"The Achiever" is published semi-monthly during the school year for parents and community leaders. Each issue contains news and information about school improvement in the United States. The following articles are included in this issue: (1) "Spellings: New 'Commonsense' Approach to Implementing 'NCLB'"; (2) "The Variable…

The contributors to this issue ground their articles on one or more of these principles: (1) Evaluation theory and practice should reflect a society that advances democracy; (2) In an evaluation context, there should be a redistribution of power relationships accomplished by "democratizing knowledge" and acknowledging the value of different types…

The current high-stakes accountability environment brought on by the federal No Child Left Behind Act (NCLB) places great pressure on school districts to demonstrate success by meeting yearly progress goals for student achievement and eventually demonstrating that all students achieve at high standards. In particular, many urban school…

Accountability. The very mention of the word strikes fear in the hearts of many teachers and school leaders, leading to confusion and panic rather than improved student achievement. Author Douglas B. Reeves explains how to transform accountability from destructive and demoralizing accounting drills into a constructive decision-making process that…

High Stakes brings the voices of students and teachers to national debates over school accountability and educational reform. Recounting the experiences of two classrooms during one academic year, the book offers a critical exploration of excessive state-mandated monitoring, high-stakes testing pressures, and inequities in public school funding…

No Child Left Behind (NCLB) was passed with a promise to "change the culture of America's schools." A focus on accountability for results is among its main vehicles for transformation, including the requirement that significant action be taken in schools and districts that continue to underperform academically. Toward that end, NCLB…

Keiser College is a private, for-profit Level II institution with thirteen branch campuses throughout Florida. Most of its academic programs are offered at multiple sites. A major concern has been to establish and maintain the consistency of its academic offerings at all campuses as the College expands. Building on a pre- posttesting mechanism…

Most states have experimented with performance accountability as a way to drive improvement in public higher education institutions and systems. However, efforts to implement performance funding in the United States have yielded mixed results. This policy brief describes the reforms that dramatically changed the policy landscape in England and…

Audits and inspections in the area of the Department's internal operations show that it must establish effective accountability for its contractors and employees. The work concluded during this reporting period shows inadequacies in oversight, monitoring and accountability by Department management and staff. A summary of audits and inspections…

This document provides an understanding of the South Carolina Technical College System, System office vision, missions, and values as well as an overview of key strategic goals of the system as a whole. The report was compiled by the State Board for Technical and Comprehensive Education. The six goals that guide the system are ensuring excellence…

Providing clear and timely information will be a key to holding public support for the improvements the No Child Left Behind Act promises. To have an impact, this information needs to be presented on the publics terms. This report contains data on recent public opinion about education issues, gathered from several polls conducted by national…

This brief article reports information gathered at a symposium on issues and challenges in assessment and accountability for adult English language learners, hosted ny the National Center for ESL Literacy Education (NCLE). Teachers, program administrators, researchers, test developers, and policy makers gathered to discuss the field's vision for…

The Department?s financial statements, which appear on pp. 115?119, received an unqualified audit opinion issued by the independent accounting firm of Ernst & Young LLP for the third consecutive year. Preparing these statements is part of the Department?s continuing efforts to achieve financial management excellence and to provide accurate and…

This paper examines the current state of outdoor education in primary schools in England and Wales and presents arguments to counter current constraints on its provision. Within the national curriculum, outdoor education has been interpreted in the sense of "outdoor and adventurous activities" and, as a result of recent pruning, is now…

This paper describes an evaluation of Children Achieving, a systemic reform agenda designed to improve the Philadelphia public schools. Led by a dynamic superintendent, David Hornbeck, and central office personnel, Children Achieving focused on school-level accountability and significant increases in funding for public education. Between the…