The development and implementation of effective distance education happens in an iterative cycle. The three stages are: (1) procurement and preparation of the resources necessary to meet the distance education goals; (2) delivery of instruction using the best practices from education, business and research; and (3) analysis of the results of…

Author considered the question of whether or not there is any purpose or value in grading, and if so, whether the innovations in grading systems have been beneficial. (Author/RK)

There are three alternative means for granting college credit for learning achieved outside the academy--credit for non-collegiate courses, credit by examination, and credit for experiential learning. Discusses how each works and how each challenges traditional patterns. (Editor/RK)

The other inflation is grade inflation, the label affixed to the indisputable rise in the grade-point averages of undergraduates at public and private, elite and community colleges and universities across the country. The effects of grade inflation upon academic performance were assessed. (Author/RK)

In recent years there has been an increasing emphasis in higher education on the explicit articulation of assessment standards and requirements, whether this emanates from calls for public accountability or is based on ideas of good educational practice (Ecclestone, 2001). We argue in this article that a single-minded focus on explicit…

A look at some of the State's 21 recommendations on high school graduation standards and NJEA's policy on high school graduation and basic skills. ( Editor)

Examines efforts to reorganize professional certification of persons engaged in scientific and scholarly activities in the Soviet Union. Regulations ratified by the Central Committee of the Communist Party in 1976 deal with creating special councils to examine dissertations, and drafting standards of dissertation originality and relevance.…

Authors bring an historical perspective to the present debate over reading achievement. From an historical examination of selected European and American models of literacy, they conclude that reading instruction has been aimed at attaining either a low level of literacy for a large number of people or a high level for an elite. (Editor/RK)

Will the current preoccupation with "standards" and control of the curriculum bring our schools more into line with those on the continent? And if so, do teachers and parents know what may follow? At the end of a year spent looking at British primary schools, the author offers some sobering comparisons between the two systems. (Editor/RK)

Presents contemporary information concerning Chinese graduate program objectives, admission requirements, academic regulations, educational practices, achievements, and reform efforts. (RM)

Many people believe that America's public schools can be saved by instituting high standards for academic achievement. Strategies for achieving this goal are presented in this book. The text explores the standards movement, examining its importance and asking what it will take to bring every student up to high standards, irrespective of where the…

Recognizing that the literacy demands that students now face require their active involvement in their own learning, this book considers a wide variety of ways to encourage that involvement. The book describes how teachers' practices foster literacy communities in their classrooms that can help students achieve the standards for the English…

This theme issue explores the connection between service learning and standards-based education. In the lead article, "Service Learning and Standards: Are They Compatible?" (Brian Loney), an educator applies his extensive experience with Active Citizenship Today, a successful social studies service-learning program, to a representative set of…

This proceedings contains 25 presentations and summaries of presentations from the 22nd annual Rural and Small Schools Conference held at Kansas State University. Entries of three or more pages are: "Technical Education for Rural Kansas" (Ralph Beacham); "Galactic Explosion at Cool School" (summer science program) (Sue…

This article discusses some of the various school-reform strategies that have been implemented since the publication of A Nation at Risk. It opens with an examination of standards-based accountability and some of the concerns and objections surrounding this movement. It asks whether standards are achieving their purpose, looks at the role of state…