Beginning in 1983, three educational reforms were undertaken in Pennsylvania to revise high school graduation requirements, test for remedial needs, and set higher standards for teachers and administrators. Revision of graduation requirements involved state and local education officials, professional organizations, and the state legislature. New…

School effectiveness indices (SEIs), based on regressing test performance onto earlier test performance and a socioeconomic status measure, were obtained for eight subject-grade combinations from 485 South Carolina elementary schools. The analysis involved school means based on longitudinally matched student data. Reading and mathematics…

The writing learning objectives for fifth graders contained in this volume are congruent with the Texas "State Board of Education Rules for Curriculum." These objectives and the measurement specifications are provided for use by teachers and other educators responsible for student instruction and for test development specialists involved…

This study investigated the use of teacher perceptions of school effectiveness variables as part of the Pennsylvania state assessment program and briefly reviewed the teacher survey instrument development. Data were available for 155 of the 500 school districts from the 1985 Educational Quality Assessment administration. A norm sample included 111…

To examine the accuracy of myths of state higher education finance trends, this study used data from 50 states to explore recent patterns in funding allocation, state policies, and system characteristics. Data were gathered through development of a database on state system characteristics and trends and through two surveys sent to state higher…

This report covers the risks to health, safety, and emotional well-being for infants and toddlers in child care settings, and examines opportunities for diminishing those risks and promoting healthy development. Part 1 examines the risks of poor caregiving practices, including the spread of infectious disease, the incidence of injury, and the…

The public schools reform movement has led to a proliferation of minimum competency testing programs by states. At the 11th/12th grade level, the Texas Educational Assessment of Minimum Skills (TEAMS), mandated by Texas House Bill 72, is an exit exam, divided into two sections which measure minimum competencies in math and language skills.…

This paper focuses on a community's educational improvement project in Tennessee that resulted from executive appointment of a citizen task force in each community. The paper reports project development and results; discussion emphasizes implications for school administrators. A joint task force, appointed in 1985, was directed to develop…

South Carolina's School Incentive Reward Program Program (SIRP) based on year-to-year gains in reading and mathematics achievement, which seemed to have face validity, was evaluated, particularly its use of the relative gains of students in only the highest grade in the school as the basis for the awards. When this requirement was relaxed so that…

This research examined student demographic (gender, ethnicity, grades, and previous home economics experience) and geographic (rural/urban school locale and individual school) factors that may be related to performance on a statewide New Mexico achievement test under development in the home economics subject matter area of consumer education and…

The writing learning objectives for ninth graders contained in this volume are congruent with the Texas "State Board of Education Rules for Curriculum." These objectives and the measurement specifications are provided for use by teachers and other educators responsible for student instruction and for test development specialists involved…

Students failing to master minimum competency tests are categorized as dropouts in this description of the results of and remediation efforts for the statewide Texas Educational Assessment of Minimum Skills (TEAMS) Testing Program. TEAMS assesses minimum competency in basic skills at grades 1, 3, 5, 7, 9 and 11-12 exit level. The first…

In 1983 the Maryland State Department of Public Education (MSDE) issued a request for proposals for "The Development of the Score Reporting System for the Maryland Functional Testing Program." The MSDE called for a literature review, a national survey, a statewide survey of user needs and capabilities, an assessment of the state's report…

The Tennessee Career Ladder Evaluation system, which uses a multiple data source approach to assessment, was developed to identify excellent teachers. It is used to determine whether or not the teacher should receive increasing career benefits. Evaluation data are generated by three evaluators, the teacher candidate, the school principal, three…

The effect of the Mississippi Performance-Based Accreditation Model on operations in a local school district is examined. Specifically, this report describes the Tupelo, Mississippi school district's experience in producing improved pupil learning. The Mississippi accreditation paradigm is prescriptive. It is an evaluation driven system capable of…