Under the sponsorship of the U. S. Office of Education, Rand is conducting a several-year study of federally funded programs designed to introduce and spread innovative practices in public schools. These change agent programs normally offer temporary federal funding to school districts as "seed money" or "risk capital." If an…

Crucial issues facing the departments of English in the 1960's prompt a reexamination of literature-oriented curriculums, staff preparation, enrollment trends, and international needs in the teaching of English. The implications of a shortage of qualified beginning instructors with a Ph.D. in literature suggest that teachers be trained in the…

State actions related to the formulation of educational policy are treated from four distinct points of view. Tom Wiley, University of New Mexico, describes pressures upon the school system in New Mexico by the U.S. Office of Education, the State legislature, the governor's office, and teacher associations. Michael Manley, assistant to the…

This report examines Wisconsin's demographic, social, economic, and political characteristics; and focuses in particular on the structural features of education and government at the State level to provide additional understanding of the context of the State policymaking system. Discussed are four issue areas that illustrate the State policy…

Attention is drawn to the programs funded under the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965, defining this law as a basic attempt to change the interrelationships of social groups in America. This paper presents as a case study the relationships between a community action agency (CAA), on the one hand, and the local school districts (LEAs)…

This study examines the politics of program implementation in Michigan. It focuses on relations between the Michigan Department of Education and the state's local school districts in the administration of state aid for compensatory education. With its accountability emphasis and with the many administrative issues that have characterized its…

Twenty-nine helpful hints for "happy teaching" are suggested as part of a program of social studies teacher preparation. Intended particularly for use by teacher educators in small liberal arts colleges, the paper groups recommendations in the following categories: (1) securing the cooperation and participation of the social science departments…

The document reports the changes states have made in their monitoring of the provision of special education services by local education agencies from 1997 to 2001. It includes a brief background on the federal monitoring process and an outline of the federal requirements for state monitoring. Changes in state monitoring systems are discussed,…

President Bush's comprehensive education plan includes major initiatives in areas ranging from accountability to school safety. While breaking new ground in some areas, Bush's plan accelerates the progress states have made in improving quality, performance, and flexibility in public education. This status report reviews the progress of states in…

Carnegie Corporation of New York and other funders are undertaking a reform initiative, "Teachers for a New Era," to stimulate construction of excellent teacher education programs at selected colleges and universities. Success will require radical change in allocation of resources, academic organization, criteria for evaluating participating…

Georgia's Latino student population has risen from less than 2,000 in 1976 to more than 28,000 in 1996. In 1995-96, Latinos were less likely than their peers to finish school, more likely to struggle in the classroom, and less likely to have instructors from their ethnic background. The current Georgia Department of Education, characterized by…

The purpose of this report is to bring together and to summarize statistical information published in other chapters of the Biennial Survey of Education, and to present some new material that does not belong exclusively to any other statistical report. Data on public elementary and secondary schools are furnished by State departments of education.…

Rural supervision is a comparatively new field in education. Therefore its method and practice are not definitely formulated; and supervisors at work, as well as those educators who are formulating courses in the subject, have learned and are learning in part through their own experience and that of others. For this reason they are eager to…

This chapter of the "Biennial Survey of Education in the United States" is concerned with the topic of the professional education of teachers. Current problems in the education of teachers that are of chief interest, as judged by returns from nearly 100 teacher-preparing institutions and from State departments of education, and by general…

For many years, colleges, universities, and State departments of education have become more and more conscious of the importance of extension education, and of the obligation resting upon them to promote it in every way practicable. This is especially true of the State university, which, in many States, is now making an honest effort to extend the…