Adult learning policies, like any other policies, need to be effective: they need to reach their objectives and attain the desired impacts, which should be carefully defined. Understanding the performance of policies allows policy makers to change and improve them. A growing body of research and statistics provides important insights into how…

Explains what educational indicators are and what indicator systems accomplish. Summarizes major educational indicator initiative. Focuses on indicator strategies in California. Discusses several key issues related to indicator development and use. Outlines alternative strategies for making sense of educational indicators. (JS)

Regional and State inequalities in educational opportunity are reported from an extensive study based on data from the October 1965 Current Population Survey of the U.S. Bureau of the Census regarding the home and school environments of approximately 27,000 persons between the ages of six and 19 in a national sample of households. Major phases of…