This book contains 12 chapters, each of which is a case study or a commentary on the unemployment of the 1980s and early 1990s and on the programs devised to retrain workers. Titles and authors are as follows: "Understanding Unemployment: A Critical Overview of Labour Market Trends, Employment, and Unemployment: (John Hughes); "A…

This study continues the research reported in "Federal Information Inventory/Locator Systems: From Burden to Benefit: Final Report" (McClure, et al., 1990). Begun May 1, 1991, and completed in August 1992, this exploratory and descriptive research was intended to improve access to and use of U.S. Government information. Its methodology…

Improving the teaching and learning of mathematics, science, and computer usage has been the focus of both education scholars and government policymakers over the last decade. The state of Florida responded by developing a statewide plan to coordinate reform efforts published as "A Comprehensive Plan: Improving Mathematics, Science, and…

Ways to approach the evaluation of South Carolina's Parent Education Program are examined. The program's purpose is to improve children's school success by strengthening the family, particularly during the children's first 5 years. Program goals are to: (1) demonstrate effective methods of parent training and support that will enable parents to…

Designed to aid middle school-aged students to understand better the problems illegal drugs pose for schools, and to provide students with an opportunity to come up with solutions, this illustrated curriculum guide helps students examine the problem of drugs in an imaginary school called Jackson Middle School. Students are asked to work with other…

Articles on a wide range of issues concerning the education system of Ireland are presented. The articles include: "Presidential Address to the ESAI Annual Conference, Thomond College, Limerick, March 1990" (J. Wilson); "Introduction to BOB--A Problem Solving Package" (L. Caul; L. Greenwood); "Coping with Impersonal…

This study examines the question of students as context for what happens in school and the ways in which educators' subjective interpretations of the realities students bring with them to school influence every aspect of the school environment. The focus is on contemporary, nontraditional students whose academic backgrounds, families, values, or…

This report addresses the issue of how to reform and or restructure the educational system to respond more effectively to the needs of minority students and to prepare minority students for productive service and a better quality of life. In particular, the report discusses the achievement patterns of minority youth enrolled in California public…

This paper reports the findings from the qualitative component of a study of first-year teachers in urban schools in Connecticut during the school year 1989-90. Five first-year teachers, each from a different school in the Hartford (Connecticut) Public School System, were interviewed at 2-week intervals throughout the school year. The study was…

A study was done of teachers' perceptions of support, resources, empowerment, autonomy, and discipline problems in Chapter 1 and non-Chapter 1 schools. The study used data from the Schools and Staffing Survey. Overall, most teachers in elementary schools, middle schools, junior high schools, and senior high schools with Chapter 1 programs agree…

An examination of the conventional wisdom that the economy will face a labor shortage was done in three stages. First, the demand side of the labor market was analyzed. Changes in the skill requirements of jobs from 1973-86 were examined as were those changes anticipated by projections of the Bureau of Labor Statistics for 2000. The conclusion was…

This exploration of contemporary beliefs about truancy looks historically at the relationship between views about the normality, as well as the deviance, of particular patterns of schooling, and argues that truanting needs to be understood, in social terms, as being out of place. The argument is developed through a discussion of state policies on…

In light of recent calls by educational organizations to abolish tracking because of its role in perpetuating inequities in achievement among racial and ethnic groups, this digest looks at current school detracking efforts. An initial section reviews the extent and reasons for tracking and the concerns raised when detracking is proposed, noting…

This paper examines changing demographics in the American work force during the 1990s and implications for the economy, for America's ability to compete globally, and for industry and education. In response to these workplace and demographic changes, the National Association for Industry-Education Cooperation utilized the technique of networking…

A group of 442 New York district jurisdictions (which are overwhelmingly rural but have some "metropolitan" county locations) with 2,500 or fewer pupils are subdivided by size (1,100 or fewer pupils, 210 rural or metropolitan sites; 1,100-2,500 pupils, 212 rural or metropolitan sites; and 20 small city or metropolitan sites of 2,500 or…