This book focuses on the education commission and its policy recommendations and provides an evaluation of policies on teachers and teaching, equity, and uses of educational testing to assess the effects of reform. The volume examines both equity and excellence in American education. After an introductory chapter providing an overview of the…

This report from the governor-appointed Council on Library and Network Development (COLAND), which makes recommendations for updating the Wisconsin Department of Public Instruction's library automation policy, comprises a summary of the council's recommendations and 14 issue papers. These papers, which make up the major part of the report, are…

This case study was undertaken in order to discover if there are different types of policy language, and, if so, to describe relationships betweeen policy language types and policy implementation. Content analysis of three drafts of the state educational policy, "Standards for Approving Vermont's Public Schools," demonstrated the…

A practicum to determine the need for a sexual harassment policy and to develop an appropriate policy for Sheldon Jackson College, Alaska, is described. The objective of the practicum was to determine the impact of equal opportunity legislation, specifically as it relates to sexual harassment of students, on the private college campus. The…

The diminishing role of the federal government in rural development has created an opportunity for new initiatives in this area. One potentially useful response is the creation of a state-rural policy center. Such centers can combine the efforts of land grant institutions, extension services, and state universities in the development and…

Policy Analysis and Simulation System (PASS) is an interactive microcomputer model that can be used by educational administrators, policy-makers, and planners to simulate and forecast, under conditions of environmental uncertainty, the impact of strategic policies on the projected trends and goals of educational performance. PASS generates…

Reductions in resources and increases in external demands place schools under pressure that can be relieved to some extent by organizational changes. When resources are sufficient, these changes may take the form of technical rationality--that is, decisions concerning policy and practices are made on the basis of neutral, measurable data rather…

The function of trustees is discussed, based on in-depth interviews with trustees and presidents of 10 private liberal arts colleges. After a brief overview of the trustee mandate and role and of recent attempts to redefine that role, major models of campus governance are summarized. In considering how boards diminish the presidency, attention is…

This paper argues that cautious and participatory desegregation efforts yield less desirable outcomes than either sweeping, authoritative desegregation policies or no imposed effort at all. The author proceeds to support these claims by identifying 10 goals of school desegregation and examining the rules and consequences of incremental and…

This report concerns the governance of the structure of the National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP), especially the law and the role of the Assessment Policy Committee (APC). The major sources of evidence include interviews with APC members and National Institute of Education (NIE) staff, minutes of APC meetings and historical documents…

Faced with an enrollment decline of over 50 percent since 1962, the board of the public school system in Seattle (Washington) decided in 1981 to close 18 of the district's 112 schools. This report details the decade-long process that led to this decision, treating in particular the changing relationships among the school district, the city, and…

Designed to be used by parents, school principals, program directors, superintendents, or others interested in child care programs, this action manual provides ideas, models and guidelines for the design, development, implementation, and operation of a program for the school-age child. Part 1 offers profiles of existing models of child care…

This manual is presented to assist local districts in complying with the requirements of the Massachusetts Policy on Basic Skills Improvement, whose principal goal is to help students master basic skills prior to high school graduation. The policy requires schools to evaluate student achievement in the basic skills at least once during the early…

The introduction of telecommunications hardware and systems for educational purposes in Alaska has been rapid and dramatic, but has not adequately addressed the needs of rural Alaskans. The policy-making process for the delivery of educational systems has emphasized technical questions, the breadth of dissemination of programs, costs and benefits,…

Without advancing a specific plan for reforming American schooling, this document identifies a number of conditions that must be met for education to be considered adequate. The paper defines an adequate education as one that achieves the social and individual purposes to which it has been addressed. The effects of politics and decentralization on…