Parents of 209 children (162 males and 46 females) with autism spectrum disorders, Down syndrome or learning disabilities ranging in age from 4 to 21 years were surveyed about their perceptions of the education of their children. Items on the survey were categorized into 7 areas: school personnel's knowledge about the disability, best practices,…

For the past five years, Vermont has been developing an innovative statewide assessment system in which portfolios of student work in mathematics and writing are a key element. The use of mathematics portfolios, particularly in elementary school, is a novel aspect of the assessment system. This study examines the elementary school mathematics…

This briefing paper presents a synthesis of data on early eligibility determination which provides middle- and secondary-school students and their parents with individualized information about their eligibility for financial aid to pay for higher education. This information is intended to be provided at a time when decisions must be made about…

This publication, the result of a series of conferences held between April and October 1989, is a guide to assessing the competence of prospective art teachers in the California public schools. The guide was developed as part of a state-wide response to legislated entry and exit standards for teachers in elementary and secondary schools. An…

This study was conducted to examine teachers' knowledge of teaching mathematics and writing to diverse learners, and knowledge changes that occur over time, particularly during and after formal teacher education programs. Commonplaces of teaching were articulated as subject matter, learners, learning, and context. Three measurement instruments…

Analyses of the cognitive activity displayed by students on existing innovative assessments in science were conducted. The project has worked with pilot alternative assessment programs in Connecticut and California to document the match or mismatch between the skills and processes that the assessment is designed to tap and those actually elicited.…

The Massachusetts Educational Assessment Program (MEAP) was established in 1985 to compare academic achievement among schools and districts and to give curriculum and instructional guidance. Biennially, it tests all students in grades 4, 8, and 12 in reading, mathematics, science, and social studies. Using a matrix sampling design, each student…

This proposal describes the organization and implementation of a "World Steel Drum Ensemble" as a strategy to solve the problems of low minority academic achievement, high minority discipline incidents, and minority isolationism. The drum ensemble studied and performed music from Caribbean, Hispanic, and African heritages in a middle…

The second phase of a 3-year project examining the effect of a process approach to writing instruction on students' expository reading and writing skills, a study determined the impact of three writing programs that emphasized different aspects of a process-oriented writing environment. Data were gathered from 159 fifth and sixth grade students…

The College Entrance Examination Board Advisory Panel on the Scholastic Aptitude Test (SAT) Score Decline considered various changes in American society as a possible cause of the downward trend in SAT scores that has occurred each year since 1963. For a span of 42 years (1933-75), a fold-out chart displays major events and influences on events,…

Summary findings gathered by the National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP) in the 1973-74 national assessment of career and occupational development (COD) are reported. (NAEP is an information-gathering project that surveys the educational attainment of 9-year-olds, 13-year-olds, 17-year-olds, and adults (ages 26-35) in ten learning…

Law-related education programs for elementary school should be based on children's perceptions of reality. Psychologist Jean Piaget's studies of cognitive development indicate that children constantly reconstruct reality as they undergo new experiences. Children at early developmental stages may not be capable of understanding the origin and…

The report describes a one-year pilot study of museum effectiveness conducted at the Franklin Institute Science Museum and Planetarium in Philadelphia. The study was intended to develop models for testing visitor response, provide useable information to museum staff, and test the feasibility of a large-scale investigation of science museums.…

A SERIES OF BRITISH IMPACT STUDIES DEALT WITH ADULT AUDIENCE CHARACTERISTICS (COMPREHENSION, KNOWLEDGE, INTERESTS, ATTITUDES) AND FACTORS WITHIN THE MEDIUM THAT MAKE FOR EFFECTIVE COMMUNICATION. FIVE DIFFERENT TYPES OF SUBJECT MATTER WERE PRESENTED TO MATCHED SAMPLES OF THE GENERAL PUBLIC BY MEANS OF RADIO, TELEVISION, AND PRINTED ARTICLES. THE…

The paper describes social studies skills of students age 9-adult as assessed by the 1971-2 National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP) Project. NAEP organized skill exercise items around two subthemes: (1) obtaining information, including raising questions, seeking answers, identifying sources of information, and using standard reference…