Goals 2000 is the offspring of "A Nation at Risk," a 1983 teacher- and school-bashing report. IBM CEO Louis Gerstner named the problem and defined the solution, claiming the need for choice, competition, and technology, recasting students as human capital, and marketizing the teacher/community relationship. Tables summarize critics'…

The movement to develop national standards in education stems from the nation's continuing effort to identify the outcomes sought in schooling. The sources of the impetus for standards are disappointment with U.S. performance in international assessments, the participation of public leaders and educators in school reform, and the example created…

This paper explores the potential pitfalls associated with the new federal accountability role precipitated by the passage of the No Child Left Behind Act. The paper presents worst-case scenarios with the assumption that it is worthwhile to consider the potential for unanticipated consequences so as to avoid problems before they occur. After…

Defends the history National Standards as an excellent and inclusive guide to the broad topics and themes appropriate to a U. S. history course. Nonetheless, characterizes the Standards as pedagogically conservative. Recommends an alternative approach emphasizing critical thinking and interdisciplinary instruction. (MJP)

This book reports the analyses and recommendations of a study group formed by the National Research Council to develop conceptual guidelines that make content the driving force in mathematics assessment reform and to explore a variety of related measurement and policy issues. The document focuses on three principles that underlie effective…

The Department for Children, Schools and Families (DCSF) has contracted with the Learning and Skills Network to support awareness and take-up of Triple Science GCSEs through the Triple Science Support Programme. This publication provides an introduction to teaching and learning approaches for the extension topics within GCSE Biology. It highlights…

This report presents information from a study of recent state efforts to improve the education system and the implications of these efforts for children with disabilities. The study evaluated educational reform and state policy in 18 states. A major finding of the study was the limited involvement of the special education community in the…

Maintains that the debate over the social studies curriculum has been heavily influenced by a small group of conservative foundations, academics, and the federal government. These groups work toward creating an ideological consensus that promotes a national identity and strives to preserve European American dominant culture. (MJP)

Asserts that the current focus on voluntary national standards has catapulted arts education into a new prominence. Discusses the background and tactics of current educational reform efforts. Concludes that, without empirical research and assessment, the proposed curricular standards will remain an educational fad. (CFR)

Building on the strengths and shortcomings of modernist views of organizations and leadership, this discursive paper enters the national conversation among scholars and practitioners about what constitutes the core of their knowledge and practice. It provides a discussion of three national themes about the core of educational…

Argues that content standards that are aligned with tests are the wrong starting point for systemic school change aimed at improving teaching and learning and that national standards are the wrong vehicle. Policies should attempt to create a system in which community involvement, teacher knowledge, and equalized school capacity are starting points…

The National Assessment Summit was designed to bring together users and producers of assessments and engage them in a discussion of unmet assessment needs and untapped assessment capacities. The meeting was truly a summit in that national foreign language organizations and associations were asked to nominate representatives to bring their…

This monograph summarizes educational policy trends of the past 5 years in terms of their implications for the educational outcomes of students with disabilities. The first section reviews the gradual development of federal and state policies concerning goal and standard-setting activities, accountability, and large-scale and alternative…

This paper examines effects of public funding for religious and private schools in the Netherlands and England over the last century. These two countries were chosen because both have religious schools fully funded by the state. The paper shows that state funding has disadvantages and advantages. Funding has been associated with considerable, yet…

This book presents an overview of the different policy approaches to educational disadvantage and equity within the Australian public school system. It highlights two general trends: the shift toward school-based management and funding approaches increasingly directed toward reading and mathematics achievement. More specifically, the book: (1)…