The paper examines policy implications of recent trends toward state mandated assessment of higher education services. Two differing purposes of assessment, that of academic improvement and that of accountability, are distinguished. Current trends in how policy makers and higher educators approach a "new accountability" include seeing…

The Virginia International Mathematics Assessment Project was undertaken in response to the need for high quality baseline data on student achievement and on curriculum and instructional issues. The assessment model chosen for this project used the design and instruments of the Second International Mathematics Study (SIMS). The study included 104…

Based upon the experiences of Delgado Community College (DCC), this series of presentations examines the use of needs assessment as a planning tool. After explaining the way needs assessment is defined at DCC, Carol Hopson discusses the decisions to be made before beginning a needs assessment with respect to: (1) institutional willingness to abide…

The history of assessment in American higher education is examined, with a focus on the period after World War II. Assessment practices in the early years of higher education are also discussed. Assessment studies concentrated on either the college, the curriculum, or students. Questions that have been investigated by specific assessment studies…

Recommendations are made for the National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP) assessment of informative, persuasive, and imaginative writing. Five major objectives should be assessed by NAEP: (1) writing as a way of thinking and learning; (2) writing to accomplish a variety of purposes; (3) managing the writing process; (4) controlling forms…

This brief contains information on the status of laboratory schools in Florida, as well as information on laboratory schools in general. The brief is organized into five sections: (1) Introduction; (2) Historical Perspective of Laboratory Schools; (3) Status of Laboratory Schools in Florida; (4) Factors Associated with Successful Laboratory…

An overview is provided of the development of a program review process and instrument, and the subsequent validation of the process on three programs at Delgado Community College (DCC) in Louisiana. First, introductory material describes DCC's commitment to the development of a program review process as a means of enabling the college to respond…

A study was conducted in the Los Angeles Community College District (LACCD) to test the effectiveness of the Garrison method, a one-to-one method of teaching composition, as a means of improving learning in composition classes with students inexperienced in writing and lacking in language skills. A comparison was made between experimental and…

Designed as an aid in evaluating the past academic year by summarizing and consolidating college and districtwide information, this annual report provides technical information about the Los Angeles Community College District (LACCD). Following a District overview and data summary, the bulk of the report consists of tables and figures focusing on…

Two unanswered questions about child care are: (1) Does compliance with state child care regulations have a positive impact on children? and (2) Have predictors of program quality been identified? This paper explores a research study and related model that have had some success in answering these questions. Section I, a general introduction,…

This guide defines a methodology for program monitoring and discusses positive results achieved in Pennsylvania by implementing Instrument-based Program Monitoring (IPM) in the field of child day care services. IPM uses checklists or special questionnaires to structure monitoring interviews and site visits. This method differs substantially from…

This self-evaluation instrument helps evaluation participants focus on the basic elements that have been universally recognized by the Catholic Church and its educators as well as on those factors that are considered essential to any sound educational process. The first of six chapters, chapter I, describes the purpose of the instrument. Chapter…

The concept of three curriculums--intended, implemented, and attained--is central to this report. In the second international mathematics study, students were surveyed at age 13 (grade 8 in the United States) and in the terminal grade of secondary schooling; this analysis is limited to the first group. How each of the three curriculums was…

An assessment of the status of environmental education and perspectives on its future direction are presented in this report of the Netherlands' Commission on Environmental Education (CEE). Viewpoints and analyses are offered for the purpose of stimulating discussions and providing recommendations for the development of environmental education.…

This manual is designed for those researchers using the databank on classroom process surveys for the population of 13-year-olds in the Second International Mathematics Study. The manual opens with overviews of the study and the databank and states the purpose of the training. In the second section on "Interpretation," the codes, layout,…