This report contains standards of the Missouri School Improvement Program that outline the state's vision and expectations for quality schools. The expectations are nonprescriptive to allow each school district the flexibility and responsibility to provide quality education. The standards are presented in three sections: resource standards,…

Gubernatorial mandates involving value-added assessment and teacher competency testing have intensified external expectations of the institutional research community. With governors thus promoting quality in higher education, institutional researchers must exert leadership in identifying potential implications of state policies. The image of 20…

Policy and program options for economic revitalization in the Southeast region of the United States through educational reform, with a focus on improving the learning experiences of middle-range high school students (30th to 70th percentile on standardized tests), are discussed. The study examined the ways in which state and local school districts…

The role of the state government in higher education assessment is clearly expanding as both the state's interest and investment in higher education grows. Currently, patterns of state involvement vary widely--from indirect incentive programs to direct legislation or regulatory action. Institutional assessment and the resulting reform must be…

Characteristics of evaluative studies used by California state legislators are discussed: specificity in addressing particular policy decisions; factors which contribute to or hinder the accomplishment of educational objectives; balanced studies with a range of indicators; and attention to local concerns, and to fiscal and legal issues. (MH)

This paper presents research findings to help policymakers understand and select various options for holding schools accountable for their performance and to help them devise a multistrategy accountability system. However, it does not recommend one system over another, since a given accountability option must be compatible and adapted to…

Attention has periodically been given to inequality of opportunity in higher education in Michigan by both the governor's office and the state board of education. Activities to date have been based upon the premise that disadvantaged students have often been effectively excluded from participation in higher education, and that certain procedures…

Uses the home-education policy arena as a lens through which to view changing beliefs and practices about student assessment. The home-education policies of 10 states illustrate issues relating to accountability in public and private schools and the use of standardized tests. (SLD)

This publication is an annual revision of a May 1976 survey to develop a profile of social studies course offerings and requirements in grades K-12 for all 50 states and the District of Columbia. Information about social studies testing for each state and the District of Columbia was added in 1988. Information about statewide assessment…

Cable television for the State of New York is discussed in detail with relation to: (1) the regents of the University of the State of New York, (2) legislation, (3) planning and proposals for franchises, (4) the Federal Communications Commission, (5) access rules, (6) a list of companies and those serving schools, and (7) federal/state/local…

This final report describes activities of a project which addresses issues concerning assessment in higher education through forums, papers, and development and dissemination of resources on activities in the states. In particular the project sought to explore how state initiatives to improve undergraduate education through assessment can be…

Assistance offered by the State Department of Education to school districts in Oregon to help them identify aspects of student achievement under Chapter 1 of the Education Consolidation and Improvement Act (Hawkins Stafford Amendments of 1988) is discussed. Two hundred ninety-five of the 297 Oregon public school districts have Chapter 1 programs,…

This 1976 study presents an update of a 1971 assessment of Illinois Area Vocational Centers (AVCs). The following topics are discussed in sections of this report: (1) methodology of the study which included meetings with an advisory committee of AVC directors, interviews at each of twenty-nine operating AVCs, distribution of 2,000 of eleven…

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 annual report for the fiscal year that ended June 30, 1987 is divided into a narrative section and a statistical section. The narrative sections begin with a general progress report by the South Carolina State Superintendent of Education, followed by analogous reports by the Special Assistant for Legal and Legislative Affairs and the…