The Southern Regional Education Board's High Schools That Work program has successfully raised academic standards for non-college-bound students (the majority of students). Over 400 schools in 19 states now participate. The best HSTW schools feature higher expectations, tougher academic and vocational curricula, heftier homework assignments, and…

All students, except those who are fundamentally impaired, can achieve at high levels if teachers build students' confidence through positive expectations and a program that helps them develop intellectually and progress academically step by step. Cites some districts' efforts to put this belief into practice. (MLF)

An overview is given of the consensus process for development of the frameworks underlying the National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP) assessments, with emphasis on those for the 1990 and 1992 mathematics assessments, the 1992 reading assessment, and the 1994 science assessments. Innovative techniques for 1992 are described. (SLD)

Educators and politicians are debating the role of remedial education in four-year colleges, questioning current policy of correcting high school education deficits in college. Some advocate remedial courses only in community colleges and tightening entrance requirements for four-year institutions. Proposals are under consideration in a number of…

Academic standards are central to reinventing schools and transforming U.S. education. Higher standards are necessary to replace minimal standards implicit in most textbooks and tests. Standards communicate that all students can achieve at higher levels and that teachers are reclaiming the profession. Standards also inspire systemic reform, create…

Exhibitions are one way to exemplify high standards while serving both individual liberty and civic virtue. Exhibitions begin with determination of what students should know and be able to do and proceed methodically backward to define what and how students must be taught to reach those outcomes. Policy options to ensure accountability through…

Development of "Curriculum and Evaluation Standards for School Mathematics" is story of professional community recognizing need, reaching consensus through review and analysis, and conceiving clear vision and reform strategy. Standards were developed to ensure quality, indicate goals, promote change. Lacking profit motive, educational…

Contends that U.S. schools are putting too much time, money, and effort into testing rather than teaching and learning. Predicts that educational assessment will become more performance-based, more closely linked to instruction, and increasingly tied to technology. Offers nine criteria for an effective nationwide assessment system and briefly…

This article summarizes and evaluates changes in the British national curriculum resulting from the Dearing review, with special emphasis on effects on students with special needs. Major issues and changes in each subject area are identified. The article sees increased accessibility for students with disabilities but remaining problems in some…

Three problems of New York City (New York) schools--overpopulation, low academic standards, violence--are examined, and an effort led by parent and teacher organizations to improve conditions is described. Threatened closings (schools under registration review, SURR) and a program of violence reduction (Straight Talk about Risks, STAR) are noted.…

Debate about the levels-setting process for criterion-referenced tests of achievement is reviewed. An alternative framework is proposed for conceptualizing the problem and practice of setting performance standards on such tests. Standard setting is reconceptualized as the development, description, and implementation of reasonable rules for…

A study undertaken in preparation for reforming the Belgian educational system investigated aspects of educational policy and administration in England, France, and Germany, including curriculum design and content, broad educational aims, student placement and tracking, competition among schools, academic standards, and institutional autonomy vs.…

Norm-referenced and criterion-referenced approaches were used to set a minimum passing score for Part II of the pilot National Board Dental Examination. Standards and associated failure rates were found similar for both approaches. This and the advantages of the former approach suggest it is an appropriate method. (Author/MSE)

Argues against large-scale, federally funded, census approaches to measuring higher education outcomes, outlining specific problems. Discusses the effects of tests as instruments of educational reform, the cross-discipline transfer of higher-order skills, and the technology of setting performance standards. Places measurement within the broader…

Describes the social construction of parental expectations for kindergarten and first grade in a school community. Focuses on the ideas developed between home and school and between grade levels. Connections are made between these local ideas and the expectations of children as they begin their school careers. (Author)