This study examined children's health care utilization at six sites within a Northern California health maintenance organization (HMO). Approximately 300 parent-child dyads seeking medical attention at the HMO sites were subjects. Parents completed the Pediatric Symptom Checklist (PSC) and reported the presence of a serious or chronic illness. In…

This plan describes the challenges facing higher education in New York State and the goals devised by the Board of Regents to address these challenges. The Regents publish such a plan covering two-year and four-year public, private and proprietary institutions every eight years. The major challenges facing higher education in New York are: (1) the…

This paper summarizes major findings from a doctoral study of the economic rationale for closing rural and metropolitan schools in South Australia. It is evident that some communities in South Australia have had their local school closed and some have not. Some receive greater levels of funding than others. This thesis research examines the…

Prominent among the new models of social service delivery are organizations providing comprehensive, community-based supports and services (CCBSS) to children and their families. A needs analysis explored CCBSS sites' interest in and readiness to use a software tool designed to help them make more effective internal resource allocation decisions…

Many factors have contributed to the increased pressure on institutions of higher education worldwide to become more cost-effective. In 1990, the International Institute for Educational Planning (IIEP) launched an international research program on the problems of higher education management at the institutional level to create a knowledge base on…

With support from the John Templeton Foundation, the authors held a Summit on Acceleration at The University of Iowa in May 2003. They invited distinguished scholars and educators from around the country to help them formulate a national report on acceleration. This first volume of the Templeton Report on acceleration trumpets an alarm to the…

Results of investigation of exploitation costs of INSPEC database in selective dissemination of information service are presented. Parameters which influence exploitation costs--time spent looking for information, information query length, number of answers, time spent modifying user's query, and amount of modification--are analyzed. Six…

This analysis of the cost-effectiveness of the University of Delaware's own PLATO system discusses the initial expense of acquiring the system, decreases in unit cost as number of users increased, capital investment in hardware, expenditures and funding sources, comparisons of actual and projected costs, and benefits of individualized instruction.…

Presents a model to help student personnel administrators develop cost effective approaches for improving student retention, based on the marketing process. The marketing model can be used to systematically respond to the needs of students, faculty, and the community. Outlines retention tactics at Prince Georges Community College. (JAC)

A study to determine whether the TV approach for instructing drug information systems is more efficient, in terms of cost and learning effectiveness than traditional educational programing, is described. Students preferred traditional teaching over the TV production; however, students subjected to the TV variable achieved better test scores.…

Suggestions are given for innovation in planning international exchange and study abroad programs that maximize an institution's flexibility and reduce cost. These include flexible program length and intensity, flexible planning and contracting options with the corresponding schools, direct negotiations, reciprocity arrangements, and using…

To distribute vocational-technical training resources fairly in Connecticut, Chung developed a multiple criteria evaluation model. Stressing interregional equity, he shows how important, but sometimes uncommensurable, criteria can be weighted and considered in resource allocations. (SK)

Provides rationale for computer-assisted testing and assessment, describes systems currently in use, and examines potential benefits, potential problems, and future implications. Suggests that computer-assisted testing and assessment has potential to either enhance services and resources or to generate problems and confusion for clients and…

Describes a cost-benefit analysis of a proposed experimental program designed to solve Indonesia's serious dropout problem in elementary education. Discusses the data and methods used, the conclusions reached, and the unresolved questions that arise during evaluations carried out in less developed nations. (Author/RW)

A correspondence course in postgraduate continuing medical education was developed for rural physicians in South Dakota on the subject of the preterm newborn. The correspondence method is recommended as a cost-effective way of presenting current medical advances on specific subjects. (MSE)