Describes Phase 1 of Florida's competency-based teacher education program which is concerned with identifying and validating professional competencies important to beginning and experienced trade and industrial education teachers. (TA)

This paper provides background information for a Commission discussion regarding the challenges that community college districts confront when trying to serve rural and remote communities. The paper describes the dynamics of statewide and regional population growth occurring in California and an overview of program-based funding--the budgetary…

There may be some important unintended consequences if states do not go beyond the "adequate yearly progress" (AYP) requirement of the No Child Left Behind Act. Analyses of data from states in which accountability systems in place have been based on the percentage of students reaching a certain proficiency level suggest that many…

This paper summarizes information from interviews with four states regarding their Universal Design for Learning (UDL) initiatives, i.e., state or regional level efforts to promote the principles and practices of UDL via professional development or the production and/or dissemination of universally designed instructional materials. Discussion of…

In October 2002, the Texas Higher Education Coordinating Board adopted a preliminary analysis of the costs and benefits of reaching the first two goals of "Closing the Gaps by 2015," the state's higher education plan. Refinements to the analysis, which adjusted for inflation and made other changes, were presented in January 2003, and the…

The Federal No Child Left Behind Act (NCLB) and the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA) both emphasize the need for students with disabilities to have appropriate instructional and statewide assessment accommodations to ensure access to the general curriculum and to be included in school, district, and state accountabilities…

The Alabama Public Library Service (APLS) is charged with improving library services throughout the state to ensure that all citizens have access to quality library and information services. Part of this charge includes the responsibility for receiving and administering federal funds to the more than 200 public libraries in Alabama. Federal…

The Maryland Higher Education Commission funded the American Institutes for Research (AIR) to review the state's financial aid programs and to make recommendations for improvement. To determine how to improve the content, delivery, and administration of financial aid in Maryland, AIR conducted a number of activities, including a literature review,…

This collection of selected state policies covers the entire range of educational issues. It furnishes descriptions of legislative bills, arranged by category, from all 50 states. Essentially, the information in this report is raw data rapidly processed to be released in printed form at the earliest possible date. Editing has been kept to a…

This master plan sets forth mission statements for each component of Nevada's system of higher education and outlines overarching goals for the system within a 10-year time frame. It also describes targets and strategies directed at achieving these goals. Nevada is the fastest growing state in terms of percentage growth, yet trails most other…

Forest Grove High School (FGHS) is a suburban school in Oregon that implemented an extensive remediation program to increase the mathematics scores of its learners taking the state-mandated competency examination, the Oregon Statewide Assessment Test (OSAT). Learners who failed at least two of the mathematics sections of the 1998 OSAT, taken when…

This report was produced in response to Rider 49 of the 2001 General Appropriations Act, which directed the Texas Higher Education Coordinating Board to study the effects of the funding formula on institutions of higher education with fewer than 10,000 students and determine the adequacy of the funding formula for these institutions in comparison…

Why focus on art instead of on some other discipline to approach intercultural understanding? This paper argues that because art is about the spirit, the self, the soul, the things that people think are important, it should be the key choice. To lay the foundation for this argument, the paper addresses art as communication of core values and…

A group of teacher education faculty, state certification officers, and National Council for Accreditation of Teacher Education (NCATE) staff share what they have learned from State-NCATE joint review and accreditation visits. In the state-NCATE-based approach, the NCATE reviews the operation of the units, and the state reviews content preparation…

This document records the oral and written testimony of witnesses who testified at a Senate committee hearing concerning authorizing funds to states for worker reemployment and training programs. Witnesses included the following: Senators Claiborne Pell, Nancy Kassebaum, and Edward Kennedy; top officials from several major corporations; and…