This report discusses efforts in adult English as a Second Language (ESL) education to link language instruction to workforce and civic skills (skills needed for successful participation in the community). It looks at the social forces that underlie these efforts (shifts in the U.S. economy, welfare reform, accountability requirements, and learner…

This paper looks at ways of ensuring Czech regions and municipalities are fully motivated to make efficiency improvements in public service provision and so help achieve countrywide fiscal sustainability. The very large number of small municipalities in the Czech Republic means that scale economies are difficult to exploit and the policy options…

In 2004, the Legislature and the Governor of Washington State revised the roles and responsibilities of the Higher Education Coordinating Board (HECB). House Bill 3103 directed the HECB to establish an accountability monitoring and reporting system to determine how performance would be measured, set targets for achievement within this framework,…

Urban school superintendents hold one of the most important and challenging jobs in America's education system. The Council of the Great City Schools (GCS) represents the majority of large urban school districts in the country. Though there are approximately 17 thousand school districts in the country, the Council's 65 districts serve…

The writer looks at the often contradictory ways in which tests are seen and used. We are told by its defenders that the SAT is a superb measure of academic promise, but its detractors insist that it is next to useless in helping colleges and universities select their entering class. Test-driven accountability systems have been criticized as…

For many "hard-to-staff" schools, the negative consequences of teacher shortages are compounded by characteristics that make these schools less attractive to teachers. Most often located in troubled inner cities or isolated rural areas, these schools are frequently plagued by high poverty in the community, higher teacher turnover rates,…

These two syllabus types are not only representative of the way languages are taught, they also reflect the general teaching styles of the West and the East. While in the West, much attention is given to the actual processes of completing the tasks, a typical Eastern approach places more emphasis on the information that is passed from the teacher…

This report outlines several critical issues that should be addressed in order to allow states to explore and understand relationships between the performance of ELL students on NAEP and on state assessments in this policy context. The results of this study can be useful to a variety of education stakeholders who are interested in improving the…

As demand for after-school services has grown, the public has responded with support for growth in federal, state, and local funding for these services. As in other successful grassroots movements, this high level of support is evident across groups with diverse objectives. Some after-school advocates are mainly interested in increasing the supply…

The Safe and Drug Free School and Communities Act of 1994 authorizes funding at federal, state, and local levels for school-based drug-and violence-prevention programs. This General Accounting Office (GAO) report reviews the following: (1) accountability measures required at the federal, state, and local levels (by the act); (2) activities used by…

This essay, based on a roundtable discussion held by institutional leaders, policymakers, and other citizens concerned with the vitality of the state's public and private colleges and universities, focuses on California's efforts to provide access to higher education and sustain quality in the face of a growing student body of adult and…

Arizona funding for adult education is authorized by Arizona Revised Statutes; federal funding is received under provisions of the Adult Education Act. The mission of Arizona adult education programs is to ensure adults' access to high quality educational opportunities to support them in their employment, job training, and higher educational…

This document examines the 10 essential attributes of primary health care contained in the U.S. Maternal and Child Health Bureau's definition of primary care. Primary care for children and adolescents is personal health care delivered in the context of family, culture, and community; the range of services meets all but the most uncommon health…

This paper critiques the notion that technology can solve the problems of rural schools. The critique begins with the recognition that the United States is an economic empire, that technology is the instrument of empire, and that national objectives for education are concerned with promoting economic competitiveness. While rural places are…

This report examines the role of the standards-based reform movement in the establishment of a constitutional standard for education in New York City. Data come from testimony and research evidence collected for a recent lawsuit filed by the Campaign for Fiscal Equity, Inc., on behalf of New York City public schoolchildren. The lawsuit charges…