States use their accountability systems to identify low-performing schools, which can receive added support and are expected to improve. Alternative schools serve students whose needs are not met in a regular school. They often serve at-risk students who are struggling academically or behaviorally. Given this unique population, the Government…

This document records testimony from a hearing before the Subcommittee on Higher Education and Workforce Investment, Committee on Education and Labor that was held to discuss how chronically underfunding public education is affecting students, parents, teachers, and communities. Member statements were presented by: (1) Honorable Susan A. Davis,…

This report addresses the Florida Community College System's (FCCS) performance based on measures established by the General Appropriations Act. Discussed are: (1) FCCS' performance on the measures used in the performance-based budgeting (PBB) incentive fund; (2) improvements that can be made to the PBB incentive fund; and (3) changes to community…

"New Standards" is a collaboration between the Learning Research and Development Center and the National Center on Education and the Economy, in partnership with states and urban districts, working to build an assessment system with which to measure students' progress toward meeting national standards at internationally benchmarked levels. The New…

"New Standards" is the result of a collaboration between the Learning Research and Development Center and the National Center on Education and the Economy, in partnership with states and urban districts, working to build an assessment system with which to measure students' progress toward meeting national standards at internationally…

"New Standards" is the result of a collaboration between the Learning Research and Development Center and the National Center on Education and the Economy, in partnership with states and urban districts, working to build an assessment system with which to measure students' progress toward meeting national standards at internationally benchmarked…

This report presents the manner in which a systemic approach of combining standards, assessment, and accountability into a unified set of laws and regulations has been coming onto the state scene for the past 2 decades. A complete performance-based education accountability system includes four components: standards and assessment, multiple…

Based on the FairTest perspective, this paper argues that the United States does not need a national test to measure progress toward the nation's educational goals and that such a test would have adverse impacts on low-income and minority students. The National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP) should remain an indicator system but should…

In an effort to improve student achievement in low-performing districts, 22 states have developed academic bankruptcy laws, allowing them to intervene in districts that consistently fail to satisfy state education performance standards. This policy brief presents an overview of these statutes. The text offers a comparative summary of state…

The "Nevada English Language Arts Standards" are intended to give Nevada children the tools and experiences that will help them not only to succeed in school but also to become lifelong and adept readers, writers, listeners, and speakers. The scope of English language arts study extends far beyond the English language arts classroom.…

This study focuses on the work of state administrators of federal programs. It follows up on baseline information collected during late fall 1996 and early winter 1997, analyzing the ways in which state administrators have continued to respond to the new laws. The programs included in the follow-up study are as follows: the Goals 2000: Educate…

This progress report, as required by Act 359 of the South Carolina General Assembly, describes activities of a consortium of business and academic leaders toward development of a performance-based funding plan based on 37 performance indicators for public institutions of higher education in the state. Briefly summarized are the status of: measures…

This report presents a plan for an Educational Assessment and Accountability System for Hawaii. The purpose of this plan is to provide an analytical as well as a descriptive account of the condition of public education in Hawaii. It is meant to be a vehicle to provide the means by which educational outcomes can be examined in light of contextual…

This document contains Illinois Occupational Skill Standards for occupations in the Information Technology Operate Cluster (help desk support, computer maintenance and technical support technician, systems operator, application and computer support specialist, systems administrator, network administrator, and database administrator). The skill…

The Performance Standards of the Oregon Certificate of Initial Mastery are described and discussed. Performance standards define how well students must perform on classroom and state assessments that lead to Oregon's Certificate of Initial Mastery. Students must complete classroom and state assessments that show what they know and can do in…