This paper describes the process employed by the Industrial and Management Systems Engineering programme at Kuwait University to continuously improve the programme. Using a continuous improvement framework, the paper demonstrates how various qualitative and quantitative analyses methods, such as hypothesis testing and control charts, have been…

Systemic efforts to strengthen teacher preparation in Louisiana led to the first statewide value-added assessment (VAA) of teacher preparation programs (TPPs). Subsequently, a number of states have adopted VAA of TPPs. The authors describe challenges that were confronted around the deployment of Louisiana's VAA of TPPs. The discussion is organized…

The Grantmakers for Education (GFE) Institute attracted more than 60 grantmakers from national, corporate, community and family foundations, with interests in systems and programs from early learning through postsecondary completion. And while attendees arrived with diverse experiences and expertise in grantmaking to support policy change, they…

Community colleges across the country are experimenting with strategies to raise faculty and staff awareness of the need for change and to engage them in the redesign process. This article describes the major forces driving the need for transformation, the organizational stress that sometimes results, and successful strategies for bridging the old…

A program planning model developed in collaboration with primary decision makers and program planners is described in this study. A 6-month pilot test of the planning document was evaluated by a followup questionnaire of program planners and decision makers. Results indicate that a majority of the respondents viewed the planning model as…

A study was conducted to determine the characteristics that key decision makers deem important for the curricula of Minnesota's technical institutes in the year 2000. The technical institutes in question are postsecondary institutions that offer both day school and adult extension programs. The study focused on the actual process of curriculum…

This task force report offers specific recommendations to enhance secondary vocational education as an integral component within the total educational spectrum in the state of Maine. The task force identified six major initiatives and made 30 specific recommendations, which are detailed in this report. The six initiatives cover (1) approaches to…

This report analyzes the difficulties encountered in the transformation of education in the Czech Republic and identifies change in policies and structures that could stimulate further reform in the needed directions. The book contains two parts with 15 chapters. Part 1 describes the development of education since the political change as rapid and…

A project described and examined the status of secondary trade and industrial (T&I) education in Virginia and made recommendations to improve such programs. Statewide enrollment data were retrieved for the school years 1986-87 through 1992-93. Questionnaires gathered concerns and recommendations of public school personnel about T&I…

This report, which presents various economic and demographic data about Hawaii, is intended to assist persons responsible for the short-term planning of vocational-technical education programs in the state. The report is organized in terms of a series of potentially relevant concerns that should be considered during the educational planning…

This paper recommends that institutions of higher education (IHE) departments of educational administration collaborate with state education agencies (SEA) to plan educational reform. The states' increasing investment in public education merits IHE participation in the statewide educational planning process. Specifically, the paper suggests SEA's…

The New York State Department of Education formed a committee called the Statewide Administrative Futuring Committee. The major purpose of the committee was to determine and assess the impact of the major trends that would affect education in New York State and to reorient the state's educational programs toward the future. Using data collected…

In January 1994, Washington's governor asked 28 representatives of business, labor, education, government, and the public (parents and students) to participate in the Governor's Council on School-to-Work Transition. The council spent 9 months examining the issue of school-to-work transition and formulating an action plan for establishing a…

Examines the current status of library technical assistant (LTA) programs in North America, lists the programs, and describes their major features. Makes suggestions for future directions, including distance learning, specialization within programs, continuing education, articulation agreements with bachelor's degree programs, and an increase in…

This document summarizes efforts made during fiscal year (FY) 1994 to implement Ohio's action plan for accelerating the modernization of vocational education, Ohio's Future at Work. First, background information is provided about the plan's formulation in 1990. Listed next are 10 legislative actions that have been identified as necessary to…