Discusses (1) a Michigan court decision concerning reverse discrimination and voluntary affirmative action policies; (2) the Massachusetts Supreme Court's rejection of the work-to-rule strategy; and (3) an Arkansas law that will allow teachers failing a basic skills and literacy test to be fired only when their state certification expires. (MLF)

The details of Tennessee's Master Teacher Program are described. Teacher evaluation focuses on four areas: classroom planning, teaching strategies, class management, and student evaluation. (TE)

A national survey reveals state education agencies are contributing to the growth of educational computing by mandating computer use in schools and inservice and preservice training for teachers. They also allocate funds and provide a coordinating role where local user groups have initiated school programs. (MBR)

The increasing dependency of community colleges on state funding has led to a parallel increase in state intrusion into institutional decision making. If trustees are to head off this intrusion, they must carefully develop sound institutional goals and priorities and must become active lobbyists on their behalf. (DC)

The South Dakota Assessment System provides information for schools to use in evaluating their teaching and curriculum as well as allowing parents to monitor their child's progress. All public schools in South Dakota test students according to South Dakota Codified Law 13-3-55, which was adopted in January 1997 and amended in January 2003. This…

Legislation passed during the 2001 Iowa legislative session established the Student Achievement and Teacher Quality Program, Iowa Code Section 284.12(1). This legislation requires the Iowa Department of Education (DE) to annually report the statewide progress on the following: (1) student achievement scores in mathematics and reading at the fourth…

Progress on school choice in the statehouse and courtroom during 2002 set the stage for ambitious 2003 legislative agendas in many states and the U.S. Congress. The U.S. Supreme Court ruled that voucher programs do not violate the Constitution, even when participating schools are overwhelmingly religious. Research supporting choice has grown…

Despite expansions in children's health insurance programs, rates of uninsurance in California continue to be high. Noting that absenteeism due to poor health is associated with school failure and asserting that schools offer an established framework on which to build a coordinated approach to enrolling children in health insurance programs, this…

This report traces the origins, evolution and impact of Minnesota's pioneering charter school law--on its own schools, students, and communities and on the development of charter laws in many other states. It notes that, unlike what is now happening elsewhere, new schools are now being chartered at an accelerating pace in Minnesota. And because…

In 2003, the legislature and governor enacted House Bill 1909 to create a pilot project on competency-based transfer between two--and four--year colleges and universities. The legislation directed the Higher Education Coordinating Board (HECB) to select institutions to define transfer requirements in several disciplines on the basis of students'…

This handbook provides an overview of federal and Colorado special education laws and special education issues that affect charter schools. An introduction reviews the history of charter schools and both the school choice movement and special education in Colorado. The first major section provides a history of special education statutory and case…

Noting that childhood lead poisoning is one of the most common preventable pediatric health problems, this report examines lead poisoning as a health problem to which infants and young children are most susceptible and as a housing problem directly related to a shortage of safe, affordable housing. The report details screening rates in Rhode…

All-day kindergarten and class size reduction are two Ohio initiatives funded through Disadvantaged Pupil Impact Aid (DPIA), a supplemental payment to school districts with substantial portions of families living in poverty. This report describes the extent to which districts implemented these programs and the challenges they faced during the…

This document is comprised of the two issues in volume 4 of "Bridges," a publication produced by the California Head Start-State Collaboration Office to detail the activities of the educational partnership and to provide relevant information to programs participating in the partnership. The spring 1999 issue focuses on the service system…

Calls for changes in California's complex state-run school funding system, provided the backdrop for "Overhauling School Funding in California: The Push for Greater Adequacy, Equity, and Accountability," the EdSource 27th Annual Forum in March 2004. Participants discussed approaches for determining what would constitute adequate funding,…