Designed to offer more than slogans and buzzwords to practitioners who are grappling with an array of education controversies, this book provides classroom teachers with a spectrum of information about current controversies so that they will be better equipped to blend action with reflection. The book deliberately resists extremes and argues for…

This report restates selected Southern Regional Education Board policy recommendations on teacher quality since the early 1980s, outlines key policy areas that need attention, and provides examples of state actions to make needed changes. Regarding teacher preparation, the report discusses university responsibility, partnerships with schools, and…

This brief examines the impact of teaching on student achievement, necessary steps for ensuring teacher quality, and policies needed to support that effort. Research has identified the strong connection between student achievement and teacher preparation and skills. Efforts to generate consistently high teaching levels across all classrooms must…

This collection of papers examines key failures in modern U.S. education and shows how parents, policymakers, and teachers can make changes that will raise the level of student performance. The papers were presented at a 1997 conference designed to examine how elementary and secondary school students learn and are taught in the classroom. The…

These four quarterly reports for 1998 provide a forum for scholarly reviews and discussions of developmental research and its implications for the policies affecting children. The first issue focuses on fathering. The main article addresses perspectives of fathers' involvement in children's lives in developing countries, specifically, issues of a…

Trends in assessment and certification of generic skills in vocational education and training (VET) across Australia were examined. Data were collected through the following activities: a literature review; semi-structured interviews with managers of assessment and teachers and learners in six registered training organizations across Australia;…

This book offers a holistic examination of well-being across the life course by experts in psychology, sociology, child development, and medicine, and describes foundational strengths for well-being from infancy through adulthood. The chapters are: (1) "A Brief History of the Study of Well-Being in Children and Adults" (Kristin A. Moore…

This book is based on lectures delivered by 12 cross-cultural social science scholars drawn from 7 countries to address critical issues related to knowledge construction in human development and allied disciplines. The book is organized into two major sections. Section 1 focuses on theoretical perspectives and Section 2 highlights ongoing research…

Two public policy shifts in the past 10 years--the move from welfare to work and the end of social promotion in school--are intertwined in their implementation in the lives of working poor families. This report draws on ethnographic data from a 6-year study of working poor families in New York City over the period in which welfare reform became a…

For Michigan, like many other states, providing noninstructional services strains public school district budgets. School districts provide more transportation, food, maintenance, and counseling services than ever before. In some cases, noninstructional expenses exceed classroom expenses. Seven states, including Michigan, employ more nonteachers…

A National Strategy for Adult Basic Skills has been proposed to deal with the English situation in which about one adult in five is not functionally literate and far more people have problems with numeracy. The National Strategy has these 10 main elements: national targets; an entitlement to learn; guidance, assessment, and publicity; better…

Vietnam started market reforms earlier than other countries in Southeast Asia and is used as a role model by the Asian Development Bank. Nevertheless, complicated bureaucracy and regional differences hinder improvements in financial management in education. The budgeting process, in particular, is cumbersome. This book presents a report of a…

Noting that one of the most powerful weapons to prevent crime are programs such as quality educational child care, after-school and summer programs, and child abuse prevention, this brief presents the school and youth violence prevention plan of an organization of Illinois law enforcement officers, state's attorneys, crime survivors, and leaders…

This document explains how community work experience programs (CWEP) and publicly funded jobs (PFJ) can be used to help hard-to-serve welfare recipients meet the work requirements imposed by the Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF) program. The document begins with a brief overview of available options for helping hard-to-serve welfare…

This monograph, part of a series on student assessment, reports the results of a national survey that examined institutional support for undergraduate student assessment. It provides a national profile of student assessment initiatives at doctoral and research institutions, and compares it to assessment practices and support patterns found in all…