This study is the Thomas B. Fordham Institute's first review of the quality of state U.S. history standards since 2003. Key findings include: (1) A majority of states' standards are mediocre-to-awful. The average grade across "all" states is barely a D. In twenty-eight jurisdictions--a majority of states--the history standards earn Ds or…

This review of state English language arts (ELA) and mathematics standards is the latest in a series of Fordham evaluations dating back to 1997. It comes at a critical juncture, as states across the land consider adoption of the Common Core State Standards. These are the authors' major findings: (1) Based on their criteria, the Common Core…

The State Educational Technology Directors Association (SETDA) is the principal association representing the technology leadership in all fifty states, the District of Columbia, the U.S. Virgin Islands, and the Bureau of Indian Affairs. This is SETDA's ninth annual report on select educational technology activities. This year's report includes…

This document presents the most current and complete information about charter schools in Wisconsin. It describes the purpose of charter schools in the state and how they are constructed to achieve their goals. It discusses charter-school history, sponsorship, legal status, what charter schools can and cannot do, organization and governance,…

This document summarizes annual reports provided by Massachusetts' charter schools. It is supplemented with information from reports required of all public schools in the state and provides profiles of the 24 charter schools that were operating in 1997-98. The report opens with an overview of the four common features of charter schools--freedom,…

In 1973, the Pennsylvania Environmental Education Advisory Council was charged with surveying the current status of environmental education in the state and preparing recommendations for the development and subsequent implementation of a broad-based environmental education program plan for kindergarten through grade twelve (K-12). The Council was…

These four reports describe Oklahoma's education-reform efforts, which were mandated by the Education Reform and Funding Act of 1990. Each of the volumes offers an annual report of the ongoing changes in education. Volume 1 focuses on state-appropriated funds for education and per-pupil expenditures. It looks at school consolidation, greater…

This is the first annual report of the 17-month initial study of Pennsylvania charter schools. The document contains interim information about the status and development of the state's charter schools and the charter-school initiative as a whole; it is not intended to be a summative evaluation of individual schools or the initiative, and it is not…

Descriptions of 27 state early childhood education programs are presented in this survey conducted to provide information on which to base program development decisions related to early childhood education in West Virginia. The study surveyed the following areas in each state: definition of early childhood education; administrating agency; laws,…

This executive summary describes a study that analyzes the content of early learning standards, operationally defined as documents that articulate expectations for children's development and learning during the preschool period (ages three to five years). Standards from 36 states were collected and analyzed to address the following research…

A project is described that helps states provide more comparable, complete, and timely educational information for the annual Common Core of Data (CCD) to be used for policy-making decisions. The Education Data Improvement Project (EDIP), funded by the National Center for Education Statistics, began in the fall of 1985. In the first phase/year,…

This document, fourth in a series, describes trends in statewide assessment programs. It is based on surveys conducted in the past for the Association of State Assessment Programs. States were asked to describe the assessment programs they operated during the 1995-96 school year. Part One of the survey asks each state to describe its existing…

The fifth edition of the "Annual Survey of State Student Assessment Programs," tabulates extensive and detailed information about each state's assessment programs based on surveys conducted in the past for the Association of State Assessment Programs. The entire survey is presented. Part One asks each state to describe its existing…

This paper was prepared to provide background information for use by a committee on adult literacy, composed of superintendents, assistant superintendents, principals, teachers, school board members, curriculum specialists, business leaders, individuals from higher education, legislators, and legislative staff. The purpose was to highlight…

The Vermont Basic Competency Program is described, and its assessment results are reported for its second year of implementation. Data were collected on students in Vermont who were born in 1963, who are in the high school class of 1981 (which will be the first class to require mastery of 51 basic competencies for graduation), and who have already…