The purpose of this essay is to briefly survey from a global point of view theoretical and empirical issues related to the economics of early childhood education and day care. The first section of the essay takes up issues in two broad areas of policy: (1) social efficiency, and (2) opportunity and equity. The first class of issues implies a…

In order to understand teachers' perceptions of their school, students, and community, a questionnaire was administered to 125 teachers in the Canutillo (Texas) school district and 25 teachers in the adjacent Anthony (Texas) school district. The questionnaire elicited information of teachers' perception with regard to content knowledge, classroom…

This second volume of the Global 2000 study presents a technical report of detailed projections and analyses. It is a U.S. government effort to present a long-term global perspective on population, resources, and environment. The volume has four parts. Approximately half of the report, part one, deals with projections for the future in the areas…

This report presents and compares the results of the first and second art assessments conducted by the National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP) in 1974-75 and 1978-79. The achievement and attitudes of approximately 7,500 9-year-olds, 11,000 13-year-olds, and 13,500 17-year-olds were surveyed. The report consists of an introduction to the…

Composition teachers can learn from nonteachers who evaluate writing. A comparison of nonteacher and teacher responses to the same student writing revealed that the teachers were much more negative in their evaluations. Studies have also indicated that teachers did not grade according to their own declared criteria. These inconsistencies and…

The leavetakings and reunions of infants, toddlers, preschoolers, and their parents were observed as 56 children were dropped off and picked up at nursery school. During the pilot phase of the study, shorthand running records were made of the behaviors of each child and his or her parent for all of their leavetaking and reunion episodes. From 100…

The development of procedures designed to provide quantitative assessments of quality in higher education institutions are reviewed. These procedures employ a systems framework and utilize quantitative data to compare institutions or programs of similar types with one another. Three major elements essential in the development of models focusing on…

At the University of Maryland, College Park (UMCP), 352 white freshmen completed the Situational Attitude Scale (SAS) in a study of racial attitudes. The SAS (1972) was developed to minimize the degree of subject withdrawal from the measurement of racial attitudes and to eliminate the "social set" problem that keeps subjects' real…

A 79-item questionnaire was administered to a sample or 1,179 entering freshmen at the University of Maryland, College Park, in a survey of interracial differences. The sample was 86 percent white, 9 percent black, and 5 percent other minority groups (largely Hispanic and Asian American). White students were found to differ from minority students…

The results of several cross-sectional and longitudinal studies of students at liberal arts colleges and other postsecondary institutions are reported to demonstrate that liberal arts education has beneficial effects not produced by any other kind of training. Chapters include: approaches to evaluating liberal education; measuring cognitive,…

A survey was conducted of 2933 University of Michigan graduates who had obtained teaching certificates from 1946 to 1976. Information was sought on teacher career patterns and what teachers see as important criteria for professional success. An attempt was made also to ascertain how many graduates have persisted as teachers and, if they have not,…

The status of academic women is compared with that of men to determine whether disciminating practices and resulting inequality for women continue to exist. Current scientific periodicals, monographs, and books were searched, and the most recent statistics are presented. Results are discussed in terms of admissions, enrollment and degrees earned,…

A survey of 542 recent graduates of the University of Maryland, College Park, indicated many significant differences between males and females. More males (71 percent vs. 64 percent) reported professional managerial or technical occupations, while more females (25 percent vs. 12 percent) reported clerical-sales positions. Seventy-five percent of…

The second part of a study compared health and social service needs of older persons residing in public housing and older persons residing in the neighboring community. A survey was conducted of 461 residents in four buildings supported by the Seattle Housing Authority (SHA) and 422 residents age 62 and older living within five blocks of one…

To explore current conceptions about menstruation, 50 male and female undergraduate students were asked to Q sort symptoms from the Moos Menstrual Distress Questionnaire (MDQ). The MDQ is a scale which contains 47 symptoms which have been associated with the menstrual cycle. The Q sort is a statistical technique in which data are analyzed as…