The origins of institutional effectiveness are traced, its evolution within community colleges is described, the use of the term "institutional effectiveness" is analyzed, and a practical, operational definition of the term is presented. The author hopes that this definition and the discussion in this article prove useful to community college…

Heightened national goals for degree attainment in the United States means increasing prominence for community colleges, which entails greater scrutiny in the form of accountability. Technology and a new generation of accountability measures appropriate to the distinctive community college mission are available to meet this challenge. This article…

Local assessment systems are being marketed as formative, benchmark, predictive, and a host of other terms. Many so-called formative assessments are not at all similar to the types of assessments and strategies studied by Black and Wiliam (1998) but instead are interim assessments. In this article, we clarify the definition and uses of interim…

The purpose of this document is to establish the minimum standards for approval of programs which meet the requirements of the Standards of Accreditation adopted by the State Board of Education February 22, 1984, and have been effective since June 1, 1987. Included are guidelines, which enable school districts to: (1) Establish equitable criteria…

Open education and schools of choice are alive and well--even in an era labeled "back to basics". (Editor)

The manual provides guidelines for Georgia teachers of children with specific learning disabilities. Sections focus on six major topics (sample subtopics in parentheses): definitions; eligibility criteria; due process (placement, confidentiality, exit criteria); program organization (delivery model, inservice education); instructional programs…

Eight criteria developed by the National Forum on Assessment (Washington, DC) as guidelines for evaluating existing and proposed assessment systems at any level are listed. Criteria call for clear definitions and fair assessments to assist educators and policymakers in improving instruction. Continuous review and improvement are recommended. (SLD)

The Georgia state resource guide for the education of educable mentally retarded students provides information on seven major topics (sample subtopics in parentheses): definitions; eligibility criteria; due process (screening, referral, confidentiality); program organization (delivery models, certification, facilities); instructional program…

The resource manual is intended to help Florida school districts provide services to gifted students. Rules and regulations are cited along with recommended procedures for the following program areas: definitions, eligibility criteria, screening, referral, evaluation, determinaton of eligibility and placement, provision of an educational plan,…

This technical report presents issues related to defining and applying accountability systems for young children, including those with disabilities. It notes that reaching shared perspectives on definitions of accountability systems and their constituents remains complicated by the number of levels to which such systems can apply (e.g., child-,…

This article is an analysis and synthesis of 26 published (1985-2000) research reports concerning postsecondary education services for students with learning disabilities. Eleven program factors are examined: definition of learning disability, characteristics of adult learners, institution type, special admission procedures, assessment services,…

The manual is intended to help Florida school districts provide educational programs for mentally handicapped students. An introduction traces the history of services to this population in Florida. State regulations are then cited along with procedures for determining student eligibility. Subsections address definition, eligibility criteria,…

A review of the literature was conducted to identify the current status and direction of the effort to meet the individual needs of the disadvantaged student through vocational education. The major data source was the ERIC (Educational Resources Information Center) collections for the time period between 1960 and 1975. Data was subdivided into…

Reported are the results of the 3-year Santa Cruz pilot project involving 11 disturbed children (4- to 12-years-old) to determine if autistic and severely emotionally disturbed (SED) children could benefit from a public school program. A program description and recommendations for implementation are presented in ten chapters having the following…

The author examines the status and recent changes in the education of gifted and talented students in Australia and the United States. Seven issues are addressed (sample subtopics in parentheses): ambivalent attitudes toward egalitarianism and excellence (equality of opportunity vs. equality of outcome); definitions and assessment of…