The What Works Clearinghouse (WWC) Standards Briefs explain the rules the WWC uses to evaluate the quality of studies for practitioners, researchers, and policymakers. An aspect of a study is considered a confounding factor if it is not possible to tell whether the difference in outcomes is due to the intervention, the confounding factor, or both.…

This monograph, one in a series on theory and educational issues in Australia, explores links between education and political and economic structures. Two sections provide an analysis of an education-work program and five readings. The Transition Education Program is described as a government response to the 1979 economic crisis. The policy and…

This report concludes the main portion of MDRC's Project on Devolution and Urban Change, an eight-year effort to chart the course of welfare reform in four big urban counties: Los Angeles, Cuyahoga (Cleveland), Miami-Dade, and Philadelphia. The goal of the study was to find out whether federal welfare reform would lead to meaningful changes in…

In response to Fischer (HE 527 626), the author considers his proposal to simplify and unify the need analysis used in the Pell grant program and other federal need-based student aid to be useful and well designed, avoiding some common political considerations as it improves procedures and increases equity. The alternative cost-saving aspects of…

This handbook for higher education faculty is designed to inform them of the nature and extent of alcohol and other drug abuse on the nation's campuses and to enlist their involvement in responding to these problems. Based on the premise that each individual can make a difference, the faculty member is encouraged to help shape the campus…

One of the goals for volunteers in the Peace Corps of the United States is to teach U.S. citizens about the people and culture of their host countries. World Wise Schools promotes this goal by matching current Peace Corps volunteers with 3rd through 12th grade classes throughout the United States in information exchanges. This guide is designed to…

Analysis of the evolution of the regulatory process in federal student aid looks at the ability of stakeholders to influence results and concerns about overregulation. Alternative regulatory approaches, considered less burdensome, are examined, and the appropriateness of using student financial aid policy to achieve social and political objectives…

Characterizes federal support for education as a political process involving Congress, the president, special interest groups, program administrators, and the general public. Examines policy shifts from bipartisan congressional leadership in the late 1940s through John Kennedy's advocacy of federal aid and Ronald Reagan's endorsement of state and…

Reviews the rapidly expanding literature on the federal government's involvement in elementary and secondary education, covering research syntheses published in the early 1980's and subsequent unanthologized empirical research and normative commentaries. Identifies trends and themes that surface from this literature, encompassing both empirical…

Written for professionals working with food assistance and other programs with a nutrition component, this guide is intended to aid in understanding the cultural characteristics and basic health and diet-related problems of Native Americans and to promote more effective nutrition counseling and community nutrition education. The background section…

A project used a mixed quantitative-qualitative approach, drawing from the Job Corps database and site visits at five sites, to generate knowledge that can guide policymakers and program planners as they act to increase retention in the Job Corps or similar programs. Quantitative data on 343,097 students who enrolled in Job Corps between July 1993…