This report describes the Quality Enhancement Project (QEP), one of four major components of the Child Day Care Planning Project (CDCPP) of Cuyahoga County, Ohio. The major goal of the QEP was to develop a model for improving the quality of funded centers. The quality of care at 65 funded centers in Cleveland and 11 surrounding suburbs was…

Acts 320 and 321, SLH 1986, temporarily granted broadened administrative flexibility to Hawaii's two educational agencies--the Department of Education (DOE) and the University of Hawaii (UH). Under these two acts, the Office of the Legislative Auditor was directed to assess and evaluate the impact of the flexibility legislation--especially its…

The background and major claims of a new approach to the conceptualization and assessment of human intelligence are presented. The theory of multiple intelligences (MI), proposed in 1983 by H. Gardner, suggests the existence of several relatively autonomous human intelligences. Intelligence is defined as the capacity to solve problems or to…

This report is an attempt to conceptualize a comprehensive framework for evaluating vocational education quality. It is intended to inform policymakers of the breadth of the elements of quality and to suggest an integrated framework for assessing quality to vocational education evaluation theoreticians. Chapter 1 offers preliminary considerations.…

The concept of aptitude is reviewed, and the uses and misuses of aptitude tests are considered. Many aptitude tests measure general ability plus certain more specialized abilities that are important for success in particular educational programs. Aptitude tests can be subdivided into: (1) group-administered aptitude tests, such as the Scholastic…

The National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP) issued two reports in 1990 assessing the nation's current educational abilities in reading and writing. The "Reading Report Card, 1971-88" presented and analyzed results over an 18-year period for ages 9, 13, and 17 years (grades 4, 8, and 11, respectively). The 9-year-olds and…

Perspectives on educational assessment in U.S. higher education are offered. Assessment is viewed as a tradition of evaluation based on theories and methods distinct from those that underlie tests and testing. Assessment is part of a new movement toward more active teaching and learning that focuses on performance, multiple judgments about this…

Current higher education assessment practices and goals of additional assessment are discussed in testimony before the National Governors Association Task Force on College Quality. Ways to improve the assessment process are also suggested by the chair-elect of the American Association of State Colleges and Universities. In addition to student…

The Task Force on College Quality was charged with gathering research, reviewing literature and drawing on testimony on assessment of college effectiveness and state policies on improving higher education. Three papers are presented: (1) "College Quality: Measuring What Students Learn in Higher Education" (Jean G. McDonald); (2)…

This report describes a model which was implemented in Broward County, Florida for the provision of psychological services in non-public schools. The major goals of the model are identified: (1) to increase teachers' awareness of types of academic/behavioral difficulties in need of assessment; (2) to increase parents' awareness of available…

The dichotomy between Insiders (for whom the community college sector provides a primary reference) and Outsiders (for whom organizations other than those within the community college world constitute a primary reference) provides a meaningful way of understanding claims about the role of the community college as an institution. Reactions of…

This collection of eight articles was written to assist schools in rethinking and strengthening social studies programs, grades K-6. The articles offer practical suggestions for classroom teachers, social studies supervisors, and other professionals who have responsibility for planning and implementing programs. The issue begins with an article by…

A listing of effective schooling practices selected for use in the Alaska Effective Schooling Program is presented in this booklet, arranged in the five major categories identified in the research literature: leadership, school environment, curriculum, classroom instruction and management, and assessment and evaluation. The listing is accompanied…

Intended for administrators and policymakers as well as teachers, this digest explores approaches to, problems with, and trends in large scale writing assessment. The digest first compares direct and indirect assessment approaches, then examines three approaches to scoring: holistic, primary trait, and analytic. It then discusses issues and…

In redesigning the data program of the National Center for Education Statistics (NCES), there is a need for standard definitions, constant vigilance against redundancy and excessive data collection, audits and verification on local school data and continued attention to equity results as well as excellence and achievement. Major test scores, such…