This paper presents results from 15 little publicized state and national environmental surveys in the US that used similar questions. Our analysis reveals trends in adult understanding of environmental issues. These trends indicate that many may have difficulty making informed decisions about environmental policy as citizens, voters, and…

The link among the quality of principals, caliber of teaching, and levels of student achievement is a tight one. School leadership is a key factor in the recruitment and retention of quality teachers; teaching quality, in turn, profoundly influences improvements in student learning and achievement. Yet despite their central role in this equation,…

Many educators and researchers have proposed reforms for dealing with the ongoing adolescent literacy crisis. Progress in strengthening young people's literacy now depends on schools a) choosing appropriate programs and b) implementing them consistently and effectively. Yet the history of school reform is littered with reforms that were adopted…

This synthesis report provides a historical look back over the past 15 years of alternate assessment, from the early 1990s through the mid 2000s, as reported by state directors of special education on the National Center on Educational Outcomes (NCEO) state surveys, and augmented by other research and policy reports published by NCEO and related…

This report describes how California is providing direct intervention to improve structures and processes in districts, which is intended over time to improve curriculum, instruction, and student achievement at the school level. For districts subject to federal Corrective Action under NCLB, California's approach is "top down" in that…

This report, produced jointly by the U.S. Chamber of Commerce, the Center for American Progress, and Frederick M. Hess of the American Enterprise Institute, is a call to action in response to how poorly states measured up on key indicators of educational innovation. The report is the first-ever attempt to evaluate the innovation gap in American…

This document provides a brief overview of the ongoing dropout studies cited in the press and around the Austin Independent School District (AISD) in Austin, Texas. It includes a list of key observations which notes that the dropout rate among adolescents is too high; that approximately 20% of 16- to 24-year-olds in Texas do not have a high school…

A state of the art survey indicated that all but five states had gifted/talented programs, the majority had a specific person responsible for gifted/talented education programs, and 24 states increased budgets while six cut back in their gifted/talented programs from 1976-1977 to 1978-1979 school years. (CL)

Context: Evidence exists for differences in health insurance coverage among states, but less is known about variations across different kinds of communities within states. Purpose: This article assesses the role of residential setting (metropolitan county, rural adjacent, and rural nonadjacent) in health insurance coverage for adult residents,…

The document presents findings of a task force on services to disturbed children in Illinois which focuses on services relating to early identification and treatment during infancy and early childhood. A review of research showed that services during early childhood can effectively help many individual children toward living more fully functional…

This report summarizes and cross-references the results of 12 studies dealing with competencies for Adult Basic Education (ABE) and diploma programs. Described in the report are the following studies/projects: (1) the Adult Performance Level (APL) Study; (2) five APL-based validation studies (the New Jersey ABE Study, the New Jersey English as a…

This report examines objectives for geographic education recently developed by 6 of the 50 states. The objectives reviewed come from the states of North Carolina, South Dakota, Texas, Utah, Virginia, and Wisconsin. These states were selected because there was evidence of recent and intensive effort to develop relatively explicit objectives for…

A summary of each state's instructional computing requirements for students and teachers, and statewide microcomputer classroom use are presented in chart format. Funding information and additional comments are also included. (MBR)

Provides an overview of adoption statistics and describes data available regarding adoption arrangements and the characteristics of parents who relinquish children, of children who are adopted or in substitute care, and of adults who seek to adopt. Recommends the establishment of a national data collection system for adoption statistics.…

This booklet is part of a series designed to give educators useful information as they build a sense of community. The text focuses on violence in schools and what stakeholders can do to address this complex problem. It establishes the context for assessing violence and the potential danger to students and educators. It describes violence as…