Through its efforts in 12 middle schools in 5 cities, The Edna McConnell Clark Foundation's Program for Disadvantaged Youth is trying to challenge the assumption that certain children are uneducable. The first steps in this program were detailed in "Gaining Ground," which described the thoughts and hopes of educators in 1989 through 1991…

An ultimate purpose of education is human resource development to provide society with a critical mass of intellectual capital and competent workforces. To accomplish this end, leaders implement planning processes to guide policy-making, develop institutions, and allocate resources. Although new information technologies are becoming commonplace in…

A study of English-as-a-Second-Language (ESL) education in the United States is summarized. Focus is on special challenges in providing ESL education and promising ways in which providers are meeting those challenges. An introductory section describes the context of current ESL instruction, including the nature of the learners' needs and…

A Pennsylvania study analyzed the capability of the existing systems to deliver a comprehensive, articulated program of vocational education. A review of prior studies of vocational education in Pennsylvania found consensus about needed changes in the state's program. Areas of improvement included governance and administration; leadership;…

A study identified the most effective and low cost programs currently in operation and described in adult literacy literature that would significantly reduce adult illiteracy in California by 1994. Recommendations were made for a statewide plan to replicate those programs in communities throughout the state. A literature review focused on eight…

This report describes the benefits to vocational educators of involving volunteers in vocational programs and presents a model for planning and implementing a volunteer program. Outlined first are programmatic and nonprogrammatic approaches to designing volunteer programs. Next, in a discussion of the benefits of vocational volunteer programs, the…

This manual for supportive services personnel, one in a series of nine staff development guides prepared by the Philadelphia School District, clarifies roles and responsibilities of various staff members and parents in providing programs to meet the career and vocational education needs of mildly and moderately handicapped students. Designed to be…

A technical note based on work in Indonesia covers designing and using simulations for training nonformal educators. The first section defines simulations and discusses situations when simulation is appropriate, participants, and considerations for trainers planning a simulation. A sample simulation about planning. "Why is Participation…

Offering long-range planning as a means of controlling educational problems and opportunities, this guide presents procedures for school district planning as well as relevant information concerning demographics, politics/finance, teaching staff, curriculum, computers/technology, and tomorrow's jobs. Among aspects of planning covered are…

Most presently existing literacy training programs for inmates in America's prisons are inadequate. Before program planners and developers can remedy this situation, they must be able to obtain accurate information on the numbers of illiterate inmates and the numbers of inmates currently receiving literacy instruction in America's prisons. The…

A questionnaire which school districts in California were asked to fill out in an effort to determine the scope of responsibility and authority they feel is delegated to the district superintendent by the governing board is presented. The form asks them to check whether the superintendent has (1) complete authority; (2) authority, but must inform;…

A background paper on long-range enrollment and facilities planning in California's public segments of higher education is designed to: (1) establish a policy framework within which the Postsecondary Education Commission can examine and assess the planning processes of the segments; and (2) describe the processes, identifying major differences…

An overview of the elementary school review process used in North York (Ontario) is provided. School reviews, which are part of North York's Quality Assurance program, were piloted during 1987-88, when each family of schools' assistant superintendent identified one school to participate in a school review. The aim of the reviews was to collect…

The 1983 publication of "A Nation at Risk" began a new reevaluation of American schooling. The issues raised in that and several more recent reports are summarized and discussed in this preface to the ERIC volume, "Trends and Issues in Education, 1986." This paper offers observations and reflections on the issues presented in that volume and…

Since its inception in 1933, everything that the Employment Security Service has done directly and indirectly involves the gathering, analysis, and distribution of occupational information. Yet, as vital as occupational information is to the employment service, only a very small portion of the total employment security budget, perhaps 5 to 10…