This study examines the factors that influence participation in vocational education among students who attended high school during the early 1990s--that is, when the focus of federal vocational education policy began to change. The factors examined included three types of characteristics of students, their parents, and their high schools: (1)…

"Straight A's: Public Education Policy and Progress" is a biweekly newsletter that focuses on education news and events both in Washington, DC and around the country. The following articles are included in this issue: (1) Alliance Releases Teacher Paper: Tapping the Potential: Retaining and Developing High-Quality New Teachers; (2) A…

For almost 50 years, ACT has played a pivotal role in promoting student access into and success in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) careers. Through academic and career assessments, career development tools, and extensive research, they have helped inform students, parents, teachers, career counselors, employers, and…

Electronic portfolios represent an assessment measure with strong potential for providing feedback about student performance to improve curricula and pedagogy, determining individual students' mastery of learning and providing feedback for improvement, and actively involving students in the assessment process. This study examined the relationship…

This report provides findings and recommendations in response to a Legislative directive for the Iowa College Student Aid Commission to develop policy recommendations for the Iowa Tuition Grant program. The program provides grants to college and university students. The following are appended: (1) 2005 Iowa Acts Chapter 169, Section 3. Language…

This collection of papers includes three parts. Part 1, "TA Development Programs," offers "Undergraduate Teaching Assistants: One Model" (Katherine M. Kulick); "Teaching Assistant Development: A Case Study" (Julia Herschensohn); and "Breaking Out of the Vicious Circle: TA Training, Education, and Supervision for the Less Commonly Taught Languages"…

Interpersonal presence refers to the cues individuals use to form impressions of one another and form/maintain relationships. The physical cues used to convey interpersonal presence in face-to-face learning environments are absent in text-based computer-mediated conferencing (CMC) courses. Learners' perceptions of interpersonal presence in CMC…

Since the passage of California Assembly Bill 540 in 2001, authored by the late Assemblyman, Marco Antonio Firebaugh, more than 5,000 undocumented students in California have had improved financial access to higher education. AB 540 has become a pinnacle in the lives of students, who because of their immigration status, have historically been…

ARL is the bimonthly report on research library issues and actions from ARL (Association of Research Libraries), CNI (Coalition of Networked Information), and SPARC (Scholarly Publishing and Academic Resources Coalition). ARL reports on current issues of interest to academic and research library administrators, staff, and users; higher education…

This report describes the planning process for the Export Academy at Eastern Michigan University, designed to prepare students for a Master of Arts degree combining export and trade studies with second language (French, German, Spanish). In 1989-91, the Academy prepared the proposal for the new Master's degree program and sponsored a series of…

The consequences of the end of minority preferences in the University of California (UC) schools of law and medicine are explored. The first students admitted into these graduate schools on a colorblind basis will begin classes in the fall of 1997. None of these students received a racial preference in admission, as a result of a 1995 decision by…

This New Hampshire Community Technical College System (NHCTCS) Annual report provides data and descriptions about its programs, students, and educational outcomes. Beginning with the NHCTCS mission statement, the report discusses access and excellence in education, providing background information on the NHCTCS and the opportunities it provides.…

This Los Rios Community College District (LRCCD) report profiles the enrollment patterns of recent high school graduates who attend Los Rios Colleges. It includes data on participation rates from all feeder high schools in the greater Sacramento area, and provides insights as to where participation growth and decline occur. The cohort includes…

The thesis identifies factors that have contributed to the academic success of Alaska Native teacher education students who graduated from the University of Alaska Fairbanks (UAF) between 1989 and 1993. It contains a brief history of schooling for Alaska Native peoples; a description of the programs, student services, and academic coursework at…

The purpose of this yearbook is to focus on the meaningful integration of technology, providing information to help media and technology professionals practice their craft in a changing and expanding field. Part 1 focuses on trends and issues and includes the following papers: "Issues and Trends in Instructional Technology" (Michael…