For most of U.S. history, local communities were the primary arbiters of school quality. Beginning in the mid-twentieth century, states began assuming more and more control over school standards and outcomes. The question we seek to answer is whether and the extent to which a particular kind of local voice--the voice of education practitioners--is…

The development of provisions for gifted and talented students at the state level was the subject of a conference attended by State directors of programs for the gifted. Presented in the report are conference addresses on quality in education, the differentiated educational process, the role and responsibility of the State department of education…

California state officials vary in their perceptions of the functions and uses of state Department of Education evaluations, according to state legislators, legislative staff members, department administrators, and outside evaluators whose opinions were gathered through interviews and at a 1981 symposium. Highlighted here are the legislators'…

Students in New Hampshire will not be alone when they will take their new state mathematics and reading tests. Their fellow students in Rhode Island and Vermont will be taking the same exams along with them. This article reports that New Hampshire, Rhode Island, and Vermont have joined forces to create reading and math tests in grades 3-8. They…

This report presents the results of a telephone survey conducted in 1997 and 1998 of the 50 State Higher Education Finance Officers in regard to performance budgeting and performance funding of public higher education. It was found that 21 states used some form of performance budgeting in public higher education in 1998, up from 16 in 1997, and…

This study examined the attitudes of State Higher Education Finance Officers (SHEFOs) in regard to performance budgeting and performance funding of public higher education. A telephone survey of all 50 SHEFOs or alternate officers was conducted in June 1998, and the results were then compared to a similar survey conducted in April 1997. It was…

The results of a 1985 survey of members of the Council of State Directors of Programs for the Gifted are presented. The survey was designed to portray the status of gifted education across the nation. Responses are presented (largely in table form) from members representing 48 states and the District of Columbia on three major topic areas (sample…

Discusses results of "Electronic Learning's" 1986 survey of state departments of education to determine each state's computer education commitment, financial support, budget allocations, computer course or integration requirements in elementary and secondary education, and teacher certification requirements. Statistics are provided on…

The information agent extension system implemented in the Rhode Island Department of Education resulted from modifications made to the model developed by the National Center for Educational Communication (now the Office of Research and Development Resources in the National Institute of Education). The Rhode Island system houses its agents in the…

Findings from 20 interviews conducted with individuals involved in the California New Teacher Project, which is administered by the California Department of Education and the Commission on Teacher Credentialing, are reported to assess the policy environment for new teacher support and assessment programs. The study was conducted by the Southwest…

The purpose of this study is to analyze current practices in the construction of State courses of study. Available State courses of study, reports of survey commissions and educational officials, and other State educational publications have been examined to discover the problems considered significant by State educational officials and the…