To ensure that school districts and schools meet acceptable performance levels, many school districts and states have enacted various accountability policies. Two of the most controversial approaches to accountability are reconstitutions of schools and state takeovers of school districts and schools. For each approach, this policy brief presents…

This case study, part of the State Structures for the Governance of Higher Education study, focuses on governance and related issues in Florida's higher education system. The study's overall purpose was to examine differences among states in their governance structures, and to determine if differences in performance were related to governing…

This final performance report provides project outcome information and data to the U.S. Department of Education for the federally-funded Library Literacy Program. The Knox County Literacy Program, Inc., a project of the Knox County Public Library (Vincennes, Indiana), involved recruitment, coalition building, public awareness, training, rural…

In the face of the emergence of a global, technology-driven, skills-based economy and a continuing shortage of skilled labor in Minnesota, a study examined the development of a world-class training system for the state's workers and businesses. The study found the following: (1) there is an urgent need to address the high-skill needs of both…

This manual is a reference on the apprenticeship and industry training system for local and provincial apprenticeship committee members, presiding officers, and secretaries in Alberta. Section 1 contains an overview of Alberta's apprenticeship and industry training system. Section 2 provides an overview of the apprenticeship and industry training…

Lifelong learning has emerged as a central focus of the European Union's (EU) goal of becoming a knowledge society. Lifelong learning aims to build an inclusive society, to adjust the ways in which education and training are provided, and to encourage and equip people to participate in all spheres of modern public life. Indicators of lifelong…

Many of Wisconsin's working families face economic distress, living from paycheck to paycheck and being forced to choose between paying their rent or buying food for their children. Parents under stress often cannot support their children with time, energy or resources. In order to affirm the importance of children in the state, and to help build…

A hearing was held to discuss the prior four years of implementation of the Adult Education and Family Literacy Act, and to recommend further improvements. The opening statements of Chairman Howard McKeon and Dale E. Kildee introduce the meeting and discuss the importance of promoting an educated populace that will maintain the United States'…

This report describes policy cooperation in the Education and Training Area in the European Union (EU) in response to the Lisbon strategy and provides a comprehensive plan to respond to the challenges of the knowledge society, globalization, and the enlargement of the EU. It focuses on these three objectives: (1) improving the quality and…

Recommendations for women's participation in higher education made in 1989 are revised and amended. Issues addressed include women's employment in higher education, women's education, women's studies, campus climate, institutional commitment to women's needs and concerns through administrative and educational policies, attention to families and…

The "new federalism" paradigm offers an explanation why the federal government has devolved much of its administration of the Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF, formerly AFDC) and Medicaid (through managed care) programs. A review of child and family outcomes data resulting from these devolutionary changes in TANF and…

Special education is now an established part of public education in the United States--by law and by custom. However, it is still widely misunderstood and continues to be dogged by controversies related to such things as categorization, grouping, assessment, placement, funding, instruction, and a variety of legal issues. The purpose of this…

The annual survey of members of the National Association of State Scholarship and Grant Programs (NASSGP) collected data on state and territory funded scholarships and grants awarded to undergraduate and graduate students. The following are among the conclusions resulting from the survey: (1) states expect to award over $2.57 billion in total…

This study examined the current role of part-time higher education at first degree and Higher National Certificate/Diploma levels in Scotland. It looked at patterns of participation and availability, and also assessed the advantages and disadvantages of part-time study from the perspective of students, institutions, and employers. The research…

This resource book contains demographic data for the eight states of the Mountain Plains Adult Education Association. All information is current (1990-92) and comes from the national census and hundreds of research studies. Chapter I provides a demographic perspective of the nation, describes a holistic view of demographics, and discusses…