Education reform, as a change process in daily teaching and learning activity, has never been easy. The No Child Left Behind Act (NCLB), a recent nationwide education reform initiative, demonstrates again that change is never easy and not always successful. As a matter of fact, "many innovations in education are either total or partial…

Recently, there has been increasing interest among state governments in establishing statewide testing of high school students. This interest has been driven by various goals, such as reforming high schools, improving the alignment between P-12 requirements and postsecondary expectations, and fulfilling the mandates of the federal No Child Left…

On March 29, 2007, the Committee on Education and the Workforce held a hearing in Washington, D.C., entitled, "How NCLB Affects Students with Disabilities." Specifically, this hearing was held to determine how the No Child Left Behind Act helps, hurts, or keeps about the same, what has been done for children with disabilities. The…

The outcomes of charter schools to date are inconclusive. This report examines the charter legislation in 25 states in reference to the American Federation of Teachers (AFT) criteria. The criteria evaluate the legislation in regard to the likelihood that it will produce quality schools and/or serve as examples of how the larger system of public…

This guide was developed to provide school district, area vocational-technical school, and postsecondary administrators in Pennsylvania with guidance for managing an accountability system for their vocational education programs. Although drafted primarily to assist agencies in meeting the intent of the Carl D. Perkins legislation, the model…

This report presents six recommendations determined by the California Postsecondary Education Commission to be of highest priority for legislative initiatives or amendments to existing legislation in the 1990 legislative session. A discussion of each issue precedes the formal recommendation. The recommendations address the following areas: (1)…

Accountability is high on the education reform agenda as taxpayers, business leaders, and elected officials demand proof of results. Although several states show promising improvements in their accountability arrangements, none has in place a comprehensive system. Such a system includes three fundamental accountability elements: (1) clear and…

The Student Right-to-Know and Campus Security (SRKCS) Act, voted into law in late 1990, requires colleges and universities to disclose graduation rates and statistics on campus crime. For institutions offering sub-baccalaureate vocational and technical degrees, the Act supersedes Track Record Disclosure (TRD) Regulations requiring institutions to…

An overview is presented of the mechanisms for financial support, institutional resources, and institutional accountability that are needed to improve the teaching and learning environment in the California community colleges. Introductory material outlines the educational reforms that have affected the colleges, underscores the need to reaffirm…

Four of the policy statements for vocational education developed by the Wisconsin Board of Vocational, Technical, and Adult Education reflect concerns shared in the U.S. Department of Education's Office of Vocational and Adult Education. First, vocational education is accountable to the publics, namely students, employers, and state, local, and…

In Robinson V. Cahill, the New Jersey Supreme Court directed the Legislature to define the Constitutional phrase, "thorough and efficient education," and to develop a system of financing the public schools that would ensure such an education to all New Jersey citizens. As a result of this decision, equal educational opportunity can…

The purpose of this study was to examine middle school principals' and teachers' perceptions of the current issues in middle school reading education and to identify the sources of information that these educators use and find helpful to keep informed reading issues. Participants were employed in the 14 middle schools of the Knox County School…

The Committee on Education and the Workforce, to whom was referred the bill (H.R. 27) to enhance the workforce investment system of the Nation by strengthening one-stop career centers, providing for more effective governance arrangements, promoting access to a more comprehensive array of employment, training, and related services, establishing a…

This commentary offers an analysis of the No Child Left Behind Act of 2001 (NCLB). The paper purports that the most serious problems in the U.S. education system stem from a lack of resources, particularly at the secondary level. This lack of resources leads to a large disparity in student academic achievement within the United States.…

This digest reviews testing and score reporting requirements contained in the No Child Left Behind Act of 2001 (NCLB) and examines factors that could delay or dilute the Act's guarantee of educational accountability for the academic achievement of all children. It outlines how states will implement federally-mandated testing requirements,…