This study examines evidence about state- and district-level formative/diagnostic policies, programs, and practices of states in the Regional Educational Laboratory Southwest (REL Southwest). Using case study methodology and data collected through document analyses and interviews with state- and district-level representatives, researchers compared…

Dual enrollment programs enable students to take college courses and earn college credit while in high school. Once limited to high-achieving students, these programs are now seen as a means to support the postsecondary preparation of average-achieving students. Moreover, though dual enrollment programs typically have been reserved for…

A number of activities are progressing in the Improving Teacher Quality (ITQ) program, the federally funded program that the Commission administers to provide professional development to California educators. This program is part of the No Child Left Behind Act of 2001 (NCLB), and continues the work that began as the Eisenhower Teacher…

Students in grades 5 and 8 completed a state writing assessment, and their first and final drafts on the extended writing portion of the test were copied and scored using the state writing rubric. The rubric consisted of three primary traits: Content and Organization, Style and Fluency, and Language Use. Scorers were blind to the study purpose and…

We examined children's growth in school-related learning and social skills over the pre-Kindergarten (pre-K) year in state-funded programs designed to prepare children for kindergarten. We expected that children's gains in academic and social skills could be attributed to variations in the structural and classroom process dimensions of program…

Professional development is a common and necessary approach to improving teacher quality. However, while teachers are required to participate in professional development activities, it is often the case that they are not involved in selecting and planning those activities, and that professional development may not be closely tied to classroom…

This manual was designed primarily for use by individuals with developmental disabilities and related conditions. It is hoped that it is also useful for families, as well as service coordinators and providers who directly assist families and individuals with developmental disabilities. The main focus of this manual is to provide easy-to-read…

Because of the importance of developing highly skilled school leaders, statewide assessments of 784 Texas public school administrators were compared to determine how leadership skills varied by type of campus (urban, suburban and rural) and by campus student achievement ratings. Important findings indicate differences exist by campus type and by…

A longitudinal research study was conducted at a public university in Pennsylvania on a sample of 129 at-risk students from a state-funded program (Act 101) designed to provide support services for economically and educationally disadvantaged students. This research employed a non-experimental, ex post facto methodology to assess the impact of…

Based on data from the Family Foster Care Reimbursement Survey for 1981, tables in this report present the level of the 50 states' reimbursements for family foster care. Categories of data reported include age of child in foster care, basic monthly rate, clothing allowance, personal and incidental allowance, and special needs allowance (on a…

An overview of the history of libraries in prisons. (Author)

This report provides a brief overview of state policies and programs to address the problems of adolescent pregnancy and parenting. Section 1, a brief introduction, is followed by a section which examines a broad set of state policies and programs affecting at-risk youth, including pregnant teenagers and teenage parents. The state-by-state review…

This report reviews California's Child Support Enforcement program (CCSEP) and prospects for increasing support payments. Chapter I describes the structure of the CCSEP, recent collection experience, and prospects for growth in collections under current practices. Chapter II describes recent revisions in federal law concerning the program and the…

Designed to provide an overview of programs offered by state humanities councils, this publication is divided into seven sections. An introduction defines the humanities and outlines the Division of State Programs within the National Endowment for the Humanities (NEH). A section entitled "The State Humanities Councils" presents the…

A survey was conducted of 140 city and country public recreation agencies in Kentucky to determine the programs offered for the aging. Of the 44 agencies responding to the questionnaire, only 47.7 percent offered programs especially designed for the senior adult. However, the other agencies indicated that there were programs in which the senior…