The subject of restructuring teacher education and working toward the improvement of educational opportunities in the schools is addressed. Teacher education faculties often are in power struggles with other faculties in colleges and universities and are often underrated as professionals. Decision-making in regard to teacher education is becoming…

An Institutional Goals Inventory at Frostburg State College presents respondents with 90 prestructured goal statement questions and twenty-six locally prepared questions. The 90 goal statement questions compose twenty goal areas. Goals areas are: academic development, intellectual orientation, individual personal development, humanism/altruism,…

Describes the Action Plan to Improve Elementary and Secondary Education Results in New York. Discusses new state standards and expectations; coordinated program for grades seven-12; modular curriculum; accountability system; new courses in technology education, home and career skills, and introduction to occupations; and graduation requirements.…

Research by the National Environmental Education & Training Foundation (NEETF) and Roper Public Affairs at NOP World tells that the average 12th grader (and by extension, the average adult) still falls far short of what would be considered "environmentally literate" by anyone's definition. Seemingly elementary questions elude most of…

Recent attention to issues concerning the instruction and assessment of English language learner (ELL) students has placed them among the top national priorities in education. Policy has noticeably shifted from exclusion to inclusion of ELL students in the assessment and accountability system. However, recent research on and practice in the…

This document summarizes the state of education in Maryland in 2003 following adoption of the Achievement Matters Most school reform plan. Advances in attendance, graduation and academic achievement are summarized. Continuing commitment to student health and safety, and the ongoing challenges of teacher preparation, recruitment and retention are…

This issue of the SERVE magazine discusses using assessment and accountability to improve student learning. Articles include: (1) Can High-Stakes State Testing Be Improved? (Wendy McColskey and Nancy McMunn); (2) Standards of Classroom Practice: Defining a Vision of Quality in the Classroom (Nancy McMunn and Wendy McColskey); (3) Taking a Close…

ARL is the bimonthly report on research library issues and actions from ARL (Association of Research Libraries), CNI (Coalition of Networked Information), and SPARC (Scholarly Publishing and Academic Resources Coalition). ARL reports on current issues of interest to academic and research library administrators, staff, and users; higher education…

Academic institutions are increasingly interested in the collection and presentation of data to support strategic planning, accreditation, and accountability needs. With an increased emphasis on campus-wide involvement and centralized data collection at some institutions, the integrity, accessibility, and interpretation of data become key…

All schools need to constantly reflect on the quality of their work and the progress and achievements that they make over time. The primary goal of an accountability system is to help schools improve through critical self-reflection. It enables students, teachers, and other members of the school community to evaluate their practices, especially…

Historically many students with disabilities did not participate in accountability systems. The No Child Left Behind Act of 2001 (NCLB) requires that students in all targeted subgroups, including students with disabilities, have the opportunity to learn challenging material that is linked to content standards and to participate in statewide…

Many students with disabilities need to use accommodations to meaningfully access instruction and to be appropriately assessed. During the past decade, the use of assessment accommodations has dramatically increased the participation rates of students with disabilities in statewide testing. Assessment accommodations can be defined as "changes…

This research provides lengthy proof of a principle of social science known as Campbell's law: "The more any quantitative social indicator is used for social decision-making, the more subject it will be to corruption pressures and the more apt it will be to distort and corrupt the social processes it is intended to monitor." Applying…

Graduation rates are a fundamental indicator of whether or not the nation's public school system is doing what it is intended and funded to do: enroll, engage, and educate youth to be productive members of society. Graduation rates are not just a "bottom line" for schools--they are critical predictors of individual achievement and have undeniable…

The purpose of this hearing was to examine the Federal Communications Commission's management and oversight of the E-Rate program. This subcommittee has done much to expose for Congress a range of problems in the E-Rate program management--problems that raise questions about the program's effectiveness and whether the Nation's taxpayers can be…