Conducted by the Pennsylvania Office of Children, Youth and Families, this study compared findings of unannounced and announced licensing inspections of child care centers and homes. A statewide random sample of 377 child care centers and homes were selected to be reviewed through an unannounced inspection. All had been inspected within the…

The intent of this document is to provide technical guidance to school district facility managers for linking specific incremental seismic retrofit opportunities to specific maintenance and capital improvement projects. The linkages are based on logical affinities, such as technical fit, location of the work within the building, cost saving…

This report analyzes the conditions of school facilities in Contra Costa Unified School District, California. The district had been prohibited from participating in the state's school facilities funding program because of a very heavy debt burden and near-bankruptcy of the district. The report begins by summarizing findings in the areas of…

This paper describes the effectiveness of a three-step indoor air quality (IAQ) program implemented by 156 schools in the states of Washington and Idaho during the 2000-2001 school year. An experienced IAQ/building science specialist conducted walk-through assessments at each school. These assessments documented deficiencies and served as an…

This study is the latest addition to a series of bulletins on education in foreign countries published by the U.S. Office of Education. The series is intended to fill multiple and increasing needs, both within and outside the Government; specifically, to provide assistance to registrars and admissions officers in their placement of foreign…

In recent years there has been a marked change in the inspector's functions, with increased emphasis on professional advice and leadership. However, it has not been possible to eliminate elements of incompatibility between the inspector's dual role of assessor and that of adviser. (Author)

Asbestos in the schools has become a serious problem. Current activity in inspecting for asbestos and plans for corrective action are discussed. Suggestions are offered administrators in choosing contractors for asbestos removal. (MLF)

This article describes Local Education Authority (LEA) practices in England and Wales, with regard to institutional evaluation during the mid to late 1980s. It considers the various approaches and systems used and particularly looks at issues of information handling, reporting, follow-up, and adviser (inspector) training. (IAH)

In this article, Anne-Marie Wright, lecturer at the University of Chester, considers the current situation for students with severe learning difficulties in general colleges of further education. She presents findings from a critical review of the literature and a small-scale preliminary investigation which set out to explore the idea that,…

Self-evaluation is a concept replete with paradox and ambiguity. It suggests a spontaneous impulse but connotes a political mandate. It posits an individual act of self-reflection but is a meaningless notion without some social reference point. Its application may be personal, social or institutional, its purpose summative or formative. It may be…

The present study evaluated the effects of both a traditional lecture and the conservative dual-criterion (CDC) judgment aid on the ability of 6 university students to visually inspect AB-design line graphs. The traditional lecture reliably failed to improve visual inspection accuracy, whereas the CDC method substantially improved the performance…

The United Kingdom's 1992 Education Act established the Office for Standards in Education (OFSTED), which was mandated to oversee an inspection system for all schools. This paper presents findings of a study that examined the extent to which the inspection process helped schools with their school-development planning. A survey was mailed to…

This paper provides an overview of inspections in England's schools. The paper describes four approaches to inspection: inspection in the pre-1993 days; the current inspection system in elementary-secondary education; inspections initiated by the schools themselves; and inspection in further-education colleges, which are similar to community…

Taguchi methods are methods of product quality improvement that analyze major contributions and how they can be controlled to reduce variability of poor performance. In this approach, knowledge is used to shorten testing. Taguchi methods are concerned with process improvement rather than with process measurement. This manual is designed to be used…