The experience of Maryland in implementing large scale assessment in the context of school reform is explored. The ways in which the state Department of Education has worked with divergent groups to build a continuing and strong school reform program are discussed. In 1987 Maryland's governor created a Commission on School Performance. This was…

Educators in Ontario, Canada, have been subjected to a barrage of changes in the last decade. Many of these changes have had direct or indirect financial implications for teachers. These changes can be organized as "curriculum" and "school governance." In an effort to understand the effect of educational change on teacher…

Presentations at this conference dealt with the transformation of the child welfare system through community partnerships, and the presenters explore various aspects of forming partnerships among public agencies and community organizations. There are some excellent examples of such partnerships, but evaluation findings on "best practice"…

An evaluation of the effectiveness of charter schools is offered in this report. The report attempts to answer three critical questions: (1) "How are charter schools assessing student achievement?"; (2) "What are charter schools doing to meet accountability requirements?"; and (3) "Are charter schools improving student achievement?" To answer…

An overview of U.S. academic achievement and the role of the federal government is offered in this report. It looks at scores on national tests, such as the SAT, and finds that although some improvements in math scores are evident, overall, students still score below scores from the 1970s. Furthermore, it is claimed that American students' math…

This report discusses the quality of health care for children in light of national health care reform proposals put forth in 1994, and is based on presentations and discussions at an invitational workshop on maternal and child health. The report examines issues related to: (1) the differences between health care provision for children and adults;…

A previously high-ranking suburban school district with declining student achievement changed to site-based budgeting. The account of the change may also be a cautionary tale about change taken too rapidly. Although a poor economy, the annexation of two Department of Defense schools, and organizational stagnation helped to create lower student…

The American Federation of Teachers (AFT) believes that colleges and universities should play a central role in bringing the march to education reform to a successful conclusion. In this position paper, the Federation outlines a program to tackle the issues of standards, teaching, and accountability in education. For school reform to work, higher…

Since 1992, Vermont has been pioneering the development of community partnerships for improving social well-being, using indicators to track success. The working definition of a community, for outcome purposes, is the area served by a school supervisory union. Vermont is divided into 60 such supervisory unions (school districts), but…

This book focuses on educational language as a professional behavior that significantly affects student outcomes. "Educational language" is defined as the way in which educators discuss, describe, categorize, and verbally expect behaviors and achievements from students. The text, which is divided into eight chapters, claims that language…

This theme issue focuses on the use and consequences of high stakes tests. The lead article, "High-Stakes Testing: Too Much? Too Soon?" by Sherry Freeland Walker, introduces the topic and related issues, outlining the pros and cons of high stakes testing by the states. The problem, some experts say, is that states have tried to do too much too…

The papers in this volume describe how states have incorporated academic standards into their education goals. As part of the National Education Goals Panel, this collection of essays describes how nine states have recently implemented these standards, discusses how textbooks and teaching could help students reach the standards, and provides…

This paper describes the initiatives of Tusculum College, Tennessee, to reverse a pattern of steady decline in enrollment, campus morale, academic standards, financial support, and institutional reputation. The tide began to turn when Tusculum, after a broad and inclusive search, hired its 25th president, Robert E. Knott in 1989. During his term,…

This paper addresses the issues raised in a recent review of postcompulsory education and training in Victoria. In the interim report (April 2000) it is stated that employers found that the skills of new graduates appear to be most deficient in the areas of creativity, flair, problem solving, oral business communication, and interpersonal skills.…

This report is the fulfillment of the reporting requirement of the Oklahoma Educational Indicators Program in which the State Board of Education was instructed to report on the performance of public schools and school districts. It reports on 548 school districts and 1,801 conventional school sites. The report covers data on classroom teachers,…