The Nebraska State Department of Education sought to raise the level of management skills of educational administrators through the establishment of planning and evaluation capability among personnel. Training sessions in both planning and evaluation skills were held. This publication contains the materials used in the training sessions in…

A report on the Michigan project in performance contracting is presented. In contrast to the Office of Economic Opportunity announcement that performance contracting is a failure, the Michigan program has been successful in the initial stage of a major experiment (Texarkana Project). The state legislature has appropriated $22.5 million for…

During Fiscal Year 1975-76, the Oregon Migrant Education Program provided educational, health, nutritional, and social services to 4,677 children. Of these, 8% were preschoolers, 58% were at the elementary level, 21% at the junior high level, and 13% at the senior high level. Slightly more than 3/4 were Mexican American, with an estimated 48%…

Online learning holds promise for providing new educational opportunities to a wide range of students across the country. The rapid expansion of K-12 online learning, however, threatens to outpace the development of appropriate state-level policies that serve to fulfill the promise. As the National Association of State Boards of Education warned…

This report addresses issues concerned with reporting educational results for students with disabilities, identifies principles to guide reporting practices, and offers recommendations. The report notes that there are many purposes for reporting and that reporting information on students with disabilities is important because it ensures that they…

This report summarizes 48 states' current policies on the participation of students with disabilities in large-scale assessments and the accommodations noted in state policies as available for those students. In developing the summary, changes in state assessment policies were also checked. Charts in the report provide information on presentation…

Pursuant to the Carl D. Perkins Vocational and Technical Education Act of 1998 and in accordance with Program Memorandum 2 issued by Assistant Secretary for Vocational and Adult Education, the State of Hawaii is submitting a transition plan under Option 3 to extend the current Multi-Year Plan. The plan discussed in this report takes into…

This report examines the outcomes of the John M. McKay Scholarships Program, a statewide voucher program for students with disabilities in Florida that provides students with taxpayer-funded vouchers to be used at private schools or at other public schools. It argues that the McKay voucher program, which started in 1999, is rife with…

Precedents from litigation on state graduation assessments provide insight into the potential legal arguments challengers may raise with regard to mandated content and performance standards for all students. Clearly documented, fairly administered procedures that adhere to professional recommendations will be the hallmark of defensible standards.…

The purpose of this booklet is to introduce parents of students with disabilities to the "big ideas" contained in school improvement efforts under the No Child Left Behind Act of 2001 (NCLB) and the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA), and to provide them with the information they need to help ensure that their children…

This report to the Mississippi Legislature presents the findings of a review of the central office of the State Board of Trustees of Institutions of Higher Learning (IHL). The review committee sought to determine if the accounting practices and external controls over the IHL central office ensured an adequate level of accountability for public…

In 1997, America needs to launch a new Marshall Plan, equivalent to the original Marshall Plan that was established to help fund Europe's recovery from World War II. The new Marshall Plan must be directed at America's own urban public school systems. The Council of the Great City Schools (CGCS) is announcing a five-part framework for an Urban…

This report, which documents compliance of Texas vocational education programs with civil rights legislation in 1992-93, details the activities conducted by the Texas Education Agency to comply with Office of Civil Rights (OCR) guidelines under the Texas Methods of Administration plan. Presented in the first section are the following:…

This special hearing, held in Portland, Oregon, addressed the concept of allowing states and local governments more flexibility in their use of federal funds designated for educational programs in exchange for increased state and local accountability. It focused on programs and policies in place or under consideration in the states of Oregon and…

In this update, 49 more goal-based programs are added to the 50 programs described in the directory's initial 1981 edition. The programs are goal-based in that they make use of such concepts as minimum competency testing, mastery learning, and continuous progress curricula, among others. As in the initial edition, each program receives a one-page…