The concern of educators and the general public over the decline in basic skills achievement of students nationwide has led to a national push for results-oriented instruction and educational accountability. Many states are developing tests for life-related competencies which students should master during the schooling process. States moving…

The purpose of this report is to provide state-level policy makers with basic data about important alternatives to be considered as a state initiates or expands its early childhood programs. The report points out that several effective approaches could be implemented at substantially less cost than conventional classroom kindergartens and…

This report on the early implementation of the Texas Job Opportunities and Basic Skills (JOBS) program and its impact on participants begins with an executive summary. An introduction outlines key research questions, components, and timelines. Section II covers program design and implementation and substate variations. The next five sections…

This guide is a tool to assist educators in the development of high-quality work-based learning sites and other school-employer connections in New Hampshire as part of the state's school-to-work program. The guide provides implementation ideas for seven strategies for work-based learning experiences (industry tours, job shadowing, service…

This report discusses the outcomes of the Partnerships for Rural Resource Teams Project, a project designed to build upon the foundation of services for children and youth with deaf-blindness in Montana. Grounded in a framework that draws upon the principles of collaborative teamwork, contextually-based technical assistance, family involvement,…

With creative ideas contributed from Wisconsin youth services librarians, this manual is a practical guide for planning and implementing the state's 1999 summer library program. Dealing with the theme, "Go Global: Read!," this manual contains a broad spectrum of ideas--from solid information about varied cultures to playful fantasy tales…

Explains the development of an electronic information network in Maryland called Seymour that offers bibliographic records; full-text databases; community information databases; the ability to request information and materials; local, state, and federal information; and access to the Internet. Policy issues are addressed, including user fees and…

For the 1993-94 school year, the Office of Educational Research (OER) of the New York City Public Schools was asked to conduct evaluations of the 12 magnet schools funded under the New York State Magnet School Initiative. The state initiative was planned to promote the development of magnet schools that promote multicultural educational…

Two booklets, "A Blueprint for Iowa's Young: Implementation Directions for the Framework Paper," and "Investing in Families, Prevention and School Readiness: Working Draft of a Framework Paper" present a framework for creation of a blueprint for implementation and management of community investment initiatives. The framework is…

To investigate the initial experiences of the various Even Start programs in Ohio following approval and funding, a project developed a survey instrument and sent it to Even Start program directors. The survey asked directors open-ended questions aimed at getting a general description of each program and a discussion of the issues and concerns…

To investigate the initial experiences of the various Even Start programs, a project developed a survey that was sent to program coordinators in Ohio. It asked open-ended questions to get descriptions and perceptions of situations that preceded turning point events and the turning point events themselves. Data from eight programs highlighted their…

This paper places Kentucky's accountability program in the national context, and then describes how educators in four rural Kentucky school districts reacted to the program in the initial years of its implementation. The information is drawn from a qualitative study of the implementation of the Kentucky Education Reform Act (KERA) in these four…

This publication provides the basic statistics needed to illustrate the impact of North Carolina's Basic Education Program (BEP), an educational reform effort begun in 1985. Over 85% of the positions in the BEP are directly related to teaching and student-related activities. The new BEP programs result in smaller class sizes in kindergartens and…

The 1995-96 evaluation of tech prep in Washington consisted of the following activities: an analysis of survey data collected from all 22 tech prep consortia in the state, case studies of 7 tech prep consortia, and an analysis of student survey data collected from more than 2,000 students in 4 high schools in the 7 consortia. The study found that…

These three reports by national consultants assess first year progress in implementing state mandated educational reforms in Kentucky. First, "The Status of Primary School Reform in Kentucky and Its Implications," by James Rath, Lilian Katz, and John Fanning, reports on site visits to 14 public schools to assess progress in implementing…