This report explores the insights and experiences of activists who build strong constituencies to reform public schools. It presents data from a 2-year study involving the seven primary constituency and coalition building grantees of the Ford Foundation's Constituency Building for Public School Reform Initiative. Data were collected from 14…

Teacher preparation in science and mathematics will be best served by improvements both in the pedagogy and content of the undergraduate science and mathematics courses required of future teachers and in the reform of required science and mathematics methods courses. In a review of the history and politics of teacher education, the paper…

The University of Massachusetts McCormack Institute Poll of attitudes and opinions related to the political, economic, and social life of Massachusetts was expanded in 1998 to include a larger sample of minority respondents than in previous years. In 1998, the sample included 127 African Americans, 114 Asian Americans, 107 Latinos, and 381 Whites.…

This paper examines how motivations for school-board membership influence individual board member's agendas. It suggests the implications of individual agendas for board dynamics and superintendents when both must be accountable to state and federal mandates and their own district's desire to collaborate to improve academic achievement for all…

This paper describes a few of the more important national characteristics of community colleges and state community college systems, the latter in three "snapshots" taken at different times in the 20th century. This paper is divided into the following topics of discussion: state coordination and governance structures, mission evolution,…

This document reports on a congressional subcommittee's review of the federal role in education. The review included visits to 15 states and testimony from more than 225 principals, teachers, and other education stakeholders. The committee's purpose was to identify the steps that lead in the direction of either excellence or failure. The…

This publication contains journal essays and book chapters from publications of the National Council of Teachers of English. The publication's first section, "Multimedia in the Classroom," contains the following articles: (1) "Media 'Target Assignments' Invite Students To Tune In, Turn On, and Write" (Meta G. Carstarphen); (2)…

This paper discusses "constructions" of school size in West Virginia and Ohio and related issues concerned with school and school district consolidation, and the role of education, politics, and globalization. "School size" is not the same as enrollment; grade span and level are important in understandings of size.…

In 1995, Georgia became the first U.S. state to provide universal prekindergarten to 4 year olds. Although the lottery-funded program has received more attention from policymakers than any other program, there has been no systematic effort to chronicle the program's evolution or to draw lessons from its experience. This report illustrates the…

This article is based on experiences in the field of teacher education and attempts to induce institutional change from a ministerial (hence, political) location. The first section considers the international context in relation to education and discusses how quality is conceptualized in policy documents. The second section looks at how concerns…

This paper examines opportunities and challenges in early childhood teacher education in Ghana, Mali, Senegal, and the Gambia. It reviews socioeconomic and political issues, current and emerging policies for early childhood and primary education, teacher preparation strategies, and examples of successful programs. Information was collected during…

This book examines charter-school legislation in the United States, as well as charter-school operations in Colorado, Michigan, Massachusetts, and Georgia. It reviews the legislative process in these four states, focusing on the compromises forged as lawmakers worked for adoption. It describes whether the states' resulting programs provide…

It is believed that by the year 2000 boundaries will have less meaning, the city will become the focus of political attention (as opposed to the state), new political cultures will emerge accompanied by new voting patterns, centralized authority at the national level will continue, and political considerations will play a key role in environmental…

Recent increases in the percentage of women on United States school boards is already changing the decision-making process. A DuPage County, Illinois, survey reveals that, for example, while male board members tend to emphasize administrative efficiency, women tend to get more involved in educational policy formation. (JBM)

Analyzed relationships between Swedish citizens' educational levels and their information seeking, knowledgeability, and information dissemination to other individuals and politicians. Found that the poorly edcucated were high on information seeking but lower on retention and dissemination. Concluded that the "influence gap" is more of a…