In Senate Joint Resolution No. 117, Virginia's General Assembly endorsed the process for restructuring education in the middle school grades and requested that the Board of Education determine the appropriateness of designating the middle school as a separate level in the educational structure. The study summarized in this report first considered…

A master plan to transform Tennessee public education is described in this report, with a focus on three key result areas: (1) establishing a 21st century classroom; (2) creating a rational, workable, accountable governance system; and (3) providing adequate, sustained school funding. Following descriptions of the plan's mission, vision, and 17…

In Colorado, a charter school is a public school operated by a group of parents, teachers, and/or community members as a semi-autonomous school of choice within a school district, operating under a contract between the charter school members and the local board of education. This publication provides information on the operation of charter schools…

Testimony on the role of federal leadership in facilitating district-level reform efforts is offered in this report, which focuses on four districts with many years of participation in systemwide educational reform. Five key components of systemwide reform are identified: standards for all students; curricula tied to those goals; high-quality…

The National Education Commission on Time and Learning (NECT&L) is an independent advisory body, authorized by the United States Congress through Public Law 102-62, the Education Council Act of 1991. The commission is undertaking a comprehensive review of the relationship between time and learning in elementary-secondary education, including…

This testimony on charter schools is based on a report prepared at the request of the Subcommittee on Labor, Health and Human Services, Education, and related agencies by the General Accounting Office. Remarks focus on charter schools' instructional innovations, autonomy, accountability systems, and the challenges they pose for federal programs.…

Senator Edward M. Kennedy, chairman of the committee, opened the hearing by commending President Bush and U.S. Department of Education Secretary Lamar Alexander for putting forward an education reform plan. Kennedy then stated his reservations: the plan does not devote enough attention to school readiness; the administration emphasizes choice as a…

The Kentucky Education Reform Act (KERA) was passed in 1990 as a result of a Kentucky Supreme Court order to establish an efficient and equitable system of public education. This report is a guide to the implementation of school-based decision making, which is the most immediate of the reform initiatives being implemented. A review of the role of…

Most of the cost of providing special education is borne by states and local education agencies. Examines changes in federal legislation affecting special education, increase in the target population, and future considerations in funding programs for handicapped children. (MLF)

Hearings before the House of Representatives served as a public forum for representatives from the District of Columbia City Council, academia, local schools including the City of Baltimore, Maryland, and the private sector to share their experiences, successes, and concerns about the education of children in urban areas. The chairman of the…

The impetus for North Carolina's Senate Bill 2, the 1989 Flexibility and Accountability Statute, came partly out of the philosophy that restructuring should reach up from the school and not down from the state. The statute offers local school systems the flexibility to develop local plans to improve student achievement through waivers of certain…

The National Education Commission on Time and Learning (NECT&L) is an independent advisory body authorized by Congress to conduct a comprehensive review of the relationship between time and learning in elementary-secondary education, including international comparisons, the use of time in and out of school, the use of facilities, year-round…

Single Audit Act of 1984 was passed to provide guidelines for organizationwide audits of federally funded programs. Explanatory notes for Educational Improvement Act (EIA) summer school accounting are given. Section 1 outlines audit requirements established for state and local governments that receive and administer federal assistance. An…

When the Ohio State Board of Education began developing legislative recommendations for the 1992-93 biennium, the state's economic outlook was more positive. However, conditions changed dramatically and the state faced a budget deficit. While recognizing these economic limitations, the board proposed that the education system must move toward…

A number of Federal education reform initiatives, either enacted or under consideration by the Congress, provide schools with regulatory flexibility. In response to two Congressional committees, this study had the following objectives: (1) describe state regulatory flexibility efforts; (2) describe how schools used flexibility to attempt…