Smart Start is North Carolina's partnership between state government and local leaders, service providers, and families to better serve children under 6 years of age and their families. This report describes the comprehensive plan to evaluate the state and local goals and objectives of the program, focusing on the components addressing the…

Research studies using booklet classification were implemented by the American College Testing Program to investigate the linkage between the National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP) Achievement Levels Descriptions and the cutpoints set to represent student performance with respect to the achievement levels. This paper describes the…

The formation of the South African Democratic Teachers Union (SADTU) has raised a number of questions about the strategic orientation of teachers in South Africa. These questions are regarded in light of recent political and social changes in the country. Most teacher organizations are reluctant to disband in favor of the new union. The experience…

Tracking and ability grouping are common practices that are often harshly criticized. Both practices group students of similar achievement levels for instruction, but they differ in how this task is accomplished. Elementary schools typically use ability grouping in reading instruction, with instruction targeted to the reading level of each group.…

This book suggests that radical changes are occurring in academe as more women, foreign-born, and minority scholars enter the professorate and as alternatives to full-time tenure track appointments take hold. It is based on an analysis of data from the 1993 National Study of Postsecondary Faculty on new faculty and senior faculty. The study…

This analytical report on higher education in Egypt argues that Egypt's policy must take account of the realities of declining government budgets and employment and the need to rely increasingly on the private sector, which must become more competitive internationally. Previous policy, which expanded higher education rapidly (despite a…

This book is a comprehensive guide to help school librarians and teachers find and make the best use of government information the new electronic environment. The first chapter "Internet Basics and Federal Information on the Web: An Introduction" shows how to get started by discussing Internet basics, document formats commonly used by…

This paper details experiences in developing an undergraduate Computer Information Systems (CIS) curriculum at a small liberal arts school. The development of the program was based on the study of needs assessment. Findings were based on the analysis of four sources of data: the results of an industry needs survey, data from a needs assessment…

This report emphasizes the importance of two types of assessment: (1) authentic assessment, which encompasses a holistic or comprehensive view of student performance, and (2) assessment of institutional effectiveness, or outcomes assessment, which is a process of measuring how effectively a college executes its stated mission. While Hudson County…

This textbook for undergraduates reflects advances in the understanding of effective teaching and learning and is organized around the theme of promoting good information processing. The first part of the book describes the foundations of good thinking, and the second part introduces different theoretical perspectives on the construction of…

In the face of an unprecedented increase in school crime and violence, this book addresses school crime as a two-dimensional issue consisting of the problem of crime in schools and the role of schools in preventing delinquency and dealing with delinquent students. This book reviews the theories that attempt to explain the relationships among…

Research on homeless children and families carried out by the Institute for Children and Poverty over the last 6 years is compiled in this document. The contents range from programmatic solutions and policy recommendations to simple "snapshots" of homeless families. Much of the research is based on the experiences of Homes for the…

The consequences and correlates of growing up poor as well as the mechanisms through which poverty influences children are explored. This book is organized with a primary focus on research findings and a secondary concern with policy implications. The chapters are: (1) "Poor Families, Poor Outcomes: The Well-Being of Children and Youth" (Jeanne…

This report provides longitudinal data on enrollments, finances, programs, and staff for the 16 campuses of the Wisconsin Technical College System, covering systemwide the period from 1989 to 1998. The following tables are provided: (1) headcount enrollment by aid categories of college parallel, postsecondary (i.e., associate degrees and…

This report is part of a multi-year project to examine the effects of standards-based assessment reform on schools and classrooms. During the past year, the project investigated school and classroom effects of assessment reforms in the state of Kentucky, a state that has been at the forefront of the standards-based assessment movement. This report…