The purpose of this publication is to present the Executive Summary of the Program Year 2004 report on Iowa's adult literacy program benchmarks. The passage of the Workforce Investment Act (WIA) of 1998 [Public Law 105-220] by the 105th Congress ushered in a new era of collaboration, coordination, cooperation and accountability. The overall goal…

Given the relatively few positions on the governing boards of public colleges and universities, every trusteeship is important. Along with the respect appropriately afforded trustees and regents comes special obligations, responsibilities, and high expectations from many sources. How boards can cope with the expectations and ambiguities inherent…

The expanding pressures on the modern academic president today range from the ever-present demands for fund-raising, to calls for greater accountability and productivity, to proliferating special-interest groups, to steadily harsh criticism from inside and outside the academy. In this pressure-cooker environment, it takes a special kind of…

H.R. 366, the Vocational and Technical Education for the Future Act, strengthens and improves the Carl D. Perkins Vocational and Technical Education Act by enhancing local accountability, introducing model sequences of courses that incorporate both secondary and postsecondary elements in a non-duplicative progression of courses, and merging the…

In December 2002, the Department of Education launched the Office of Innovation and Improvement. That office was charged with promoting promising innovations in education and expanding parental options and information. Even in those early days of the "No Child Left Behind Act" the Department knew that the law had the potential to set in…

Four years after the enactment of the "No Child Left Behind Act (NCLB)," the revolutionary changes to the education system called for by President Bush are almost implemented. States have put in place rigorous new accountability systems and will implement reading and math assessments covering all students in grades 3-8 by the end of the…

This paper addresses the debate over high school graduation rates, examining how the No Child Left Behind Act of 2001 (NCLB) has redirected attention toward graduation rates. It introduces provisions of the NCLB pertaining to high school graduation, discussing implications from a measurement perspective, and presents strategies for developing a…

In its 2001 performance and accountability report on the Department of Education, the General Accounting Office (GAO) identified challenges with student financial-aid programs, financial management, and other areas facing education. The information presented in this report is intended to help sustain congressional attention and a departmental…

This policy paper provides a rationale for assessing the issue of school vouchers with emphasis on students with disabilities. It provides the following major findings: (1) rights under the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA) generally do not extend to participants in voucher programs; (2) evaluative studies of school choice and…

In this document, the Senate Bill 2488 of the 2000 Mississippi Legislative Session is discussed. The bill specified that the Mississippi Department of Education (MDE) must identify schools that do not meet expected levels of student achievement and label them as Priority Schools. This legislation further clarified public school accreditation and…

There are many reasons to align tests with curricular standards, but this alignment is not sufficient to protect against score inflation. This report explains the relationship between alignment and score inflation by clarifying what is meant by inappropriate test preparation. It provides a concrete, hypothetical example that illustrates a process…

This paper explores what lessons can be learned from the experiences of states that instituted NCLB-like accountability systems prior to 2001 (here called first-generation accountability systems). It looks at the experiences of three smaller states (Kentucky, Maryland, North Carolina), four larger ones (California, Florida, New York, Texas), and…

This is one of the most important books on school leadership because it incorporates so much research evidence from the work of the two authors themselves, and such a perceptive and intelligent understanding of the research of others. It provides an opportunity for two of the senior researchers in the field over the last 20 years to reflect on…

Because of educational accountability demands, districts and states are required to collect and report certain kinds of information about English language learner (ELL) students. In general, these summaries report on the numbers of ELL students and how well they are performing on statewide measures of achievement--information that fulfills…

This report introduces five national benchmarks of effective educational practice in community colleges. The benchmarks are: active and collaborative learning, student effort, academic challenge, student faculty interaction, and support for learners. All address institutional practices and student behaviors that research has shows are important in…