A study conducted at Alma College to determine how and why grade inflation occurred is discussed. Grade inflation is seen as being caused by many factors including calendar changes, requirement reductions, better defined grading scales, and shifts in faculty attitudes. (MLW)

A Committee of Inquiry into Education and Training, established to investigate the provision of Australian educational facilities and services and the relationship between the labor market and the educational system, is discussed. The committee considered flexibility in education and training, apprenticeship, accessibility of education and…

Examines six years of work with standards-based assessment (portfolios and group demonstrations of learning) at the University of North Dakota and an affiliated elementary school. Argues that the simultaneous development of parallel processes in a teacher education program and its professional development school can help renew teaching practice.…

This paper explains the development of a National Council for Accreditation of Teacher Education project to move the professional accreditation process to one which focuses primarily on the performance of candidates and institutions. It discusses program quality review and notes possible differences between the current system and such a system in…

A University of Washington study that found professors who are easy graders receive better evaluations than those who are tougher, and another study showing faculty enthusiasm alone raises student evaluations, have shaken a long-standing consensus among researchers that student evaluations are a good measure of a teacher's skills. Most…

Critiques William Mehrens' 1992 article on performance assessment, claiming that Mehrens professes to favor performance assessment but only as an afterthought to traditional assessment, and Mehrens' view of traditional assessment limits his portrayal of performance assessment. The paper encourages the research community to support performance…

Despite recent rejection of proposals for national reform of college accreditation, a well-established system of regional, voluntary self-regulation offers the best vehicle for correcting imbalance in educational quality assurance. The new Council for Higher Education Accreditation can help restore public faith in voluntary self-regulation by…

The shift to mission-based assessment for accreditation of public administration education programs is discussed from two perspectives: that of the chair of the Commission on Peer Review and Accreditation (COPRA), and that of a faculty member with experience in preparing for, undergoing, and responding to COPRA concerns during an accreditation…

Argues that the role of educational standards that has emerged from the National Education Summit is fundamentally misunderstood, does not address the issue adequately, and that using increased standards as a negative incentive is detrimental to students by punishing them for noncomplience. Explains the importance of student-centered standards,…

A new development in teacher education is the involvement of accrediting agencies, legislatures, and the federal government in mandating standards, curriculum, and assessment at all levels of education. The effects of this development on teacher education are examined, and changes needed within teacher education and administrator education…

Presents activities which highlight major concepts of linear programming. Demonstrates how technology allows students to solve linear programming problems using exploration prior to learning algorithmic methods. (DDR)

Asserts that closing the racial achievement gap does not necessarily require more competition and choice, but does require that educational objectives are clearly defined, practices adequately aligned, and evaluations based on long-term effectiveness. Highlights the No Child Left Behind Act (NCLB), discussing sociological and historical…

This study explored possible predictors of failure to pass state proficiencies in English/Language Arts and Mathematics by more than 6,000 Indiana students in 2000-2002. Data explored included early test results, school attendance, grade point averages, gender, ethnicity, and socioeconomic status. Predictors included early poor achievement,…

Articulation of clear, specific expectations for student learning can lead to better classroom teaching and assessment techniques. The system used at Alverno College (Wisconsin), and particularly the use of stated expectations for English majors, illustrates this concept. Defining expectations can also help create coherence across and entire…

Discusses factors that contribute to students with learning disabilities having difficulty acquiring and retaining math skills. Factors include national reform movements that have influenced math instruction, inclusion, characteristics of students with learning disabilities, and poor mathematics curricula and instruction. Recommendations for…