This report represents the thirteenth Follow-Up Study by the Teacher Education Assessment Committee (TEAC) at Central Missouri State University. TEAC is a centralized system of data collection and assessment that solicits input from Central's professional education faculty, preservice teachers, program graduates, employers of teachers prepared at…

Since September 1995, the Utah, Colorado, Arizona, New Mexico-Rural Systemic Initiative (UCAN-RSI) has promoted systemic reform to improve science, technology, and mathematics education for all rural students in its states. Initially, UCAN targeted 159,000 students in over 430 rural, primarily American Indian or Hispanic, communities. These…

Setting high academic standards and achieving against them is an important educational objective. Academic standards should originate within the student's community; be used to measure student achievement and school performance; be shared and understood by all members of the community; and be both explicit and comprehensible to lay people. The…

This book provides K-12 teachers with information about effective teaching and learning tools. Each innovation has a long history of use and has been researched and evaluated in a variety of settings. The innovations foster a student-centered classroom environment that is equitable and rigorous. The nine chapters focus on: (1) "The Power of…

In 1999 Michigan implemented the Michigan Merit Award program, a program to motivate high school students to take their studies more seriously. The program offers 1-year college scholarships to students who meet or exceed state standards on Michigan Educational Assessment Program (MEAP) tests in reading, mathematics, science, and writing. This…

This report discusses a proposed research project to study the integration of video technology to reinforce the National Science Education Standards in Advanced Placement (AP) classes in low socio-economic schools in Indiana. The report begins with overviews of AP in Indiana, the National Science Education Standards, and research relevant to the…

The Pennsylvania state academic standards describe what students should know and should be able to achieve at the end of grades 3, 5, 8 and 12 in the visual and performing arts, and the understanding about humanities context within the arts. The arts include dance, music, theater, and visual arts. The arts and humanities are interconnected through…

The No Child Left Behind Act (NCLB) amends and changes programs from the Elementary and Secondary Education Act. Although the main component of this bill is Title I, it also highlights teacher education quality. NCLB was accompanied, for fiscal year 2002, by the largest increase ever in federal education aid, targeting federal resources to support…

The population of school-aged English language learners (ELLs) has consistently and significantly increased over the past decade, transforming U.S. public schools, instruction, and teacher preparation. This digest discusses the need for increased numbers of teachers of ELLs and the particular linguistic and academic characteristics of ELLs. It…

This brief discusses the outcomes of a study that examined the views of 32 secondary education teachers in four secondary schools on the inclusion of students with disabilities in their classrooms. Analyses of the interview data indicate that the general education teachers were committed to inclusion and that they did make instructional…

Low student achievement for Montana's Native American students has been a recognized fact since the beginning of the reservation period. The current push for mathematics and science education reform, coupled with federal and state accountability mandates, enhances opportunities for learning but also challenges Native students' culture and…

The Fall 2002 Idea Book contains suggestions for enriched learning. "Save Our History; Save Our Sounds,""Eureka!" and "Lindbergh Flies Again" involve two or more disciplines of study and would work well for team-teaching projects . Lesson materials from the Arts and Entertainment Network teacher's guide are:…

This framework details Vermont's educational standards and learning opportunities for Kindergarten through grade 8. The standards are to be used to: (1) provide structure from which standards-based district, school, and classroom curricula can be developed, organized, implemented, and assessed; (2) provide the basis for development of a state,…

This pamphlet is intended to help educators understand the fundamentals of what the No Child Left Behind Act (NCLB) Title III means for their educational programs and curricula to help all limited English proficient (LEP) students and immigrant children and youth succeed in learning English and meeting the same challenging state academic content…

Standards-based reform and the demand for accountability and higher student achievement over the past decade have created challenges for school boards. Should boards continue their historical low-key, hands-off approach to student learning? Or should they take on a leadership role by capitalizing on their traditional responsibility as local…