This chapter recounts the story of how I came to design a Research Apprenticeship Course at UCLA--what we call the RAC. I lay out the origin story of the RAC dating back to early collaborations with Arturo Madrid of the Tomas Rivera Policy Research Center and the Ford Foundation Family of Fellows in the mid to late 1980s. These collaborations…

The long-recognized disconnect between research and practice is reflected by social work students who often report significant apprehension about their research classes, likely at least in part because of a poor understanding of the research-practice interface and an unfamiliarity with larger professional social change initiatives like the Grand…

The past decade has seen a resurgence of interest in career and technical education (CTE) as a way to engage students, help people build the skills necessary to succeed in a technologically advanced economy, and meet employer demand for workers. MDRC--which has a three-decade history of developing and evaluating CTE programs, including a landmark…

A multi-year study investigated the impact of incorporating student-directed discovery projects into introductory statistics courses. Pilot instructors at institutions across the United States taught statistics implementing student-directed projects with the help of a common set of instructional materials designed to facilitate such projects.…

The past decade has seen a resurgence of interest in career and technical education (CTE) as a way to engage students, help people build the skills necessary to succeed in a technologically advanced economy, and meet employer demand for workers. MDRC--which has a two-decade history of developing and evaluating CTE programs, including their…

Assessment has become a popular buzzword on academic campuses over the last few decades. Most assessment models are designed to evaluate traditional learning structures. If we were to state simply the process of assessment, it might read like this: (1) what you want the students to learn; (2) how you want to teach the material; and (3) how you…

"Catalyst" is a publication of the U.S. Department of Education's Higher Education Center for Alcohol and Other Drug Abuse and Violence Prevention. This issue contains the following articles: (1) The National Study of Student Hazing Initial Findings; (2) The Social Norms Marketing Research Project--An Update; (3) Message From William…

Articles resulting from studies conducted by college undergraduates in all areas of experimental psychology are provided, together with abstracts of other papers authored by students in the field of study. The articles are: The Influence of SET on Solving Hidden-Word Problems by Lana I. Boutacoff; Violation of Personal Space in Deviant Adolescents…

A meta-assessment is provided of 15 pilot projects aimed at demonstrating how student outcomes of various kinds can be used to assess the effectiveness of general education and baccalaureate degree programs. The Student Outcomes Assessment projects funded by Academic Program Improvement grants of the California state university system, have…

This report describes the Maclay On-Site Training Project (MOST), a project (at Maclay Junior High School in Los Angeles City School Districts) directed to focus the attention of teacher trainees upon language problems of the educationally disadvantaged child and to bring about improvement in pupils' language skills. The rationale for the project…

The basic authorities and procedures of budgeting for higher education in California and several major issues raised during the course of budget hearings held in 1976 and their respective resolution are discussed. The issues were raised for the most part in appropriations under consideration for the University of California, although most of them…