Several of the major difficulties that faced urban school systems during the decade from 1965 to 1975 are considered briefly in this short document. One of these problems is the changing nature of the urban population and the resultant stresses on urban districts. Other issues include declining enrollment; insufficient financial support at local,…

The relationship between formal education and creativity was investigated in two studies. A reanalysis of Cox's (1926) 301 geniuses indicated that achieved eminence of creators is a curvilinear inverted-U function of formal education. Secondly, a study of 33 American presidents found that dogmatism (i.e., idealistic inflexibility) is a curvilinear…

Developments that highlight the importance of state oversight and authorization of higher education institutions and the objectives of the current Colorado Springs seminar on this topic are considered. In addition to the basic fact that states are the origin of chartering, licensing, and authorization of educational institutions, states have…

Three papers from conferences on statewide coordination in postsecondary education are presented as part of the Inservice Education Program of the Education Commission of the States. In "Educational Program Budgeting in Oklahoma," Edwaro J. Coyle and Dan S. Hobbs outline the principles, procedures, and processes utilized by the state in…

Perspectives on higher education in Montana as viewed by the governor are presented. After briefly noting historical trends in Montana and the United States regarding education, concerns and trends in higher education are noted as follows: accountability to the public for how tax dollars are spent; evidence that there will be decreased demand for…

Perspectives on accountability in higher education are considered. It is suggested that educational targeting be undertaken: a coalition of planners, financers, and deliverers of postsecondary education should establish goals to meet perceived societal needs. Out of these goal statements, priorities for state funding could be established and…

Five papers collected in this monograph provide information and suggestions regarding the potential role of educators in contemporary society. The first article suggests that, in many families, economic conditions requiring the employment of both parents will place greater responsibility for the development of children's moral and ethical…

In this paper, the Wisconsin State Superintendent of Public Instruction reviews issues surrounding competency testing and describes Wisconsin's response to a nationwide effort to enhance student learning through competency based education. Efforts of the past two decades to improve traditional educational practice in Wisconsin are outlined.…

The research reported in this paper attempted to determine what constitutes superior teaching, and what manipulable extrinsic incentives exist in education to motivate teachers to become superior teachers. The project additionally tried to determine the degree of consensus among teachers and administrators on these issues. Finally, equity, or…

One of a series of reports concerned with the creation of new evaluation methodologies for use in education, this report contains a collection of thirteen brief statements of problems encountered first-hand by evaluation practitioners in state departments of education (SEAs). Its intent is to make available practitioner statements so that further…

As defined by the Vocational Amendments of 1976, cooperative education is a program (method) of vocational education for persons who, through written cooperative agreements between the school and employers, receive instruction, including required academic courses and related vocational instruction by alternation of study in school with a job in…

An audio-tutorial approach that has been implemented at Indiana University in Bloomington focuses on student learning rather than the mechanism of teaching. The basic component of an audio-tutorial course is a taped presentation that acts as a tutor, guiding the students through a sequence of readings, filmstrips, diagrams, tables, and other…

The educational accountability movement is changing the teacher's role in curriculum development from that of autonomous decision maker to agent of public school policy makers. To assess teacher reactions to factors influencing their autonomy, 75 teachers were exposed to pressures to change the content of fourth grade mathematics instruction in a…

As a result of the 1976 Educational Accountability Act, minimal competency tests were developed for grades 3, 5, 8 and 11 by the Florida State Board of Education. Results of the first administration of the 11th grade tests showed that the failure rate for minority black students was much higher than for white students. Results of the tests…

This study examines the effectiveness of an accountability system--Alter--whose aim is to facilitate long-term planning. The purpose of the study was to develop a model that school systems can use in implementing accountability systems. The project explored the idea that when formal management systems are introduced into schools, they ignore…