The impact of school resources on student outcomes was first raised in the 1960s and has been controversial since then. This issue enters into the decision making on school finance in both legislatures and the courts. The historical research found little consistent or systematic relationship of spending and achievement, but this research…

The challenge of funding a high quality higher education system, ensuring it has the capacity to help meet the increasing demand for high level skills in our economy and the aspirations of our students, has been an ongoing concern for successive Australian governments over many years. This paper reviews the findings and recommendations of…

This literature review on school choice analyses the impact of choice schemes on students and on school systems focusing on equity. Reviewing the evidence can be difficult, as the literature is often fragmented and inconclusive, and the political importance of this research often results in high-profile attention given to individual studies rather…

This report synthesizes what research says works in improving teacher skills and knowledge, what nations that outperform the United States in education are doing, and provides an analysis of newly available data from the federal Schools and Staffing Survey and other sources to indicate where the nation stands in building the capacity of educators…

This document represents the second volume of the seventeenth in the series of biennial Science Indicators reports, "Science and Engineering Indicators, 2006." The National Science Board submits this report in accordance with Sec. 4(j)1 of the National Science Foundation Act of 1950, as amended. The Science Indicators series was designed to…

This monograph provides information on the many aspects of teacher compensation and incentive plans, focusing on those programs that seek to attract and retain high-quality teachers in the profession. Information was synthesized from reports provided by various school districts around the nation. The monograph presents state-by-state data on…

In the U.S.-affiliated Pacific, the U.S. Department of Education (U.S. ED) and the U.S. Department of the Interior (DOI) are responsible for assisting State educational agencies (SEAs) in the development of planning and accountability systems to meet the requirements of the "No Child Left Behind Act of 2001" (NCLB) requirements and…

This working paper contains the overheads used in a seminar designed to introduce some basic concepts of statistics to nonstatisticians. The seminar has been presented on several occasions. The first part of the seminar, and the first set of overheads, deals with the essentials of statistics, including: (1) population, sample, and inference; (2)…

The relationship between good teaching and student achievement elevates the importance of teacher quality in the eyes of parents, educators, and policymakers. While some teachers may have a special gift to help students learn, good teaching encompasses critical elements, such as knowledge of the learning process, child development, teacher…

Five years ago the No Child Left Behind Act (NCLB) launched a revolution in our education system by insisting that all students should be proficient in reading and math by 2014 and demanding comprehensive reforms to reach this national goal, including strong assessment and accountability systems, a highly qualified teacher in every classroom, more…

Educational developments in the Middle East are analyzed in terms of the relationship between educational systems and developmental goals, especially manpower. Accompanying commentaries by Orin D. Parker and Joy W. Viola contend that educational quality has been sacrificed for quantity and that judgment of the system must be made within a cultural…

Factors that are most important to institutional effectiveness in the production of black baccalaureates were studied. A further concern was how these factors can be translated into policies and practices for undergraduate institutions that have not traditionally served black students. An effectiveness quotient was developed as an overall measure…

This paper summarizes the research on the importance of teacher education and salary levels, provides a snapshot of Head Start and Early Head Start staff credentials and related issues, describes recent legislative history and changes on teacher qualifications, and assesses whether states and higher education systems are ready to address a major…

The monograph is an attempt to describe conditions existing today in rural America that can affect the operation and impact of vocational education in rural areas and, thus, should exercise an influence on policy making. It identifies statistical patterns and characteristics common to rural areas, both within regions and those that cut across…

Lifelong learning is increasingly being recognized as a primary factor for knowledge diffusion and productivity growth. However, little economic evidence exists on the economic value of lifelong learning for the individual, especially in developing countries. This paper contributes to remedy this shortfall. It investigates one aspect of lifelong…