This article reviews the basic principles of Total Quality Management (TQM) and how they can be applied to the administration of community colleges. TQM is a customer (student)-focused, continuous-improvement, quality-oriented way of thinking about all aspects of operating an organization that is shared and practiced by all employees (faculty and…

This report summarizes the current statistical programs of the National Center for Education Statistics (NCES), including its major publications and plans for future work. It updates the descriptions of long-standing data collections such as the Common Core of Data, the Integrated Postsecondary Education Data System, and the National Assessment of…

This collection of four Senate Rostrum newsletters discusses the various issues of interest to faculty in California community colleges. The September 1997 issue addresses such topics as welfare reform, technology mediated instruction, academic standards, an annual gathering of the Academic Senate for California Community Colleges entitled the…

With dwindling budgets, a critical focus of all reform efforts is how to underwrite the costs of new mental health intervention approaches. For communities and schools, the range of mental health and psychosocial concerns confronting young people requires a vision that encompasses much more than providing services for those with mental disorders.…

Reading Recovery is an early intervention program that helps low-achieving first-grade children to become independent readers who need no further remediation. Reading Recovery was introduced by Marie M. Clay who, in the mid 1970s, developed procedures with teachers and tested the program in New Zealand. In 1984, the success of the program in New…

A telephone interview survey was conducted to determine the reasons some Maine schools have chosen not to implement Reading Recovery, despite the program's statewide support and continued financial support toward training costs from the Maine Department of Education. Out of 72 selected schools, 47 participated, for a response rate of 65%. A…

Recognition of the range of potential benefits linked to out-of-school experiences has led to a rapid expansion of out-of-school time opportunities across the United States. This guide outlines an approach for bringing the community together to meet out-of-school time needs of children, youth, and families. Launched in 1994, the MOST (Making the…

The effects of Washington state education reforms on schools and classrooms were studied through surveys completed by about 150 elementary and middle school principals and about 400 writing and mathematics teachers in grades 4 and 7, the grades in which students take the Washington Assessment of Student Learning (WASL) tests. The surveys asked…

The 1990s saw a significant increase in the amount of technology used in the classroom and an increased need for individuals with high-tech skills. However, while this mass technology was being integrated, the human skills of instruction and advisement were being lost. Technology seemed to be negatively influencing the learning process. As a…

The Technology-Rich Authentic Learning Environments (TRALE) project aims to improve young children's literacy skills through the creation of a community of technology enriched classroom environments. TRALE has been implemented in kindergarten through grade 3 classrooms in one urban elementary school in the District of Columbia, a school located in…

Bakery Europa and the Straub Clinic in Hawaii participated in Project BELIEVE, a 3-year (1995-98) workplace literacy project conducted in partnership with the University of Hawaii's College of Education. Instruction focused on the literacy, communication, interpersonal, and problem-solving skills needed to succeed in the baking and health care…

This paper reviews an earlier study examining the variables affecting the success of distance learning programs. In 1995, Dr. Ellen Wagner developed a list identifying the following 16 variables which need to be considered if a distance learning program is to be successful: needs assessment; audience analysis; instructional design; course…

The progress school districts throughout New Jersey made in implementing a system of portfolio assessment and the factors that promoted or prohibited the implementation of this system were studied. In all, 262 teachers and 109 administrators completed and returned questionnaires on portfolio assessment. Findings indicate that teachers and…

This report examines local school-to-work partnerships in Pennsylvania and summarizes the lessons that can be learned from them. It includes information on how local partnerships work, functions of local school-to-work partnerships, and partnership activities such as establishing educator in the workplace opportunities, making business…

This document consists of articles 21-31 published in the electronic journal "Education Policy Analysis Archives" for the year 1999: (21) "Facing the Consequences: Identifying Limitations of How We Categorize People in Research and Policy" (Cynthia Wallat and Carolyn Steele); (22) "Teachers in Charter Schools and…