This document analyzes the Virginia Community College population participation rates in the Fall 2002. The population estimates are based on the U.S. census Bureau 2000 counts and average annual change rates. The participation rate equals headcount as a percentage of population. The results of the study are divided into the following five…

This chapter briefly describes some of the methods that test developers and psychometricians have devised to identify item and test bias and some of the challenges they still face. Although it may not be reasonable for classroom teachers to use these methods on a day-to-day basis in constructing tests, the authors argue that it is important for…

This package (with manual, CD-ROM, videotape, and lists of Web-based resources) was designed to assist administrators, service providers, family members, policymakers, and other stakeholders in locating information about Part B of the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act 1997 (IDEA) that will help in implementing both the legal requirements…

A series of four policy seminars was held in 1999 to discuss suggestions to ensure that Latino children reap the benefits of standards-based accountability and to illuminate related issues for the educational system. This report summarizes those seminars. The first was "Educational Standards, Assessment and Accountability: A New Civil Rights…

This book offers a select sampling of concepts and models organized around a distinctive framework and reflective of themes critical to the successful functioning of higher education institutions. It is organized into two parts. Part One, "Type and Impacts of Campus Environments," offers an overview of models and concepts of human…

This paper focuses on the funding of court-ordered desegregation plans in St. Louis and Kansas City and the ongoing search for fiscal equity. After sketching the landmark dates in desegregating the state's two largest cities, the article explores Missouri's continuing quest for fiscal equity in education. It describes the amount of federal aid…

This 1999-2004 strategic planning report by Midlands Technical College (MTC, South Carolina) includes summaries of college vision, statement of values, and mission statement as well as ten institutional goals with accompanying priority initiatives by which to accomplish those goals. As part of an outcomes-based assessment process to measure…

This regional needs assessment has three objectives: (1) collect and analyze information with the goal of identifying emerging trends and issues in the Northwest that affect public education; (2) use the findings from this analysis as a basis for assessing perceptions of how significantly these issues impact their local schools; and (3) use these…

This issue reviews publications that provide school leaders with guidance in determining how to choose and implement the schoolwide program that is best for their school. American Institutes for Research's "An Educator's Guide to Schoolwide Reform" provides educators with comprehensive profiles and evaluations of 24 of the leading…

This report addresses issues on the use of accommodations, modifications, or alternatives for students with disabilities in large-scale educational assessment programs. First, a set of definitions from current literature and the 1997 Individuals with Disabilities Education Act are offered. The importance of agreement between instructional and…

This study examined the relationship between instructional and assessment accommodations for students with and without disabilities participating in the Kentucky Instructional Results Information System (KIRIS). The study evaluated the educational records of 78 students with disabilities and 51 students from the general population. Results are…

This document is the first annual progress report for 1997-1998 of Dalton College's Strategic Plan for 1997-2000. It contains the following elements: (1) message from the president; (2) executive summary; (3) institutional profile, including students, faculty and curriculum, academic programs, and facilities; (4) mission statement; (5) planning…

Reviewers analyzed the alignment of assessments and standards in mathematics and science from four states at a four-day institute conducted June 29 through July 2, 1998. Six reviewers compared the match between assessment items and standards in mathematics and seven compared the match in science. Data from these analyses were processed and used to…

This book draws on the analysis of national curriculum test data from more than 600 children of 10-11 and 13-14 years of age, as well as in-depth interviews with 250 of these students, as they attempt to solve test problems, in order to explore the nature of the difficulties children experience with realistic items. It is shown, by comparing test…

This handbook is intended as a resource for schools and districts interested in developing and implementing a standards-based assessment system. The chapters in the handbook introduce key steps in the assessment development process. Several types of on-demand and cumulative assessments are emphasized, including multiple-choice and written-response…