Describes the career of Don Carl Smellie who has exerted leadership in the promotion of new technologies for instruction in education, industry, and government. Discusses his founding of the Department of Instructional Technology at Utah Sate University (USU) and its efforts in distance education, technological innovation, international service,…

Provides an overview of the recently developed state accountability system for public elementary and secondary schools in Rhode Island. Discusses accountability systems as technologies of social control and considers the costs, benefits, uncertainties, and necessary tensions associated with accountability systems. (Author/SLD)

Describes a study grading all 50 states on how well they deliver higher education. The study examined public and private colleges, and ranked states in five categories. Results were mixed, but no state received all As, and some had several poor grades. Every state received an incomplete in the area of student learning because researchers thought…

Discusses why many states are turning to community colleges to help them meet the growing need for elementary- and secondary-school instructors. Includes a sidebar with examples of such teacher education programs. (EV)

Since 2000, North Carolina has offered an alternative route to licensure for adults who desire to move into teaching from other careers. NC TEACH is a statewide alternative teacher preparation program aimed at recruiting, supporting, and retaining highly skilled mid-career professionals who seek to enter the teaching profession through the lateral…

A small state agency used the FLC model to collaborate with campuses on faculty development efforts that resulted in successful implementation of pedagogically robust and technologically enhanced programs. 2003-04 Ohio Learning Network Faculty Learning Communities are appended.

A new club in Rhode Island invited every Rhode Islander to read the same book and participate in the conversation on importance of reading. Narrative, analytical and various responses of students on reading "Wish You Well" are mentioned.

For too long teachers have been forced into a defensive posture, protecting their professionalism and their students' learning from the accountability hawks who know little about teaching and learning, the author asserts. In this article, the author details how Nebraska educators have turned the tables on accountability by placing utmost…

Pennsylvania is one of a handful of states that are leading the way in ensuring children receive a continuum of care starting at birth and extending throughout childhood so that they can move seamlessly from home to child care to preschool to school, and then from grade to grade. That means children have to be ready for school. It also means that…

In response to the demands of the changing economy and the business community's need for better-educated, more highly skilled workers, the U.S. Department of Education, through the Office of Vocational and Adult Education (OVAE), developed the State Scholars Initiative (SSI), which encourages students to take a rigorous course of study in high…

This issue of "Legislative Review" takes a look at the news in higher education from March 02 to 06, 2009. This Legislative Review reports that: (1) HB 1487, a bill prohibiting expenditure of federal economic stimulus funds unless appropriated by the Legislative Assembly, was heard in the Senate Appropriations Committee Monday, March 2;…

It is a difficult time for policymakers, business leaders, and education leaders to think about ways to increase the numbers of students graduating from high school prepared for college and the work force when their focus is on reducing budgets. But now is the best time to plan for the future. Now is the time to explore programs that may bear…

The 1999 Public Schools Accountability Act (PSAA) created a system for summarizing performance on state standardized tests and an intervention program to help schools that were not meeting state-set goals. California's test scores have improved substantially since then, but state-led interventions programs have had little overall effect on this…

In 2001, Indiana officials at the Department of Education were taking stock. The schools had an excellent network infrastructure and had installed significant numbers of computers for 1 million public school enrollees. Yet students were spending less than an hour a week on the computer. It was then that state officials knew each student needed a…

Depression occurs at a significant rate in the U.S. population. Untreated depressive symptoms are a primary risk factor for suicide. Studies show that a significant percentage of individuals who commit suicide had visited their health care providers in the months before their deaths. Alaska ranks number one in the nation for suicide. Routine…