The National Center for Education Statistics (NCES) has recently released the 1990-91 Schools and Staffing Survey (SASS), an integrated survey of public and private schools, school districts, principals, and teachers, conducted every 3 years. This report presents results from the recent SASS. In 1990-91, there were about 80,000 public schools and…

This publication presents the results of a study undertaken to measure the economic costs of students who drop out of secondary school in Canada and summarizes the social and economic costs of dropping out. The primary objectives of the report are to raise awareness of these costs among the business community and to motivate all stakeholders to…

The first of two papers compares two models (the market based model and the prevalence model) for analyzing data from annual state surveys to determine future special education personnel needs and discusses critical issues in data collection. These data are required under the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act which asks states to project…

This paper reports on a survey of day-care agencies to determine their need for library services. The survey was designed to determine: (1) which library services are being used by child care givers; (2) which services are not being used and may have the potential for promotion; (3) whether story time is provided regularly by care givers and what…

This study was undertaken to determine what services were offered by college- and university-based career development center libraries and what types of library collections they made available. Brief questionnaires were sent to career development centers at 100 colleges, and 67 were returned. Information was gathered about the types of services…

Changes that have been made in reporting and disseminating information from the National Assessment of Educational Progress are discussed, focusing on those changes brought about by the first Trial State Assessment (TSA). The TSA collected data on the mathematics performance of students in grades 4, 8, and 12 in public and private schools in 40…

Designed for teachers, library media specialists, and educational administrators, this guide offers an objective overview of the full range of newer educational technologies. Presented in easy-to-understand terms, each chapter covers the advantages, disadvantages, and educational applications of one technology. Technologies covered are CD-ROMs,…

Rate of retention in grade is a measure of the number of students who repeat the grade they were in the year before. This report of retention rates is produced annually for the Austin (Texas) Independent School District, but contains information produced after the beginning of the school year and data produced at the end of the school year…

Subgroup B of the European Training Foundation's (ETF) Advisory Forum analyzed the role of the private sector in vocational education and training (VET) and focused on the role of the social partners in the transition process. A questionnaire on the role of social partners in the development of training in market economy was sent to 110…

This paper reports on a study conducted to determine if PowerPoint presentation is the most effective medium to explain two reference books: "The Storyteller's Sourcebook" and "A Guide to Folktales in the English Language." A secondary purpose was to see if the students who saw the PowerPoint presentation received higher…

This paper describes the development process of multimedia software designed to educate and provide awareness of ecotourism in Costa Rica. Ecotourism is a form of nature-based travel and recreational experience combining a respect for nature and local cultures with economic development incentives. The software intends to pursue the goals of…

This book provides basic skills and knowledge about assessment so that teachers can expand their ability to deal with appraisal problems in their own settings. The first section deals with the basic principles of assessment. The second section concerns creating and applying assessment tools. The third section reviews issues in understanding and…

The North Carolina Open-Ended Assessment for grades 5 and 8 emphasizes higher-level thinking skills. Test items commonly require the integration of knowledge and skills from more than one curricular area. Beginning in 1996-97, the North Carolina Open-Ended Assessment was administered to students in grades 5 and 8 for the second time. Because it is…

This report describes a program for decreasing student underachievement. The targeted population consisted of two German classes at the third- and fourth-year levels in a high school in a suburb of a major metropolitan area. Persistent student underachievement was documented through homework percentages, participation percentages, overall grades,…

A study examined the labor market supply in the four counties served by the Southern Ohio Diversification Initiative (SODI). Data were collected on the characteristics of the following groups: labor market entrants from the Joint Vocational Schools (JVSs) serving the four counties and Shawnee State University, area Job Training Partnership Act…