Some students are excluded from the National Education Longitudinal Study of 1988 (NELS:88) because of an inability, whether due to physical, mental, or linguistic barriers, to participate in studies requiring questionnaire or cognitive test completion. The implications of this exclusion for sample representativeness, national estimation, and…

The J-50 Report, one of the most complicated entitlement reports that any state agency requires, provides information for funding and monitoring special education services and operations throughout California and for making special education funding allocations equitable. This manual was developed to assist local educational agency (LEA) and…

It is noted that the National Center for Education Statistics (NCES) and libraries have a mutual mission: the collection and dissemination of information in formats that are useful to the information needs of the public. This report discusses the NCES' mission statement in these terms and describes its broad-based data gathering program, which…

A preliminary collaborative model is presented for the restructuring of the San Diego (California) city schools to implement diverse forms of assessment. It is assumed that collaboration among program evaluation, curriculum, and classroom teachers can foster reforms. Central office staff can enable and facilitate the implementation of different…

Current theories of intellectual development claim that such development proceeds through invariant sequences of increasingly more adequate cognitive structures. According to the two dominant theories on changes in intellectual functioning during adulthood, intellectual development is essentially accomplished by adolescence, although sharpening…

The Program Review Extension Procedures (PREP) set forth in this manual are a flexible set of procedures and questionnaires designed for use by Michigan community colleges in evaluating non-occupational instructional areas. First, introductory material explains that PREP is not a component of, but rather a companion model to the Michigan Community…

Before students and teachers can really understand another culture, they need to learn about their own culture. Considering the products, practices and perspectives of their own families, for example, can open new pathways in their knowledge about family artifacts, foods, patterns of behavior and appreciation of their family's cultural traditions…

An overview is provided of the issues involved in the state-mandated exchange of data about transfer students between two-year and four-year colleges in Virginia. Background is presented on state legislators' concerns with the measurement of student achievement; guidelines developed by the state assembly regarding data exchanges and student…

The role of survey data in assessing teacher supply, demand, and shortage is illustrated through a description of the Schools and Staffing Survey (SASS) of the National Center for Education Statistics. This survey exemplifies a method that involves: (1) a sample survey; (2) representative surveys; (3) cross-sectional surveys; and (4) comprehensive…

A standard-setting procedure was developed for the Georgia Teacher Certification Testing Program as tests in 30 teaching fields were revised. A list of important characteristics of a standard-setting procedure was derived, drawing on the work of R. A. Berk (1986). The best method was found to be a highly formalized judgmental, empirical Angoff…

This paper describes two studies that utilize different research methods, one statistical and one non-statistical, conducted by The National Urban League to assess the needs of black communities. The first study, Black Pulse, whose purpose was to assess the conditions and attitudes of black Americans, consisted of a detailed, statistical survey of…

This report on the training of child care staff in Delaware discusses issues relating to child care staff training and the quality of care in the state. Guided discussions and interviews were used to elicit descriptions of training, appropriate content and formats for training, a career development system, resource centers, and problems related to…

This guide is intended to help planners and trainers assess the training needs of industrial organizations. Addressed in the individual chapters are the following topics: types of training needs (three levels of needs--organizational, occupational, individual, organizational training needs and objectives, and present and future needs); present…

Recommendations of the Study Group on the National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP) are summarized in this report. The report is then reviewed by the National Academy of Education. The recommendations are to: (1) maintain NAEP's continuity; (2) assess the core curriculum; (3) focus on transitional grades (4, 8, and 12) and sample…

Phase III of the Louisiana School Effectiveness Study (LSES-III) was designed in part to obtain rich, qualitative data on the characteristics of more and less effective schools in the Gulf South. Data were gathered on eight matched outlier pairs of schools during the 1984-1985 school year. Of the eight historically ineffective schools in LSES-III,…