State education agencies are organizing and developing programs that increasingly recognize the difference between the following types of state education productivity systems: (1) distributing money for productivity in education to be defined and implemented at the local level within "state minimum standards" regulated by the state…

Equity, the driving force of the Kentucky Education Reform Act of 1990, serves as the underpinning for an array of initiatives including the Kentucky Education Technology System (KETS). Sparse research exists on decision-making practices relative to equity measures associated with the distributions of KETS resources. The purpose of this…

A modified Extended Opportunity Programs and Services (EOPS) allocation formula has been recommended for implementation in the California community colleges by the end of 1982-83. The modified formula has been designed to shift funding policy toward performance outputs as distinct from inputs. The current formula is based upon four weighted…

A conceptual framework is developed for analyzing the costs of alternative assessment instruments. The framework will be used in future analyses by the Center for the Study of Evaluation to determine the costs of alternative assessment programs in a number of states. It is important that a distinction be made between costs and expenditures. Costs…

Connecticut has adopted a moderate approach to communications infrastructure modernization, covering a 4-year implementation period from 1993 to 1996. The state's remote educational framework, with regulatory enhancements, will allow the state to be technologically competitive with neighboring states as it allows subscribers to use evolving…

A long-range school improvement program, under the direction of the Pennsylvania State Department of Education, was developed to coordinate and articulate the curriculum, as well as to structure school management and other district operations. Featured in the plan are: (1) a statewide testing program called "Educational Quality…

In July 1979, the Florida legislature commissioned a comprehensive evaluation of the state's educational fixed capital outlay (EFCO) program, through which the state funded all capital projects at all levels of public education. The study, completed for the 1980 legislative session, comprised 18 topical reports including EFCO funding recipients,…

Writing assessment began in Alaska in the 1970s, and the Alaska Writing Assessment (AWA) that was piloted in 1997 built on previous efforts. The 1997 AWA involved more than 20,000 students in grades 5, 7, and 10 from 43 school districts, and the mandatory assessment planned for 1998 will include approximately 28,000 students. This review of the…

A study was done examining the experiences of four California community colleges that received pilot program grants to participate in a legislatively mandated, statewide accountability program. The participating colleges were Mount San Antonio College (Los Angeles), San Joaquin Delta College (Stockton), San Jose-Evergreen, and Santa Barbara City…

This paper, one of two related documents, is a summary of research presented to the Arizona state legislature concerning the participation of various states in the financing of capital outlay for school building construction. Along with a description of the various support programs, consideration is given to the questions of who determines need,…

The process used to develop a five-year and annual Illinois state plan for sex equity in vocational education programs is described and analyzed. The appropriateness of theory and frameworks used to develop the plan are examined as well as the five-phase operational framework which emerged from the developmental process: expectations and…

The purpose of this study was to investigate the problems and issues that emerged as school districts in Pennsylvania tried to implement a strategic planning mandate at the local level. In June 1993, revisions to the Pennsylvania school code changed requirements for graduation from time spent in the classroom to the mastery of 53 state-designated…

What is needed to help children succeed at high levels is already known, and that vision and commitment are essential to bring about reform efforts that research has already established as effective. Conditions that contribute to academic success and well being include nurturing and supportive families, economically and socially healthy…

The main purpose of the Evaluation and Training Institute Distribution Study was to design a system for distributing vocational education funds in California which complied with requirements of P.L. 94-482 and was equitable and practical to implement. Eight states were selected whose state plans, vocational education delivery systems, and/or…

The public school funding lawsuits that have been filed over the last two decades indicate that many people are not satisfied with the existing levels of school funding. After several years of trying to bring about changes through different avenues, a group called Tennessee Small School Systems filed suit in 1988 to have the system of financing…