion,…

The intent and results of the establishment of universities in the northern regions of Sweden and Ontario are examined, along with academic, financial, and geographic problems faced by each. (MSE)

The implications of applying state sunshine laws to state colleges and universities are examined. Considerations of political pressure, loss of privacy for individuals, difficulty in obtaining candid evaluations, and the threat of competition are cited. (MSE)

The methods used by Indonesia's New Order government to regulate the civic activities of university staff and students in the government sector are discussed in the context of the government's pursuit of stability and economic growth, and the possible directions to be taken by the bureaucratic government are examined. (MSE)

Human capital theories are examined. Both economic and political influences are cited, and further study of the struggle of mostly male worker groups pursuing industrial and professional interests in the workplace and training system is suggested. (MSE)

This collection of policy papers is intended to educate and inform business and community leaders, policymakers, the Asian Pacific community, and the general public about the complex issues and far-reaching implications of the affirmative action debate on Asian Pacific Americans as well as all Americans. Essays are grouped into sections on…

During the 1995-96 academic year, the Hartford (Connecticut) Public School System (Connecticut) published "Academic Area Outcomes, PreKindergarten-Grade 12," a document that initiated a process of improvement of teaching, learning, and curriculum revision based on continuous assessment and accountability. Creation of this document was…