Background: The higher education institutions will achieve autonomy traversing the path of graded accreditation. The autonomy of higher education is linked with the quality of education and accreditation. Higher education institutions will not only achieve autonomy but will sustain it in ever-changing external and internal environments. Purpose:…

This report analyzes the evolution and effectiveness of standards-based reforms in U.S. education. Starting from the increased federal involvement with the Elementary and Secondary Education Act in 1965 to the Goals 2000 launch of more recent reforms, the document explores the role of state governments in implementing systemic reforms aimed at…

This report describes the legal and scientific basis for an inclusive versus segregated education, summarizes national patterns for educating students with disabilities in general education classes, examines federal and state guidance, and state compliance with federal mandates, and describes effective educational practices for reducing…

This report examines the structure of school transportation systems, the surrounding regulatory landscape, school transportation funding mechanisms, student safety, the impact of school choice, the growing need for school transportation data, and school transportation's effect on the environment. Drawing from these various perspectives, it asks…

This article examines the recent expansion of the federal role into teacher workforce policy, primarily as embodied by the Race to the Top Fund of the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act. Such recent federal teacher workforce policy reflects an important expansion of the federal role into a policy domain that deserves more attention. The…

Local educational agencies (of which there are more than 14,000) have the primary responsibility for governance of public vocational education and training (VET) in the United States. Local agencies operate within a framework of state legislation and regulations that are heavily influenced by federal legislation. The federal government offers…

Over the last few decades, governments of all political hues have introduced measures to regulate the development of the professional status of teachers in England. In the first part of the article, we compare and contrast how teachers from schools, colleges and universities are regulated by the state and the nature of the ITT qualifications and…

In the twenty-first century, differences in the treatment of trade in alcoholic beverages in comparison to other commercial goods seem at odds with the federal regulation of interstate trade under the Commerce Clause of the United States Constitution, which prohibits "differential treatment of in-state and out-of-state economic interests that…

The paper discusses the major issues connected with the accreditation procedures in higher education system in the U.S. The questions raised are as follows: what are the reliable and credible indicators of quality instruction that could be measured in the process of accreditation of higher education institutions? How does greater transparency in…

The topic of the 1997 Conference, "Competition, Innovation, and Investment in Telecommunications," reflects one of the important areas for concern in the telecommunications community. Representatives of telecommunications carriers, cable industries, consumer, academic, and regulatory bodies at the federal, state, and local levels, worked together…

This white paper examines the roles that various levels of government play through legislation, policy, and other initiatives that support quality alternative education programs to reconnect youth to education and the workplace. It raises issues for policymakers at all levels to consider in facilitating the development of expanded alternative…

Discusses four major U.S. early childhood programs, supported and regulated by various levels of government, in regard to whether education and care of children prior to kindergarten should be extension of education system or separate function of society. Discusses child care, services for children with disabilities, Head Start, and other…

A new development in teacher education is the involvement of accrediting agencies, legislatures, and the federal government in mandating standards, curriculum, and assessment at all levels of education. The effects of this development on teacher education are examined, and changes needed within teacher education and administrator education…

This publication reports on two December 1993 events of the Commission on Higher Education events which addressed the reauthorized Higher Education Act and regulations to be issued by the Department of Education during January 1994. The first event described in the report featured United States Secretary of Education, Richard W. Riley. The report…

The demand for quality child care services from low- and middle-income families continues to increase. Government regulation is one means to ensure a basic threshold of high-quality care; however, political support for effective, comprehensive regulation of child care is declining. For example, few states require licensing staff to possess a…