This digest reviews educational policies and practices that have been proven effective in closing the achievement gap, offering a list of resources with detailed information about them. The digest focuses on state and district roles (e.g., developing and implementing educational goals, rigorous standards, and accountability standards and providing…

When the American Vocational Association changed its name to the Association for Career and Technical Education, it underscored the need for today's vocational educators to focus on both career education and technical education. The name change reflects the fact that today's work environment, labor market, and employment opportunities are very…

Seven papers from the annual conference are presented. "Developing Tomorrow's Technology-Using Foreign Language Teachers: Where We Are, Where We Are Going" (Marjorie H. DeWert, Audrey Heining-Boynton) looks at whether language teachers are being trained to take full advantage of educational technology. "Foreign Language Placement in…

The three case studies in this report describe state-level efforts to address diversity and equity in postsecondary institutions in California, Maryland, and Washington. A preface provides some background on affirmative action programs, litigation history, and the roles of state coordinating agencies and institutional governing boards. The…

The College of Education at the University of Akron (Ohio) approaches program delivery, service, research, and student diversity through collaborative efforts, which are complementary to and facilitated by an urban education program. The Decker Family Development Center is a collaborative project involving the university, the school district, a…

This working paper provides background for the U.S. Department of Education's first report to the nation on teacher quality, informing the ongoing work on state policy contexts for the improvement of teaching undertaken by the Center for the Study of Teacher Policy. The main goal is to illustrate the range of state-initiated actions aimed at…

This document includes abstracts of 190 completed research projects in agricultural education from September 1, 1989 to August 31, 1990. They report on 102 masters' papers or theses, 40 doctoral dissertations, and 48 staff studies. Thirty-two institutions from 29 states are represented. Abstracts are listed alphabetically by state and within each…

The Sex Equity Program at Santa Fe Community College continued to foster innovative approaches to overcoming sex-role stereotyping and discrimination in vocational education, training, and employment. It focused on four major areas: awareness/recruitment; education of students and staff at the college; support/job placement for enrolled…

This report reflects opinions shared during the 1999 South Carolina Summit on Teacher Quality, highlighting areas of consensus among participants. The Summit examined issues contributing to today's challenges and discussed solutions to ensure adequate numbers of teachers and a good supply of well-qualified and successful teachers in all academic…

This document is comprised of three papers by various authors, summarizing three different models of programs that successfully promote teacher quality that were introduced at the National Conference on Teacher Quality in January 2000, hosted by the U.S. Department of Education. The first program described, the Pathways to Teaching Program of…

This document is the product of a forum that attempted to identify trends in education that are affecting and will continue to affect children with disabilities from birth to age 21, and the ensuing implications for the training of personnel. The edited transcripts of two introductory presentations begin with volume--"Charting the Course for…

Prepared by a state personnel management advisory committee, this document provides a guide to Oregon school districts in the employment, retraining, and retention of both certified and classified (support) staff. An introduction explains that district personnel management functions include determining need and selection, assignment, and…

The conference convened on June 7, 1981, to study critical issues in rural education, the political and legislative perspectives involved, and resources available for rural educators. The format of the conference consisted of formal addresses and individual discussion sessions. This report includes the formal addresses, covering national…

Since the reauthorization of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act or the No Child Left Behind Act (NCLB) of 2001, much has been said and written about the law by a variety of education observers, practitioners, and policymakers from both sides of the political aisle. With support from the Ford, Rockefeller, and Z. Smith Reynolds foundations,…

One of the most important provisions of the No Child Left Behind Act (NCLB) is the requirement that all teachers of core academic subjects be "highly qualified" by the end of school year 2005-2006. Key principles for recruiting and preparing future teachers have been identified as raising academic standards for teachers and lowering…