Democracy has been weakened in the United Kingdom with citizens increasingly frustrated at not being able to shape government decisions in any meaningful way. State actions at the local and national level are at risk of becoming even more influenced by vested private interests. This poses a major challenge to the democratic health of the country.…

This article is presented in four parts. In the first part, I describe the foundation of the Science and Mathematics Education Centre (SMEC) at Curtin University. In the second part, I explain the development of SMEC's teaching and research capacity under its three directors. In the third section, I describe how federal government support of SMEC…

This article presents an interview with Diane Ravitch. Ravitch replies to the following questions: (1) What does a good secondary education look like to you?; (2) What should the role of the federal government be?; (3) U.S. public schools regularly take a pounding in the media, but do you see strengths in our system? Were there ever good old days…

In December 2012, the "U.S. Department of Education Chapter of Blacks In Government (BIG) Report: The Status of the African American Workforce at the U.S. Department of Education" (ED538186) described racial and demographic data by grade levels for Pay Period 11 in 2012 compared to similar data towards the end of the Bush administration.…

Throughout the history of the United States, adult education has played a continuous role in helping adults reach for better lives. In the early 20th century, as this country witnessed expanded growth and tremendous work opportunities, it became apparent that in order to have a productive workforce and economic stability, the language needs of so…

Purpose. The purpose of this research was to further an understanding of how the federal government is addressing the challenges of interoperability for emergency response or crisis management (FEMA, 2009) by informing the development of standards through the review of current congressional law, commissions, studies, executive orders, and…

This White Paper project was undertaken to address the Learning Disabilities Association of America (LDA) concerns regarding the Individuals with Disabilities Education Improvement Act (IDEIA) of 2004 statutory and regulatory requirements for the identification of Specific Learning Disabilities (SLD), and the subsequent U. S. Department of…

To help achieve President Obama's stated goal of ensuring that every student has meaningful opportunities to choose from upon graduating from high school, the administration has designed a blueprint for a reenvisioned federal role in education through the reauthorization of the "Elementary and Secondary Education Act" ("ESEA").…

State and local governments work in partnership with the federal government to implement numerous intergovernmental programs. Fiscal pressures for state and local governments may exist when spending is expected to outpace revenues for the long term. GAO (Government Accountability Office) was asked to examine (1) the long-term fiscal pressures…

This spring, the Milwaukee district announced major cuts to local school budgets for next year. At the 400-student elementary school where the author works, the projected cuts meant that, despite a modest increase in student enrollment, they had to cut an additional staff position. Given that in the past few years budget cuts had forced them to…

The federal role in education will soon be transformed in ways that could produce an even greater society than President Lyndon B. Johnson envisioned. The authors identify underlying principles of this new role and describe how it represents a significant departure from the past. Historically, for example, the federal government has been…

This article reviews federal language policies and provincial curriculum documents as they relate to Allophones and their access to French as a Second Official Language (FSOL) programs across Canada. Results of a detailed document analysis reveal that policies provide obstacles to access for allophone immigrants to Canada who seek to learn both…

The education of First Nations students in Canada on reserve is the legal responsibility of the federal government. This article reviews and critiques the federal government's past and current special education policies and practices in regard to First Nations schools throughout Canada. The author has found that rather than establishing a…

The author reports on a review of state policies by researchers from the University of California, Los Angeles, which raises questions about the validity of the use of home-language surveys as a step to identify students eligible for special help in learning English. While it's ubiquitous in schools across the country, the practice of educators'…

Researchers and practitioners need to exchange information in order for education research to become more useful. Practitioners need to develop more understanding of research and how to interpret its findings in light of local conditions. The What Works Clearinghouse, a project of the Institute for Education Sciences of the U.S. Department of…