A retrospect of teachers and teaching in American schools from the 1950s to the 1980s is presented. In this overview of American education, the impact of the following events and social changes is measured: (1) the "baby boom" of the 1950s; (2) the focus upon suburban living; (3) the effect of the "baby boom" on the demand for teachers; (4) the…

Results of a study on changes in campus policies and practices are presented, with the major focus on the issue of assessing student learning. Also considered are changes in faculty hiring and areas of curricular review, enrollment, and financial circumstances of colleges and universities. Results indicate that most administrators support the use…

As the number of teacher education majors has decreased nationally over the last ten years, the declining number of non-white teacher education students has been even more acute. Today barely 10 percent of the teaching force is non-white and that representation continues to decline annually. This policy paper reviews the current status of minority…

Information gathered by the Maryland State Board for Community Colleges and articulation staff at the University of Maryland, College Park (UNCP) was analyzed to assess the academic performance of transfer students from Prince George's Community College (PGCC) and to draw preliminary conclusions concerning retention through the bachelor's degree.…

Economic long wave research is reviewed and related to major transitions facing higher education. The focus is on economic forecasting as one type of environmental scanning. The Russian economist Kondratieff produced statistical evidence of a long economic wave. The Kondratieff wave appears to be a 45- to 60-year cycle of upswings and downswings…

Information is provided on the academic performance and program selections of students transferring from community colleges in British Columbia (BC) to the three BC universities during the 1985-86 academic year, with reference to information from preceding years. Data for college transfer students are compared to data for direct-entry students…

Information on state-level financing of higher education and on institutional revenues and expenditures is presented for fiscal year (FY) 1982, with trend data back to FY 1978. In addition to a narrative analysis, nearly 200 tables show state rankings on 46 factors involved in higher education finance. The state rankings cover state and local…

Results of the 1981-1982 Graduate Student Survey of physics and astronomy graduates in the United States are presented. Information is provided on the educational background, current graduate student status, choice of subfield, and employment prospects where applicable. Highlights include the following: a further increase occurred in the number…

Given the paucity of evidence accurately characterizing private education, this paper synthesizes and interprets available research on private school enrollments, religious affiliations, tuition levels, characteristics of patrons, and common features of operation. The organization of data on church-affiliated schools is found to be faulty, with…

A wide-ranging study of the centrality of the mosque to Islamic education in Pakistan emphasizes Islamic educational traditions, the historical background of such education, the obstacles to educational improvement in Pakistan, and the attempt to provide universal primary education. Traditionally, the Prophet Mohammad and the Holy Quran have been…

Trends in enrollments and degrees for physics and astronomy students are examined, based on results of the American Institute of Physics' annual Survey of Enrollments and Degrees. Information is included on: changes in the number of institutions that grant physics degrees, physics degrees awarded by academic year, 1971-1982; undergraduate and…

A discussion is presented of Hispanic community college students and the prospects and problems related to their transfer to four-year institutions and progress toward the baccalaureate degree. First, the question of Hispanic student transfer rates is placed in the context of community college enrollment/transfer patterns in general and Hispanic…

This report is focused on teacher education enrollments in schools, colleges and departments of education (SCDEs) which are a key to increasing the supply of minority group teachers. The report is presented in three sections. The first provides a national and regional overview of K-12, postsecondary, and SCDE enrollments. The second section offers…

Basic principles and techniques for constructing a student tracking system, either at the institutional or system level, are presented and illustrated. The design, development, and utilization of the LONESTAR (Longitudinal Student Tracking and Reporting) system are described. The system, which provides information on student achievement, program…

Two surveys of urban public universities, conducted in 1978 and 1987, provide a rich database for analyzing and explaining change in these institutions over a 10-year period. Continuing an analysis of trends and conditions begun in 1987, data from a sample of urban universities are compared to those for higher education in general. Local…