Rural life is more complex than it is perhaps credited. This edited volume explores several themes that highlight such complexities, particularly in terms of what they imply for rural teaching and learning. These themes include the geographic, demographic, and socioeconomic diversity within and across rural communities; the notion that rurality is…

"Behind the Diversity Numbers" uncovers how frequently used approaches to examine and understand race-related issues on college campuses can reinforce racism and inequality, rather than combat them. The book argues that educational leaders must look beyond quantitative metrics in order to develop institutional policies and practices that…

"Assessing the Nation's Report Card" examines the history of the National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP) and outlines plans for improving and modernizing the organization. Educational policy analyst Chester E. Finn, Jr. imparts a rare inside analysis of the evolution of the NAEP program at key moments in its history, and…

eLearning has entered the mainstream of higher education as an agent of strategic change. This transformation requires eLearning leaders to develop the skills to innovate successfully at a time of heightened competition and rapid technological change. In this environment eLearning leaders must act within their institutions as much more than…

What models of governance are effective in complex education systems? In all systems an increasing number of stakeholders are involved in designing, delivering, and monitoring education. Like our societies, education systems are increasingly diverse regarding students, teachers, and communities, as well as the values and identities we expect…

The number of staff members serving American higher education institutions has more than doubled in the past twenty years, as occupations in technology, development, government relations, and even athletic administration have grown as never before in the history of the academy. As the number, variety, and importance of these positions have grown,…

This book examines the capacity of the courts to make and implement social policy, focusing on how issues emerge in litigation, how courts obtain their information, how judges use social science data, how legal solutions to social problems are devised, and what happens to judge-made social policy after decrees leave the courthouse. After a general…

An extensive project involving formal and informal interviews and examination of university documents revealed that the governance of British universities does not coincide with any single stereotype. Decisions are made within institutions in ways that are subtle and complex, and that maintain both academic freedom and a significant degree of…

This book analyzes a number of issues related to citizen involvement in land-use planning. Based on this analysis, the author recommends a set of organizational principles that can be utilized to develop an integrated, coherent citizen involvement program. The core of the study is a review of several major program design issues that political…

Colleges and universities face a variety of challenges in meeting the needs of students, and one of the greatest is their ability to respond to student needs while protecting institutional and academic integrity. For those working with students, a primary example of this challenge is the involvement of students in shared decision-making, a process…

This book is designed to help school administrators locate, analyze, and effectively use relevant information to create policies at the school or district level. Chapter 1 introduces the concepts of school policy and policy analysis, outlines the five-step Clear and Simple Analysis (CASA) model, and lists seven principles of effective policy…

To inform researchers and provide guidance to policy-makers inside and outside government who participate in federal decision-making affecting children, a study was conducted under the auspices of the Administration for Children, Youth and Families. Specific objectives of the study were (1) to develop a better understanding of how federal policies…

This document describes and comments on the extent of use of the Delphi method in higher education decision making. Delphi is characterized by: (1) anonymity of response; (2) multiple iterations; (3) convergence of the distribution of answers; and (4) statistical group response (median, interquartile range) preserving intact a distribution that…

This paper reports a series of events that occurred at Anderson College (South Carolina) as a result of conflict between a college academic policy which allowed students to withdraw from a course without penalty up until the 12th week of a 16 week semester, and a regulation of the state approval agency for veterans education which required that…

This book is a collection of 19 essays that broadly treat the use of evidence in informing educational policy and practice in Canada: (1) "Knowledge and Action in Educational Policy and Politics" (Benjamin Levin); (2) "Data, Data Everywhere (and We Don't Know What to Do): Using Data for Wise Decisions in Schools" (Lorna M.…