The Alternative Basic Comprehensive Program (Project ABC) was a special alternative program for bilingual high school students in New York City. The project targeted two high schools with an influx of newly arrived immigrant students from Cambodia, Vietnam, and Spanish-speaking countries of the Caribbean and South America. The program was designed…

Prince George's Community College (PGCC) created a Student Outcomes Report in December 1996 that measures course completion, retention, student achievement, program completion, transfer, and certification. Findings indicated that though the course pass rate was 75%, individual course completion ranged from 44% to 100%. Divisional pass rates ranged…

This document consists of the 19 articles published in the Electronic Journal "Education Policy Analysis Archives" for the year 1996: (1) "The Achievement Crisis Is Real: A Review of 'The Manufactured Crisis'" (Lawrence C. Stedman); (2) "Staff Development Policy: Fuzzy Choices in an Imperfect Market" (Robert T.…

Twelve pamphlets in a series for parents cover a variety of school-related information. The pamphlets are as follows: (1) Parent Involvement (how schools will benefit, why parents should be involved, and parent rights); (2) Parent/Teacher Conference (why conferences are important, how parents can prepare, what happens, and what to do afterwards);…

In 1988, a study was conducted by the Research Department of the Minnesota House of Representatives to examine college student retention and enrollment patterns in the state. Community college retention was examined by tracking the progress of fall 1987 entering freshmen through 1990. Interviews, focusing on students' plans, background,…

The Arlington (Virginia) Better Beginnings Coalition hired one full-time and one part-time employee to provide outreach services to out-of-school pregnant teens and teenage mothers. A career development specialist worked with outreach personnel and coordinated structured weekly prevocational training. Cooperating agencies identified 55 young women…

As is the case in many developing countries, Honduras's vocational training and job placement systems were plagued by high dropout and low job placement rates. After deciding that the issue of relevance was the key to improving the country's job training system, a trade advisory committee set about to develop a series of competency-based…

The research and evaluation agenda for the Austin Independent School District (AISD) (Texas) is determined for each school year, subject to current needs and requests. The evaluations and other major projects for 1993-94 will focus on three major areas. First is providing school support. Testing programs mandated by state law and district policy…

This publication assesses the status of public elementary-secondary education in South Dakota and describes the state's progress toward meeting the six National Education Goals. A notable achievement is the Families First program, which is a broad-based initiative that empowers communities to identify and meet local human service needs and to…

A federal program designed to reduce dropout rates in middle schools among limited-English-proficient (LEP) students is described. The program trains LEP middle school students at risk of dropping out as tutors for elementary school children. A demonstration project trained 101 Hispanic student tutors in two Texas school districts. Evaluation of…

This publication presents performance data and the concomitant standards of performance that form the basis of school improvement in Maryland. The Data-Based Areas section of this report describes essential tools for measuring how well schools, school systems, and the state are preparing every student for higher education and successful careers…

Law-related education (LRE) has been shown to produce positive changes in student attitudes toward school, parents, the police, and deviant behavior. Project NEXUS, a rural Appalachian program designed to address dropout prevention and predelinquent factors, was implemented in Ellijay (Georgia) Middle School. A group of 25 students, chosen because…

Transforming the welfare system presents governors with unique opportunities, hard choices, and creative challenges. Change will require continued commitment to welfare, educational reform, and economic development. Governors can improve the status of private citizens and private businesses. The Family Support Act of 1988 signaled major changes in…

The crisis of dropping out among Latino high school students points directly to the important role that teachers, counselors, administrators, parents, and community groups can play in creating for each student a vision of the future that includes postsecondary education. The Five Cities High School Dropout Study, which documents the effect of key…

This bulletin examines some questions that arise when children are not ready for promotion: Should they be retained? Who decides? Are there alternatives to retention? What is the effect of retention on the student? Despite research limitations, those who examine the studies on grade repetition say they show that grade retention does not have a…