This report summarizes some AISD activities to support reading and mathematics instruction in grades K-5 for the 2004-2005 school year.

South Carolina is planning to base all appropriations to higher education on performance indicators rather than enrollments and facility needs. The new law gives financial incentives to improve, and outlines 37 criteria for judging institutional performance. Institutions fear the system will be biased against them or not take into account their…

Presents opposing viewpoints on federalism and state sovereignty. Charles J. Cooper argues for states powers based on a constructionist interpretation of the constitution. Herman Schwartz maintains that the national economy is so tightly intertwined, and the protection of civil liberties is too great to leave these functions to the states. (MJP)

Presents a lesson plan that examines the effects of Supreme Court decisions on state/federal relations using the issue of school safety. Student handouts discuss the constitutionality of the Gun Free School Zones Act as it relates to a specific criminal case. Activities include several structured discussions. (MJP)

Encapsulates a series of brief essays exploring different aspects of modern federalism. Issues include further protection of individual rights extended through state constitutions and federalism and the world economy. Authors include Robert F. Williams, Earl H. Fry, and Daniel J. Elazar. (MJP)

Secondary vocational-technical education programs in Mississippi are faced with many challenges resulting from sweeping educational reforms at the national and state levels. Schools and teachers are increasingly being held accountable for providing true learning activities to every student in the classroom. This accountability is measured through…

The Education Law Center (ELC) sought an independent review of special education funding in New Jersey as part of a larger group of studies intended to critique the cost study conducted by Augenblick and Palaich and Associates (APA) and the New Jersey Department of Education (NJDOE) and inform the ongoing public debate. In doing so, ELC recognized…

California counties receiving funds from Juvenile Justice Crime Prevention Act (JJCPA) programs are required to report six outcome measures to the California State Legislature on an annual basis to measure the success of the program. These outcome measures are (1) successful completion of probation, (2) arrests, (3) probation violations, (4)…

The annual report on the State of Higher Education in New Mexico has been enhanced to include more analysis as well as data. Compared to previous years, higher education in New Mexico is educating more New Mexicans and a broader spectrum of New Mexicans than ever before. Of particular importance given the mission to educate all of the citizens of…

In 2005, Governor Tim Pawlenty and the Minnesota Legislature charged the Minnesota Office of Higher Education with developing an accountability system to measure the higher education sector's effectiveness in meeting state goals. Minnesota's leaders recognized that the knowledge, creativity and intellectual capacity of the state's people are the…

Section 1008.30 (formerly 240.117), Florida Statutes, requires the State Board of Education to develop and implement a common placement testing program to assess the basic computation and communication skills of students who intend to enter a degree program at any public community college or state university. Every year the State provides reports…

This publication updates information from prior surveys of the 50 states and the District of Columbia in the areas of: teacher licensure standards, standards boards, emergency or shortage-driven licensure, alternative preparation, minority teacher recruitment, state response to violence in classrooms, and linkages between efforts towards K-12…

This guide, which is one of a series of three guides designed to provide state and local leaders, policymakers, practitioners, and other stakeholders with information about the work-based learning component of the School to Work Opportunities Act, deals with career exposure. The introduction traces the history of school-to-work initiatives, lists…

This report, mandated by Ohio's 119th General Assembly, examines the fairness and appropriateness of the state's ninth-grade proficiency test. Under the assumption that it is indeed fair and appropriate to have a single, statewide graduation standard for all students, the study focuses on the issue of whether the test, as developed and…

This paper discusses the implications of the enactment of legislation in Florida in 1995 mandating the standardization of requirements for baccalaureate degree programs within the state university system. The paper also describes the tools and methodology created by that state's university system for addressing the tasks of implementing the new…