Student achievement test results are the coin of the realm in educational accountability systems in the United States. For a number of years, both states and the federal government have relied heavily on tests to judge the quality of schools. The exact characteristics of the accountability systems have evolved over the years and vary a good deal…

Changing demography and ensuing incidents of backlash, growing intolerance, and prejudice led a group of educators from seven different schools in two rural counties of northwestern Washington State to organize a National Endowment for the Humanities sponsored series of Holocaust education inservice workshops. The obstacles they overcame in…

If schools of education are to remain relevant in this era of accountability, they must approach the preparation of school leaders as part of an urgent social justice agenda. At the heart of this agenda is the improvement of access to educational opportunities for all children, a goal to be accomplished through instructional leadership grounded in…

A 12-week retention program designed to assist at-risk students with test-taking, study and career skills through individual and group counseling was examined. Sixty-nine percent of the program participants attained a cumulative GPA [greater than or equal] 2.0 by the end of the intervention compared to 43% of the control group. Further, 55% of the…

This paper presents new web-based educational software (webNetPro) for "Linear Network Programming." It includes many algorithms for "Network Optimization" problems, such as shortest path problems, minimum spanning tree problems, maximum flow problems and other search algorithms. Therefore, webNetPro can assist the teaching process of courses such…

This article deals with early childhood curriculum models. The author discusses why programs use a curriculum and how programs use curriculum models. She mentions curriculum models that programs are using, such as: (1) The Creative Curriculum; (2) High/ Scope; (3) Project Approach; (4) Reggio Emilia; and (5) Montessori. She also presents the…

Advantages of using classroom observation as another measure of teacher performance include: (1) It is applicable to jobs where performance measures based on outcomes are hard to develop or where outcomes cannot be assigned to an individual person; (2) It ensures that important aspects of performance that go beyond measured outcomes, such as how…

Project Challenge is a unit of Project Playpen, Inc., in Pinellas County, Florida, which serves children from birth to age 5 who attend child care programs and display mild to moderate degrees of emotional challenge. This program guide describes the activities, structures, and design of Project Challenge to meet the needs of child care for working…

This theme issue of "Coordinators' Notebook" takes a cross-cultural look at how men, as fathers, caregivers, and in other roles, affect the lives of young children. The issue also explores the ways in which educating men about the needs of children and getting them involved in the programming process have strengthened programs that promote the…

Case studies of six successful college-school collaborations designed to prepare high school students for college are presented. The programs studied were: (1) "Early Identification Program" at George Mason University in Fairfax, Virginia; (2) "College Now" at Kingsborough Community College in Brooklyn, New York; (3)…

These 15 papers cover a wide range of topics and perspectives on the work of Adult Literacy and Basic Education (ALBE) practitioners in Victoria, Australia, in the contemporary ideological and political context. A preface (John Wilson) and introduction (Delia Bradshaw) begin the anthology. The papers are as follows: "...A…

A new teacher education program implemented at the University of Wyoming in the Fall of 1992, made radical changes in the preexisting program. To take the place of student teaching, the program involves students in field experiences in schools participating as Wyoming Centers for Teaching and Learning. In the Fall of 1993 an in-house formative…

This document consists of a series of three short articles that appeared in the "Resource Connections" column of three consecutive issues of the newsletter of the Boston chapter of the American Society for Training and Development (ASTD). The articles are intended for adults considering enrolling in a professional development program,…

A comprehensive faculty performance appraisal program is necessary for any college to maintain a high standard of excellence, effectiveness, and accountability. Faculty performance should be reviewed using established, fair, and consistent procedures that consider obligations, agreed-upon objectives, and performance standards. The purposes of the…

The concept of the learning community and the transition of both students and teachers to the teaching/learning relationship has become a focus of graduate programs at Heritage College (Toppenish, Washington). The mission of Heritage is to provide quality, accessible higher education to a multicultural population which has been educationally…