"Keeping Pace" has several goals. First, it strives to add to the body of knowledge about online education policy and practice, and make recommendations for advances. Second, it serves as a reference source for information about programs and policies across the country, both for policymakers and practitioners who are new to online…

Presents a three-step model for developing competency-based programs in accordance with the new Carl D. Perkins Vocational and Applied Technology Education Act of 1990. Covers the identification of program competencies, course design, and the development of course descriptions and syllabi. Discusses documentation requirements. (DMM)

Issues in second language teaching methodology are discussed in light of the concept of proficiency as defined in the American Council on the Teaching of Foreign Languages (ACTFL) Proficiency Guidelines. It is proposed that rather than think in terms of identifying one optimal methodology for all second language learners, the profession should be…

A competency-based student assessment model that attempts to measure the value added to a student as he goes through the university curriculum, sometimes used as a measure of educational quality, and its effects on the students, faculty, and curriculum are examined. (MSE)

In the context of Australian education, the increasing emphasis on outcomes assessment, especially measurable performance, is discussed and some of the concepts involved in this performance orientation are examined. The shift in emphasis from inputs to outcomes, difficulty in operationalizing desirable outcomes, issues specific to compulsory and…

Recent court decisions and legislation show that an adequate school finance formula must provide sufficient money so public schools can teach all students. Four different approaches for determining school finance adequacy are: (1) determining the economic cost of various educational functions; (2) linking spending to performance benchmarks; (3)…

Describes the emerging market of employment opportunities available in information work outside traditional libraries and information services units. The need for information science curricula that encompass relevant information technologies and the difficulties in implementing new curricula are discussed, and a national framework for information…

North Country Community College (New York) implemented a model of general education specifying competencies to be achieved in liberal arts courses. Introductory psychology students were pre- and posttested on competencies of knowledge (objective and subjective), critical thinking, and writing, using an objective test and essay. Significant gains…

This study describes four middle schools which educate poor and minority students more effectively than most middle schools in the New York City public school system. These schools were studied in order to define the characteristics associated with academic effectiveness. Chapter 1 provides the demographics and the test score results for each…

Describes the development and design of an undergraduate course which utilized a marketing principles class to teach students information gathering techniques as part of a college wide competency requirement. The materials and procedures used, roles of instructors and librarians in the course, and evaluation of the project are discussed. (CLB)

A field-based task-oriented teacher education model is described and its implementation in university college-operated schools (primary and secondary) is recommended. (CL)

Mastery and performance goals can dramatically influence college students' self-regulated learning. These independent but complementary types of goals are shaped in important ways by how faculty organize and structure their classrooms for learning, particularly through the tasks assigned, development of student authority, and the focus of student…

Discussion of quality assurance in U.S. pharmaceutical education looks at the Total Quality Management approach to measuring quality, recommendations of the American Association of Colleges of Pharmacy concerning general and pharmacy-specific professional competencies, and other systems to ensure quality, including accreditation, the federal role,…

Every young person should be obliged to engage in some program of systematic study until he/she can meet core learning standard for entry into adult society realizing that this will take different amounts of time for different individuals. Learning can take place in wide variety of settings and by many methods. Age-grade link also needs to be…

Mercer County Community College (New Jersey) and six small businesses used federal grant money to develop a model program of workplace literacy that would assist 600 adult workers with inadequate basic skills in performing their jobs. In analyzing the overall skills of the work force, the literacy audit identified these basic skills/literacy…