In the past few years, numerous states have initiated school improvement programs. These programs have included any or all of the following characteristics: (1) teacher and administrator certification and competency tests; (2) school-based planning; (3) staff development; (4) student assessment; (5) revised curricula and instructional strategies;…

Of relatively minor concern in State capitols not so long ago, education is now the very heart of much legislative action. (Editor)

The report, presented to the Planning and Policy Committee of the Illinois State Board of Education, summarizes public comment (public hearings, letters, briefings, and research reports) concerning a preliminary report of instructional mandates for handicapped children in Illinois. Eight major issues are considered in terms of preliminary report…

Analyzes the background behind the application of the state action doctrine to a state school newspaper and analyzes the results of such application on a paper's obligation to accept advertising. (Author)

The document offers guidelines for observing the nature of life in a variety of closed institutions (state mental hospitals and state schools). An initial section offers guidelines for asking questions, conducting evaluation, and making observations while visiting institutions. The remainder of the document lists questions for 17 areas: building…

The report deals first with the status of comprehensive educational planning for post high school education in Florida, with the development of organizational structures for administration of educational programs beyond high school, with the quantitative aspects of enrollment and financing, with the general problem of long-range planning and…

America's state colleges and regional universities tend to have humble antecedents and ambitious aspirations. Their professors and administrators usually claim no interest in educating professional scholars, doctors, or lawyers, and express no desire to extend their influence beyond the locality or region in which they are located. Despite this…

This report focuses on the increasing number of problems clustered around state coordination of academic programs in community colleges. State directors and their staffs are becoming concerned with preventing duplication and ineffectiveness and with positive long-range planning. Data are based on questionnaires mailed to state agencies responsible…

The purposes of this study were to: (1) analyze and categorize legal differences among public 2-year college systems; and (2) analyze selected institutional variables to determine the extent of operational differences among them. For the first purpose, state constitutions and statutes were analyzed; for the second, data were collected by mailed…

The New Jersey "T and E" School Improvement Process offers a unique opportunity for schools to improve arts education as an integral part of their total educational plan. A big step in the right direction is to determine how and where the arts fit in. (Author/RK)

States that standardized tests and statistical information, as evaluated by district offices, state departments of education, or federal agencies, cannot provide an objective measure of educational quality. Education--as opposed to rote performance--is contingent upon good teaching, which is best evaluated through direct observation by…

This report summarizes requests submitted by states in 2005-06 to amend their educational accountability plans under the No Child Left Behind Act (NCLB) of 2001 as well as the related decisions of the U.S. Department of Education (ED). This fourth installment of the Council of Chief State School Officers' (CCSSO's) annual review of changes to…

This report reviews state actions concerning pesticide use around schools, including the federal role in school pesticide use, and presents a list of each state's regulations regarding protecting children from pesticide exposure in schools. A case for protecting children is detailed. The report discusses some of the actions states have taken to…

The advantages of utilizing the conceptual model and mathematical programing for the determination of the allocation of functions within a State school system. (Author)

This study shows that State taxes provide a more equitable means of supporting schools than do local taxes. (JF)