This article argues for and models an approach to writing program assessment that relies on study of the writing practices of program graduates as a way to inform revisions in curriculum and teaching practices. The article also examines how conducting such assessments can help nondisciplinary publics understand the nature of composition …

Universities systematically use assessments to evaluate programs of teacher education. The Professional Development Schools Partnership was a well-established collaboration with more than 11 years of work with area schools. However, two questions became the center of a discussion for evaluating, monitoring, and identifying the accomplishments of…

Six primary classrooms in an elementary professional development school were involved in this research, each characterized by high mobility and a diverse student population from economically disadvantaged families. Questions included the following: First, what approaches are found in a professional development school with diverse learners? Second,…

The purposes of this study were to evaluate a federal and state-funded Family Caregiver Support Program (FCSP) and explore what types of caregiver support service are associated with what caregiver outcomes. Information was obtained on a sample of 164 caregivers' use of eleven different types of support service. Descriptive and comparative…

Assessment of educational effectiveness provides vitally important feedback to Institutions of Higher Education. It also provides important information to external stakeholders, such as prospective students, parents, governmental and local regulatory entities, professional and regional accrediting organizations, and representatives of the…

School and district leaders are commonly faced with diverse student needs and interests that could be effectively addressed with a course that is not currently offered in local schools. Virtual schools have grown up over the past 15 years in different policy and budget ecosystems, but most online course programs can be classified in one of six…

In the face of changing economic conditions and shifts in skill requirements caused by technology, American corporations must integrate learning as an integral part of their functioning. Businesses must implement learning-intensive production, speed up the process of learning how to improve training, and learn how to assess the results of…

In 1985 Georgia adopted the Quality Basic Education Act that requires local school systems to provide all public school officials and personnel the opportunity to continue their development throughout their professional careers. A formula was set for State funding of professional development programs. The Act also required each local school system…

A California University systemwide approach to professional development encompassing the three facets of personal development, instructional development, and environmental modification is summarized. Objectives of professional development and objectives of successful campus programs are presented and aspects of the Center for Professional…

This report presents a description of the Structure-Process approach to cognition and literacy, suggests techniques for implementation of the model, and assesses the effects of the model on a specific population. The Structure-Process approach assumes that intelligence develops cumulatively. The model was used for curriculum development in four…

The purposes of this study were to determine (1) the long-range effectiveness on children's cognitive and affective development of 1, 2, and 3 years of the Central Cities Early Childhood Education Program; (2) how long preschool intervention must be continued to significantly alleviate special problems of disadvantaged children; and (3) the…

A national indifference to children is indicated by the system of foster child care and by the treatment of mental retardates. Another manifestation is the attack on Head Start. Criticism based on the program's failure to raise standardized intelligence or aptitude scores is misplaced. Head Start is a broad developmental program having many…

This book is a guide to the standards for programs designed for gifted and talented students developed by the National Association for Gifted Students in 1998. The guide is intended to provide practical help to practitioners by including annotations that supply a rationale and further explanations for each standard. A standard statement,…

Presents two perspectives bearing on the concept of social competence, the motivational and the socio-cultural; the author was a member of a panel of black experts convened to review, from a black perspective, the lists of outcomes and measures which Rand plans to use to evaluate Head Start. (JM)

Procedures for individualizing inservice for special education personnel are outlined and described. Six steps are pictured in a flow chart and detailed in the test (sample substeps in parentheses): establish organized management (establish agency goals, prepare explicit job descriptions of personnel responsibilities); prepare and administer staff…