Public distrust in schools should not be attributed to poorer schools or less able students; it exists because we have a different kind of parent and a different world ahead. Parents of today's children were trained not to accept the status quo, but to question; furthermore, underlying parents' concern about the schools is a fear that their…

Students in college basic skills programs will become more proficient writers not simply by being taught specific writing strategies, but also by greater exposure to the total linguistic system through reading. In the first of two reading projects initiated in an Ohio State University basic skills program, eight students participated voluntarily…

After discussing some of the complex problems related to the educational participation of the growing population of bilingual/bicultural adults in California, this paper explores the new importance and role of adult education and career development with respect to this group. The paper goes on to describe a bilingual/bicultural vocational training…

The Abt Associates' final report on the Follow-Through Planned Variation Experiment is defended against the critique published by a blue ribbon panel funded by the Ford Foundation. In contrast to the conclusions drawn by House, Glass, McLean, and Walker that Follow Through showed no "winners" or "losers", the National…

The impact of basic skill developmental programs on student success in career programs was investigated. Data collected from 61 two-year institutions provided the basis for selection of six survey sites. At each site, random samples of students in their initial enrollment in developmental programs, students previously enrolled in developmental…

This paper presents the findings of a qualitative, instrumental case study that examined students' academic preparedness, as well as assessment and placement policy in 15 community colleges in 6 states across the country. Although most community colleges mandate basic skills assessment for all entering freshmen, many do not require low-scoring…

This speech by Chancellor Thomas J. Nussbaum deals with the state of California Community Colleges. The document begins by noting successes in three main areas: restoring access, improving funding per student, and improving the performance of California's community colleges. Between fall 1995 and fall 1999, California's community colleges…

This document presents a collection of materials on school performance in Maryland, especially as demonstrated in the Maryland School Performance Assessment Program (MSPAP) and the Independence Mastery Assessment Program (IMAP) for some special needs students. The MSPAP is a testing program administered to third, fifth, and eighth grade students…

The effectiveness of Mississippi's policy of offering incentives to promote workplace training was examined through phone surveys of a sample of 101 of Mississippi's 2,617 manufacturing firms with 100-350 employees (47 of the 77 plants that have used Mississippi incentive programs and 54 plants that have not) and in-depth case studies of 4 plants.…

Recruiting students for the Oklahoma Northwest Area Vocational-Technical School (ONAVTS) is extremely challenging, primarily because the district covers 3,000 square miles of sparsely populated farm and ranch land with a feeder population of only 256 juniors and seniors available annually. To compete with a newly required high school graduation…

The state of Kentucky has recently raised its standards for persons who apply for admission to teacher education. The plan, mandated by the State Board of Education, involves a selection/retention process for candidates who apply for initial admission to the program and for candidates who progress through the program. A minimum level of…

By the late 1960s, the most offered courses in American community colleges were remedial reading, remedial writing, and remedial arithmetic. The success of the early efforts in community colleges was marginal at best, as is evidenced by a 1968 study indicating that nearly 90 percent of all remedial students failed or dropped out of remedial…

The Palm Beach Post newspaper in Florida provides a workplace literacy program with six classes in three programs: adult basic education; English for speakers of other languages; and high school equivalency in preparation for a General Educational Development diploma. Employees receive work-release time or are paid to attend class. Class size is…

This study examined the relationship between teacher education students' scores on basic skills admission tests and graduating seniors' scores on the National Teacher Examinations (NTE) at Eastern Kentucky University. The 1981-82 basic skills test scores for 262 teacher education students were compared with their NTE scores taken in 1984-85 during…

This study adds to the effective schools debate a criticism of existing criteria--based on standardized achievement test profiles--for targeting schools for intervention programs. Qualitative and quantitative methods of gathering data result in conflicting assessments of the magnet elementary school studied as needing or not needing intervention.…