In schools across the country, many students who consistently score below their white peers on state standardized tests are English language learners (ELLs). Under No Child Left Behind (NCLB) and the reauthorized ESEA under President Obama, all 50 states are and will be required to have English language proficiency (ELP) standards and state…

The statewide (California) study reviewed the federal and state requirements for special education paperwork. It analyzed paperwork used in 37 school districts to identify data items in compliance with or in excess of requirements. Interviews on special education paperwork with 120 special educators were summarized. Based upon the study, two…

The latest Elementary and Secondary Education Act reauthorization, the No Child Left Behind Act of 2001, includes new standards, testing, and sanctions provisions designed to bring better performance and new accountability for that performance to local schools. The accountability ingredients in the new law were mostly not new to the 2001 debate…

The New Jersey department of education has implemented a minimum standards program to assure that all students have the individual opportunities they require for mastering the basic skills. The 1976-77 program is transitional and is used to build toward full implementation in the 1977-78 school year. In full operation, the state tests will be…

A review of state laws governing certification of professional educators reveals both wide agreement on many certification issues and a shift toward making requirements more stringent. Teacher certification has long been accepted as a means of ensuring minimum competency. Many of the issues surrounding certification have been settled, including…

This brief paper summarizes legal requirements for non-standard accommodations for students with special needs or disabilities in educational assessments based on the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA) and Section 504 of the 1973 Rehabilitation Act. After noting that all students have due process rights under the 14th Amendment,…

State legislation in Indiana requires that at least 30 semester hours of comparable general education courses fulfilling graduation requirements be available at and transferable among all state postsecondary educational institutions. A February 1994 report indicated that the 30 semester hours transferred among all institutions except Indiana…

The State of Arkansas, through legislation, has set new standards for schools of education. The new standards mandate changes affecting the following: (1) National Council for Accreditation of Teacher Education (NCATE) approval for all teacher education programs in the state; (2) general education requirements for education students that are the…

The survey of all 50 state departments of education (and the District of Columbia examined nondiscriminatory evaluation policy. The examination of state policy documents included both an analysis of regulatory language and implementation procedures. State adherence to Public Law 94-142 Protection in Evaluation Procedures (PEP) and the development…

The purpose of this pilot study was to investigate the process of meeting a new state mandate for sexuality education programs at the local school system level. Curriculum coordinators (N=126) responsible for meeting the 1988 Georgia state mandate for sexuality education completed a survey instrument assessing the local school system process in…

Because of a wide diversity of grading practices and policies among California community colleges, its impact upon students, and the need for compliance with state minimum standards, a study group was appointed to examine existing regulations and make recommendations to promote commonality among grading policies. Issues such as local autonomy,…

This paper discusses recent Illinois legislation related to education reform and some collaborative approaches being used to impact public policy. It shares implementation updates regarding the rules and regulations attached to the legislation and how these changes could impact educational excellence, equity, and accountability in the 21st…

The triad or tripartite concept of school governance is a theory for the involvement of state, federal, and accrediting group oversight of schools. The author, who is the Executive Director of the National Home Study Council points to six problem areas in this theory of institutional regulation: (1) there is a lack of cooperation and communication…

Federal statistics reveal that 59.5 million Americans live outside urban areas, and the public school students who live in these rural areas constitute the largest minority public school population in this country; however, the lion's share of attention, research, and federal and state financial support goes to large schools in metropolitan areas.…

Much energy has been invested into identifying educational goals at the national, state, and local levels. When a plethora of goals exist, the chances of all goals being achieved decreases as economic and human resources are not channeled toward a narrowly defined end. This paper presents findings of a study that explored the alignment of federal…