The paper reviews issues in the Wyatt versus Stickney court case concerning the constitutional right to treatment for institutionalized persons with mental retardation. Among topics considered are the role of the American Association of Mental Deficiency in the court proceedings, the original intent of the case as an employee action, and the…

A study was conducted to develop baseline information on special education early intervention programs. A review of the literature revealed the following: the effects of a stimulating or depriving environment appear to be most powerful in the early years of childhood; there is evidence that the effects of early intervention programs for children…

The history and current problems of adoption services provided by the state of New York are discussed. First, statutory reforms since the creation in 1968 of the nation's first statewide adoption subsidy program are reviewed and adoption services aimed at providing permanent homes for children in foster care are described. Subsequently, the…

A summary of the writing assessment programs reviewed in this journal is presented. The problems inherent in the programs are outlined. A coordinated research program on major problems in writing assessment is proposed as being beneficial and cost-effective. (DWH)

The increased use of large-scale assessments to measure student achievement and school performance based on defined standards has had a profound impact on state board of education members and other state policymakers. Almost any decision that involves applying standards will, at some point, be unpopular. Everyone seems to be in favor of standards,…

The State Children's Health Insurance Program (CHIP) was designed in 1997 to support working families by providing affordable, quality health coverage for their children in an efficient, effective, and coordinated way. This report examines the progress made in implementing CHIP nationwide. Information sources included the following: (1) federal…

This article presents a conceptual framework that was developed to guide a national evaluation of the American Legacy Foundation's (Legacy) Statewide Youth Movement Against Tobacco Use (SYMATU) program. This program was designed to develop youth-led, youth-directed initiatives within local communities. Two evaluation studies were designed and…

The study compared the effectiveness of the Washington State High Priority Infant Tracking Project in maintaining high risk infants in continuing health care, determining health and developmental outcomes, and surveying the use of community resources with other state tracking projects. The project identifies infants during the first 30 days of…

Information is presented on the three prepaid tuition programs and four college savings bond programs currently in operation in the United States, and the fiscal issues involved in their implementation are summarized. The three prepaid tuition programs are in Michigan, Wyoming, and Florida. The characteristics of the three programs are outlined…

An overview is presented of select research performed under a project entitled "Education, Delinquency Prevention, and the Search for Youth Policy: An Historical Inquiry." This overview contains two discrete essays that synthesize the main findings of seven key writers in the field of juvenile delinquency between 1900 and 1930 and…

Following an executive summary and introduction, the report is divided into four chapters. Chapter 1 presents evidence of hunger in Texas, which is revealed to be a growing problem. Statistics on the number of persons living in poverty, unemployed persons not receiving unemployment insurance benefits, and persons seeking food assistance from both…

Nearly every state is engaged in standards-based reform, as seen by the development of statewide academic goals and guidelines in core subjects and the subsequent new state tests that will measure students' progress toward achieving these goals. A Study Group on Statewide Assessment Systems formed by the National Association of State Boards of…

Provides information on initiating and planning poetry-in-the-schools programs, the problems normally encountered in developing such programs, and the benefits of the programs. Notes resources for learning about the work of poets in the schools. (JT)

The article discusses the purposes of early screening for disabilities and examines some of the issues involved in implementing a successful program. Weaknesses in existing procedures are discussed and programs existing in the Canadian provinces are mentioned with brief reference to some existing practices in the lower mainland. (Author/CL)

An evolved form of the Edwards and Beckworth (1989) model for probability selection for Scholastic Achievement Test takers using truncated normal distributions is presented. It is shown that the arguments of Holland and Wainer are not sufficient to reject this model. (SLD)