The annual What's Hot in Literacy survey was conducted to determine what topics are currently receiving attention, and how they are being addressed effectively within schools and in the emerging research. Twenty-five literacy experts served as panelists and were interviewed to determine which of the 30 topics were a focus of current attention. The…

Considerable research indicates that high-stakes accountability policies have the capacity to influence language arts instruction, particularly in urban, high-needs schools where pressure to increase test scores tends to be most acute. This article utilizes Cultural Historical Activity Theory to critically examine the constraints and affordances…

Accountability in the nation's public schools has become a matter of considerable urgency since the 2001 amendment of the federal Elementary and Secondary Education Act (ESEA) of 1965. Under this most recent version of the ESEA, as of the 2007-08 academic year states and districts must assess the mathematics and reading proficiency of students…

Reports that the use of an evaluation instrument as part of a staff development project indicated that the quality of teaching methodology could be measured and improved. (Author/FL)

To support K-12 students with significant disabilities and get an accurate picture of their skills and knowledge, schools need to implement effective alternate assessment based on alternate achievement standards (AA-AAS). This is the guidebook every team should have--not only to develop successful AA-AAS linked with grade-level content standards,…

The No Child Left Behind Act of 2001 calls for 100% proficiency in reading and mathematics by 2014. The mandate thus transforms reading and mathematics into high-stakes subject areas. This quantitative cross-sectional study examined legislated testing mandates in relation to burnout subscales, emotional exhaustion, depersonalization, and personal…

This two-volume report, and Summary of Key Findings, presents findings from the congressionally mandated National Assessment of Title I on the implementation and impact of the program. Volume I contains key findings on the implementation of the program under No Child Left Behind, and Volume II [see ED499018] presents a report on follow-up findings…

Beginners in many disciplines learn that correlation never proves causation, but sometimes, even in public health, correlation, mistaken for causation, becomes the basis for policy and great expenditures of public and private money. "True experiments" with random assignment to experimental and control groups hold a special place in the…

This book contains eight papers on adult learning and literacy. "The Year 1998 in Review" (Fran Tracy-Mumford) examines educational legislation and policy and developments in adult education program development, program accountability, strategic alliances and partnerships, and instructional methodologies and technologies. "Lessons…