The American Public University System (APUS) is currently attracting more than eight hundred new undergraduate students every month, the majority of whom are required to take "Foundations of Online Learning" as their first course. That first course plays a critical role in the academic career of new students and may have a direct bearing…

The incidence of children with disabilities is growing in both the private and public school sectors. As a result of this trend and efforts to place children in inclusive settings, there is an increasing need for special educators who can provide instruction within the context of a regular education classroom, develop individualized education…

On January 23, 2004, President Bush signed the DC School Choice Incentive Act into law. This landmark piece of legislation included $14 million in funding for what would come to be called the DC Opportunity Scholarship Program (OSP). The OSP is the first federally funded K-12 scholarship program in the country and is designed to provide…

Alternative education programmes, in the form of vocational education and flexible or personalised curricula, are rapidly becoming established as a main plank in both mainstream and special schools' responses to pupil disaffection. In this paper, "alternative curriculum" will be used as an umbrella term to include all forms of curricula which are…

A California program to train childhood educators so they can, in turn, attract, train, and motivate limited-English-proficient (LEP) individuals for child care occupations is evaluated based on three participant case studies. In in-depth interviews, three of the 30 program participants discussed what they had learned during training, the…

In fall 1994, Owens Community College (OCC), in Ohio, conducted a follow-up study of all 956 graduates from 1993-94 to determine their level of educational satisfaction, employment status, and other background information. Completed surveys were returned by 664 of the graduates, for a response rate of 70%. Survey results included the following:…

Over the past decade, faculty in the Humanities department at Raritan Valley Community College, in New Jersey, have developed two interdisciplinary, team-taught courses organized on a thematic basis. To determine student and faculty perceptions of these courses, the college distributed questionnaires to students in one of the courses, conducted…

This report evaluates a self-directed personal service (SDPS) program operated through the larger Enable Program for people with disabilities in Onondaga County, New York. First, it contrasts characteristics of traditional personal assistance services (such as low pay, agency-determined, limited types/levels of support, and program management…

As part of a college-wide assessment effort, St. Petersburg Junior College (Florida) conducted a survey of enrolled students in October 1995 to determine their perceptions of the quality of the college's academic and student support services. Questionnaires were distributed to 6,197 students, asking them to rate 28 college services on a 5-point…

Focusing on the measurements and traits used to assess program effectiveness at Wisconsin's Northcentral Technical College (NTC), this document reviews the college's value-focused effectiveness indicators and provides data on outcomes as of 1994-95. Following NTC's mission statement, the program assessment criteria developed at the college are…

Each year, Kansas' Johnson County Community College (JCCC) surveys students who completed career programs during the previous year and their current employers to determine outcomes and levels of satisfaction. In fall 1995, 723 students who earned degrees and certificates or who left the college with marketable skills were surveyed. Completed…

In April 1996, a study was undertaken at Johnson County Community College, in Kansas, to determine students' use of and satisfaction with college services. Questionnaires were distributed to students in 50 classes, selected to approximate the overall demographics of the student body. Study findings, based on responses from 689 students, included…

This report discusses the results of a study that assessed the current system of health care for children with chronic conditions in a staff-model health maintenance organization (HealthPartners) setting. The project interviewed 35 parents of children with chronic conditions, completed a financial analysis of 410 children within eight categories…

In winter 1994, a study was conducted at Miami-Dade Community College (M-DCC), in Florida, to determine students' perceptions of the college's educational goals. Surveys were distributed to students in 200 courses, representing 5% of all classes offered in the term. Using a 5-point scale, students were asked to rate both the importance of 20…

Each December, Gateway Community-Technical College (GCTC), in Connecticut, surveys graduates from the previous spring to determine their educational outcomes, employment status, and perceptions of GCTC's programs and services. In 1992, 268 degrees and certificates were awarded at the college's Long Wharf (LW) campus, while 119 were awarded at the…