Funded by the National Science Foundation, the International Technology Education Association's Technology for All Americans Project is developing content standards. TfAAP's goal is to promote excellence in technology education by defining technology's domain, advocating technology study, and creating standards. The program's development,…

Presents a case study of the three-year Graduate Standards Programme developed by the former Higher Education Quality Council in the United Kingdom as an example of leading sector-wide change from within a national agency. Concludes that "good process" is more important than the static notion of "good practice" when seeking to…

Discusses higher standards and educational reform in New York schools and considers the growing need for graduates with knowledge and skills to enter the labor market or pursue advanced technical education and training. Describes one Board of Cooperative Educational Services (BOCES) program that is being developed to meet these needs. (LRW)

Provides a historical and current context for National Education Technology Standards (NETS) that were developed for elementary and secondary education, describes their implications for priorities such as school funding, and suggests curriculum-based strategies that may be used to meet these standards within content-area lessons. (Author/LRW)

Discusses the Engineering Criteria 2000 adopted by the Accreditation Board for Engineering and Technology (ABET). The new criteria provide a framework by which chemical engineering faculties can develop programs to meet modern industrial needs without jeopardizing their accreditation standing. The criteria also require a change in emphasis from…

Discusses the opportunities and dangers associated with various aspects of implementing the Engineering Criteria 2000. Topics include: (1) understanding the continuous quality improvement process; (2) use of assessment terminology; (3) development of performance criteria; (4) use of local resources; (5) hiring an expert to aid the transition; (6)…

Responds to Doug Boughton's accompanying essay based on input from notable assessment practices in Europe and Australia. Addresses what is meant by criteria, objectives, and standards and what role they play in visual arts assessment. Offers a model for rethinking the structure of assessment with respect to these components. (DSK)

College faculty have a responsibility to help students unveil some of the mystery of professional judgment in student assessment, both to help explain instructional practices and to create a model for students' use when they become professional evaluators. Teachers can use a variety of methods to ensure that subjectivity in assessment is not…

Examines the national standards for science education, noting they do not specify how to reach the goal of all students attaining scientific literacy. Presents what must be done to implement the standards successfully, discussing the size of systemic reform standards, ways to achieve scientific literacy, impediments to change, the need for…

The dilemma of what to do with children who do not progress "normally" is not new, and did not arise because educators grew too timid to uphold academic standards. The problem is an unavoidable consequence of compulsory education. Advantages of social promotion still outweigh difficulties. Deterioration of school standards cannot be blamed on…

Discusses the value of middle school reform involving interdisciplinary teaming, advisory programs, and developmentally appropriate practices, noting that true middle schools improve academic achievement and standardized test scores. Argues against a pendulum swing away from middle school reform and toward standards-based curriculum. (JPB)

Examines the effects of a state standards-based reform--the Maine Learning Results--on curriculum and instruction in four small rural schools, focusing particularly on the impact on locally responsive curricula in the schools. Suggests that state standards and place-based curriculum may not be as incompatible as previously suggested. (Author/SV)

Provides an interview with Russian Academy of Education Academician Vladimir Shadrikov, the first deputy minister. Focuses on topics such as the differentiation of education, the theory of developmental instruction, and the formulation of a state educational standard for the basic schools. (CMK)

This article describes how Baginton Fields School, a secondary phase schools for British pupils with severe, profound, and multiple learning difficulties, set out to provide a meaningful and functional English curriculum. The goals of the school, the content of the scheme, and the progress of the students are discussed. (Contains references.) (CR)

Discusses the regional accrediting commissions that provide quality assurance for the majority of degree-granting institutions in the United States. Considers the balance between accountability and innovation regarding new forms of educational delivery and describes draft guidelines being developed for evaluating electronic programs. (LRW)