Writing is an essential skill for participating in modern American society. Although it is crucial to careers and civic engagement, student writing falls far short of national expectations (College Board, 2004; NCES, 2012; Persky, Daane, & Jin, 2003). The Common Core State Standards (CCSS) seek to increase the rigor of writing instruction…

The paper addresses issues concerned with increasing state interest in encouraging public institutions of higher education to demonstrate educational quality through outcomes assessment and reports on the development and implementation of Tennessee's program of performance funding. Emphasis is on guidelines contained within a 5-year performance…

Profiles of the 14 states of the Southern Regional Education Board (SREB) provide information on the structure of these states for public postsecondary education and budgeting. For each state, the following areas are discussed: state-level coordinating and/or governing agency, institutional governing boards, state board for vocational education,…

This paper reports on research that examined longitudinal data on students entering Tennessee Board of Regents institutions of higher education after the implementation of a state-mandated developmental studies program. The program identifies and helps at-risk students to persist in college to graduation. Data analysis is presented from a 1986…

Performance indicators used for state funding, past and present, of public colleges in Arkansas, Colorado, Florida, Kentucky, Louisiana, Minnesota, Missouri, Ohio, South Carolina, Tennessee, and Washington are reviewed to explore their intent and implications and to provide information for policymakers considering introducing or revising…

This book provides a brief historical review of outcomes assessment in higher education and a general guide to designing, implementing, and evaluating assessment programs. Chapter 1 provides several definitions of commonly used terms and a review of the major actors and the political context. It identifies factors contributing to the recent push…

This training manual is designed to help English for Speakers of Other Languages (ESOL) teachers and supervisors successfully develop a workplace ESOL class. Four modules include: (1) "Knowing and Presenting Your Adult Education Program to Business and Industry" (e.g., introduction to Tennessee's Workplace ESOL Initiative, the four-step…

The Mainstream Assistance Team (MAT) project is a 3-year research program designed to develop, implement, and validate a prereferral intervention model. The model is a least-restrictive, preventative, ecologically-based, problem-solving approach, using a multidisciplinary team composed of a school psychologist, special educator, and general…