This report summarizes the results of a study conducted to provide a complete and documented picture of public secondary education in Massachusetts. The study involved an analysis of questionnaire data and transcripts from about 3,000 graduates in the 1984 school year. Specifically, the study addressed the following questions: (1) How do student…

A study that identified mathematics processes and concepts taught in industrial arts-technology education courses in Louisiana high schools and the time spent teaching used the following methods: literature review; phone interviews with persons recognized nationally for their efforts at infusing math, science, and technology into the high school…

A research project was undertaken to analyze the effect of increased science and math high school graduation requirements and to develop models to minimize the impact of these increases on vocational course enrollments. Data from survey instruments sent to Colorado's 174 school districts, state directors of vocational education, and state…

The goal of this policy analysis is to set fair standards for awarding units of credit to disabled high school students. Criteria used for selection include: (1) equal protection under the Fourteenth Amendment; (2) education under the 1973 Vocational Rehabilition Act, Section 504; (3) feasibility; (4) flexibility; and (5) integrity of the high…

In a recent survey sponsored jointly by the Center for Information and Research on Civic Learning and Engagement and the Council for Excellence in Government, several questions regarding young people's attitudes towards civic education and community service requirements were asked. These included questions asking if students were favorable or…

The study presented in this bulletin is based on the analysis of the requirements for the bachelor's degree of 101 universities and colleges in the United States, including Hawaii and Puerto Rico. The first chapter contains a brief summary of the history of entrance and college graduation requirements for the bachelor's degree with special…

The term "liberal arts" usually conjures up one central idea; that is, effective liberal arts education as strong academic achievement. A second, less dominant, and frequently neglected notion regards effective liberal arts education as producing intellectual interests and habits that endure throughout adult life. The two ideas are…

An analysis of 12,000 1982 high school graduates' transcripts, as part of a study conducted by the National Center for Education Statistics, substantiates the National Commission on Excellence in Education's (NCEE) concern about students' insufficient coursework in the new basics: English, mathematics, science, social studies, and computer…

The New Center for Learning (NCL) at East Texas State University (ETSU), now in its 13th year, offers an alternative way for students to satisfy most of the general education requirements at ETSU via an integrated interdisciplinary curriculum. For faculty, it offers a vehicle for expanding their knowledge, improving teaching techniques,…

The first phase of a study of the effects of new high school graduation requirements in Maryland was conducted in 1986. Interviews were conducted with 182 administrators, teachers, and students about their perspectives on new requirements instituted in 1985. Transcript records were analyzed for 249 students from 5 high schools. Interview data did…

Data from a national survey of high school students were examined to determine the effects of increased mathematics requirements on the kinds of mathematics students studied, dropout rates, achievement test score gains, and the association of socioeconomic status with test scores and dropping out. Results found little effect on probability of…

Colleges are grappling with decisions on whether ethnic studies courses should be required. Asian American students are responsive in Asian American studies courses when the class composition is largely Asian. With more White students in class, the Asian experience must be translated in a different way and Asian students become more reticent. (VM)

Many educational institutions have already determined that American Sign Language (ASL) is indeed a language, that it has a culture, and it is sufficiently foreign to fulfill a foreign language requirement. Consequently, schools and universities struggle to place ASL in the context of academic foreign language programs. The challenge is to develop…

This article addresses a number of common confusions that characterize much of the debate about the status of American Sign Language (ASL) as a foreign language option. The article begins with a broad overview of the nature and characteristics of different kinds of signing as they are used in the deaf culture and between the deaf and hearing…

A required core contemporary history course is proposed for Europe's senior pupils, needed because of prospects for European integration. The course could be shaped by pairing three fundamental ideas with related conflicts: Reformation/30 Years War, Enlightenment/French Revolution and Napoleanic Wars, and Nationalism/World Wars I and II. (IAH)