In an era of increasingly hyped Massive Open Online Courses (MOOCs) that seem to evoke feelings of both promise and peril for higher education, many institutions are struggling to find their niche among top-tier Ivy League schools offering courses to thousands of participants for free. While the effectiveness of MOOCs in terms of learning outcomes…

Districts are finding that alert notification systems that deliver automated phone messages are an effective way to reach parents and employees. Implementing the technology is one thing and getting the most out of it is another. This article presents the Districts' goal to get in touch with parents and employees in emergency situations. Andy…

To give states the information they need to sustain hard-fought education reform policy changes effectively, Achieve conducted research on state education reforms that have been sustained successfully for over a decade or more. Funded by the GE Foundation, Achieve hopes this work will help other state leaders, wherever they may be on their road to…

Two separate research projects were undertaken in Georgia and Texas to examine the current and future needs of older adults for functional literacy and to analyze the involvement of adult basic education (ABE) programs to better serve those needs. The projects involved literature reviews; mail-out surveys; and one-on-one interviews with senior…

This manual presents ideas and methods for vocational personnel to use in informing male and female students about future trends and needs for equity in the work force through education and training. The following topics are discussed: the persistent equity challenge and changing labor force/family demographics; the gender equity awareness process…

A 3-day conference was held to generate the goals for Adult Basic Education (ABE) in Texas for the remainder of the decade, to examine barriers to and bridges for accomplishing these goals, and to propose strategies for implementing these goals. During the conference, 19 participants (including directors, supervisors, teachers, university faculty…

A Texas State Job Training Coordinating Council task force developed a series of recommendations regarding improving Texas' current employment and training system to prepare the state's residents for the "smart jobs of the future." A formal literature review was conducted, and regional forums were held and attended by a wide range of…