The Brazilian National Plan for Graduate Studies aims at achieving a combination of training activities at the graduate level to be developed at the various institutions of higher education and research. The current situation is reviewed in terms of stabilization, performance, and development problems. Objectives and general directives include:…

In the present stage of development of the Brazilian university system, graduate studies are assuming a role of increasing strategic importance with repercussions of a multiple dimension in the national growth process. This report presents a general view of the First National Plan of Graduate Studies (PNPG), of the Institutional Program for…

Issues and present trends related to the preparation and the expanded role of the nurse and physician's assistant in meeting health needs are the major concerns of part one, representing 100 pages of the document. Issues discussed include: (1) manpower considerations, (2) definition of responsibilities, training needs, and requirements, (3)…

The Hart Act, recently adopted by the state of California, mandates that school districts establish mechanisms of assessing minimal competencies in secondary education before students may receive a diploma. In this report, assemblyman Gary Hart, the bill's author, and Don McKinley, chief deputy to the Superintendent of Public Instruction, discuss…

Affirming the basic value of the emphasis in much recent literature on the need for increased school effectiveness, the author argues that more attention should be given to the problem of "school climate" and to a resolution of the tension between state-mandated uniformity and school-level autonomy. (JBM)

This study examined whether New Jersey students of elementary teachers trained in the use of standards-aligned curriculum materials and the nature of standards themselves would submit standards-meeting work after they were taught the standards-aligned activities. Two urban districts received funding to train teachers to meet the new science…

The New Designs for the Comprehensive High School (NDCHS) project was conducted to develop design processes and specifications for developing new comprehensive high schools, and for restructuring existing schools in accordance with the comprehensive high school model. The project's impact on student learning at two early adapters of the…

A study of science and math education systemic reform in rural schools aimed to help educators understand and build upon the inherent strengths of rural schools and communities that support systemic reform. The first phase of the study involved developing a system of indicators for each of six drivers of educational system reform: 1)…

The Urban Systemic Initiatives (USI) program is an effort sponsored by the National Science Foundation (NSF) that targets large urban school systems with the goal of sustainable implementation of high-quality, standards-based teaching for the purpose of attaining system-wide increases in students' learning of challenging mathematics and science.…

Data from the National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP) 1997 Arts Assessment for eighth-grade students show that female students outperformed male students in every category of assessment for all three art forms assessed: (1) music; (2) theater; and (3) visual arts. In contrast to assessments in other subjects, nonpublic school students…

This bulletin is one in a series of publications already issued or now projected by the Office of Education as part of a major study of the junior high school, its status, problems encountered, and promising practices found among some of the more than 3,000 junior high schools. The general idea for this report came from the thinking and planning…

Examines the nature of competency testing reforms through a multisite investigation of local school districts and states. Argues that competency tests and standards function more as symbolic and political gestures than as instrumental reforms. (FMW)

Examines the impact of mandatory statewide implementation of increased standards with the enactment of Florida's Recognizing Achievement in Secondary Education Bill as evidenced by performance on standardized entry-level tests for community college students. Finds little improvement in academic preparation as measured by test scores. (DMM)

Faculty were asked to rate 24 sentences containing errors commonly committed by nonnative speaker (NNS) writers on 6-point scale of tolerance. Results generally suggested that faculty were more tolerant of NNS errors than of errors perceived to have been made by native speakers (NS), suggesting that NNS students may not be held to the same…

Study examining the earnings of students accepted by elite colleges but who chose to attend less-selective institutions finds that students do not enhance earnings by graduating from colleges with high average Scholastic Assessment Test scores, suggesting that admissions decisions fail to account for intangibles such as students' ambition,…