Underlying the very heated debate over California's education budget for 2005-2006--and the battle over Proposition 76 on the November ballot--were two very different perspectives on school funding. These fundamental differences in perspective can stymie efforts to effect meaningful change. However, the Governor's Advisory Committee on Education…

This descriptive study investigated the benefits and costs of using electronic portfolios (EPs) in preservice teacher education by examining the voices of students in six programs thought to be mature in their implementation. Benefits included opportunities to reflect, better access to and organization of professional documents, increased…

In an increasingly technological society, delivery systems for professional development and higher education have greatly expanded. Video conferencing and web-based alternatives provide opportunities to extend the college campus far beyond the boundaries traditionally considered feasible. Adult learners have found the convenience of web-based…

As defined by the Commonwealth of Learning (COL), Open Schooling involves "the physical separation of the school-level learner from the teacher, and the use of unconventional teaching methodologies, and information and communications technologies (ICTs) to bridge the separation and provide the education and training". Within this…

This practice/policy brief focuses on early childhood home visiting as a place-based family strengthening strategy that supports parent/caregivers as a key influence on the lives of young children. ("Place-based family strengthening" means that "children do better when their families are strong, and families do better when they live in communities…

Different approaches for expanding quality early childhood education in the United States are investigated in this report. After a summary and an introduction, section 2 discusses the values and benefits associated with early childhood education programs. Section 3 provides a description of the workings of a public school-based system for 3- and…

This report presents findings from the Task Force on U.S. Community Colleges, established by the United States Agency for International Development (USAID) in 1994 to identify and develop specific ways in which community colleges might help implement USAID's strategies for sustainable development. Following introductory materials, including an…

This document contains the six papers that were presented at a business education and information systems special interest group meeting. The six papers were selected through a review process, with one paper being selected for the "outstanding paper" award. The award-winning paper is "The Importance of Desktop Computer Presentation…

Improving the quality of educational buildings is one of the objectives of the Organisation for Economic Co-Operation and Development (OECD) Programme on Educational Building (PEB). The PEB does this by disseminating information about ways to produce quality educational buildings at a reasonable cost. This report contains descriptions of buildings…

This report uses case illustrations to present ten policy issues concerning inclusion of children with disabilities in early childhood education programs. Policy issues were identified from interviews with over 150 families, teachers, and district and state education agency administrators, as well as through many classroom observations. An…

In Fiscal Year 1997, the U.S. Department of Labor (DOL) has an estimated budget of $34.4 billion and is authorized 16,614 full-time-equivalent staff-years. DOL's many programs fall into two major categories: enhancing workers' skills through job training and ensuring worker protection. The DOL's work force development mission is being challenged…

As more academic institutions spend larger sums of money to network their campuses and provide network connections to sources outside their campuses, questions emerge concerning the selection and configuration of appropriate network technologies and the appropriate types and levels of services to provide. Increasingly, academic administrators are…

This book distinguishes between the "must-haves" and the "nice-to-haves" for both Macintosh and Windows platforms and recommends 298 "bargains" in children's shareware, freeware, and Web resources. The book is divided into two sections: The first section presents bargain-hunting strategies (chapters 1-5), and the…

The research literature on the preparation of young people for work proves that policy recommendations are based on two false premises--academic skills are good substitutes for occupation-specific skills and increases in job turnover and skill obsolescence rates have caused a decline in the return to occupation-specific training by schools.…

"Small Schools and Savings" rebuts the presumption that capital costs of school planning and construction render small schools uncompetitively expensive. Specific options are outlined that can help small schools be cost effective. The false logic of borrowing economies-of-scale arguments from the factory model and applying them to…