This report describes a program to improve student achievement through the use of music strategies. The targeted population was fifth-grade students in a small Iowa community. The absence of music integration into the social studies area was observed through data that displayed the lack of motivation and in-depth learning by the students. Analysis…

This manual provides practical advice for voluntary partnerships that, since 1994, are part of the effort to build a voluntary national system of skill standards, assessment, and certification. Intended to be used with guidance from the National Skill Standards Board, it is designed for the voluntary partnerships that have completed the standards…

This is the final report on future directions for Federal support of research and development (R&D) for information technology. This report adds detail to the findings and recommendations in the interim report dated August 1998, and strengthens previous recommendations regarding the importance of social and economic research on the impacts of…

Peer tutors can facilitate the inclusion of students with disabilities into regular education classrooms, especially in schools where money is not available for aides. The first steps in such a program are determining the best placements for students with disabilities and training the peer tutors. Training should cover expectations of peer tutors,…

In 1999, Fairmont State College (West Virginia) received a Gaining Early Awareness and Readiness for Undergraduate Programs (GEAR UP) grant for a 5-year program designed to encourage college aspirations and preparation among disadvantaged rural youth. During the first 2 years, parents and students in nine counties were surveyed to determine their…

This sourcebook, which builds on a 1993 publication, "The Prevention of Youth Violence: A Framework for Community Action," offers insight into best practices to prevent violence by children and adolescents. It was developed with input from people working to prevent youth violence and people whose positions made them likely to play a role…

Martin Luther King, Jr. Elementary School (Chicago, Illinois) is an urban open door public school serving a population with diverse economic, educational, and ethnic backgrounds. The school is committed to translating the philosophies of Dr. King into an educational environment that includes innovative instructional strategies tailored to the…

State-level policy support for teacher induction programs can help teachers realize their full potential, keep them in the profession, promote greater student learning, and save money. Higher education institutions and school districts must work together to provide high-quality and well-designed induction programs. This issue of "Policy Matters,"…

This study investigates the impact of activities done in the basic education sub-sector by a consortium of four non-government organizations in four provinces in Afghanistan from January 2004 to June 2005. The evaluation uses the project objectives and components as the evaluation framework, and data collected through survey questionnaires,…

The Houston Independent School District (HISD) (Texas) was one of 16 districts nationwide to receive a Department of Education Safe Schools Discretionary Grant for the 1995-96 school year. This federally funded violence prevention program was called the HISD Safe Schools Initiative. The grant established a model for integrating existing and new…

This yearbook contains 14 essays that address a wide variety of issues that educators, policymakers, and others involved in education are exploring in order to expand the understanding of the burgeoning field of service learning. The following papers are included: "Youth Participation: Integrating Youth into Communities" (Peter…

This resource shows librarians and mental health professionals how to use the power of books as therapy when working with children and young adults. After defining "bibliotherapy," the book considers what skills and competencies are needed to qualify an individual to be a bibliotherapist. It then explores how bibliotherapy can be used to meet the…

Hudson County Community College in New Jersey adopted a new mission statement in April 1993, which radically changed the school from a limited-mission college to a comprehensive college devoted to serving the entire community's educational needs. A strong faculty and staff development program was necessary for this transition. A new program was…

The Portfolio Project was conducted to promote lifelong, self-directed learning in the workplace. The project, which offered courses on basic skills, supervisory communications, and English as a second language, was initiated as a literacy demonstration project by the Casco Bay Partnership (CBP), which brought together government, educators, and…

A discussion of articulation in second language education programs looks at issues in the transition of language learners from one educational institution to another, particularly from the secondary level to higher education, and proposes a process-oriented model for addressing these issues. It first defines the terminology of articulation…