One of the recommendations of the "Adult Literacy and Numeracy in Scotland" report (ALNIS), published in 2001, was that progress against its recommendations should be reviewed at the end of the third year of the national initiative. This HMIE report contributes to that review of progress. The report confirms that the initiative is having…

The degree of control that project directors exert over the technical direction of evaluations and the selection of evaluation staff is examined, and the way in which control has grown and shrunk over the past decade is considered. (Author)

The Houston Plan for Excellence in Education aims to achieve quality in staffing and in education by recruiting and rewarding excellent staff, initiating a competency-based selection process for all school personnel, and providing renewal and professional growth opportunities. (SK)

A residency program in a health maintenance organization in Northern California is described and compared with other graduate medical programs. Included are discussions of curriculum development, faculty, funding, medical school affiliation, and the role of HMOs in graduate training. (Author/MSE)

After a brief history of health service accreditation, the benefits of independent, peer-based accreditation for college and university health services are outlined: (1) recognition of high-quality care; (2) opportunities to consult with peers conducting the accreditation; and (3) fulfillment of requirements for licensure and third-party payments.…

A national survey of teachers of death education was conducted to determine the status of death education courses in the college and university health education field. Several concerns were investigated: (1) faculty development; (2) certification of teachers; (3) quality control; (4) textbooks; and (5) support of professional health associations.…

The quality circle, a group of employees who meet to discuss problems and discover solutions, is receiving increasing attention in organizations concerned with quality, productivity, and morale. Based upon behavioral science concepts, the quality circle technique can be applied to a wide variety of work situations. (SK)

Learning is greatly facilitated if its intended outcomes are clear to both learner and teacher, if they are appropriate to the purpose of the instruction, and if the path to them has been marked out clearly. Myths and obstacles to achieving better processes of teaching and learning are discussed. (Author/MLW)

Reports on the system by which Nigerian journalism students must qualify to receive their degrees. (RL)

Society's pressures on higher education are seen as turning students into "attendees" and colleges into holding vats for the young. Some suggestions include elevating standards in the schools, using educational brokering, sharpening accrediting surveillance, providing incentives, and forming faculty-admissions officer "Committees on Academic…

With the stabilization of student population and a demand for improvement in the quality of prospective teachers, a model has been developed for improving selection-retention procedures, giving administrative organization, role of student personnel services, criteria for admission to the profession, and provisions for probationary status,…

Some states are using rewards and incentives to entice public colleges and universities to improve quality and meet long-term state goals. Performance funding generally represents a small portion of an institution's budget but appears to substantially affect institutional performance, lessen funding fluctuations, and promote funding stability.…

Examines the effectiveness of a framework developed to measure service quality in academic libraries. The research, which was conducted in the seven university libraries of New Zealand during 1996 concluded that the survey questionnaire administered is an effective instrument for testing service quality. (AEF)

A theory of program quality based on a new definition of quality is offered. Constructed on the basis of interviews with nearly 800 stakeholders in master's-level education, the engagement theory" advances a conceptual framework and a set of criteria, with indicators, for assessing graduate and professional program quality. (Author/MSE)