At the heart of the controversy over public education in a democratic system is the tension between majority rules and minority rights, and public and individual interests. This contextual framework sets the stage for the emergence of charter schools in Alberta, Canada. This paper describes the establishment and characteristics of the first…

This report summarizes a meeting of local school officials and Head Start directors from across the country to discuss ways to improve children's experience of transition from Head Start to public school. In a keynote address, Sharon Kagan discussed the importance of transitions, the lessons history has taught educators about transitions, and…

This paper describes Illinois' program for warning school districts of impending financial troubles and the reactions of superintendents to the state's "early warning" program. In February 192, the State of Illinois issued a list of 111 school districts, out of a total of 946 districts, that were on the Financial Watch list. Of…

This paper presents findings of a study that identified the actions taken by states to deal with sexual harassment in school districts. It also provides a historical overview of federal legislation and court litigation related to sexual harassment, civil rights, and First Amendment rights. Data on state actions were derived from a survey of all…

In the executive report to the 1990 annual report the Virginia Board for Rights of the Disabled summarizes findings from the analysis of 47 federally-assisted and state-funded programs serving individuals with developmental disabilities in Virginia as well as a consumer satisfaction survey polling 309 Virginians with developmental disabilities.…

This report, presented by the National Governors' Association, explores the significant problems in the U.S. health care system and provides strategies that states can employ to affect reform. Health care costs continue to spiral out of control, consuming resources that are required for other basic needs such as education, housing, food, and…

The research needs for a cross-national study of public versus private school choice in Maine and Atlantic Canada are described in this paper. In the United States, the use of public funds to support private schools has historically been constrained by the separation of church and state doctrine and by the ideology of the public school as a common…

The Carl D. Perkins Vocational and Applied Technology Education Act (VATEA) of 1990 modified the allocation of federal resources to support vocational education. The intent of the law was to provide support for program improvement and to ensure access for students from special populations. The California State Plan (CSP), designed to meet the…

The role of education in reaching all children is discussed in this address. The former Minnesota Commissioner of Education describes the major restructuring efforts undertaken in the state during her tenure. Reform efforts were made in six areas, in which the following changes occurred: (1) from input-based education to individualized,…

This summary highlights implementation strategies from the full report for restructuring middle grade education in Texas. The task force was guided by a central theme--a vision of Texas schools using each other as resources and the campus planning process as a vehicle for implementing research-based concepts and practices in the middle grades.…

Changing the conditions under which teachers are prepared is a necessary condition for changing schools. This policy guide emphasizes the role of the state in providing an environment for change. The guide particularly discusses the state's use of incentives and sanctions to raise the visibility and urgency of teacher education reform to the…

The new literacy goes beyond the requirements for a high school diploma, including capacities once demanded only of a privileged, college-bound elite. This book concerns this new, higher literacy and whether current educational restructuring efforts are likely to foster such literacy in all students. The study used informal interviewing techniques…

Although times seemed ripe for far-reaching initiatives to safeguard the quality of engineering education, current political noise about the issue threatens to drown out the engineering community's message. However, the engineering community's theme should be that economic growth in a modern economy, that industrial policy, is based first and…

Although individual State Advisory Councils for Vocational Education (SACVE) will differ in their opinions as to specific changes needed in the Vocational Education Act, they share a core of basic concepts about the needs of vocational education as they relate to reauthorization. Because the SACVE believe that the basis of federal involvement in…

This report explores state level governance as it is currently practiced in the states of Alaska, Idaho, Oregon, Montana, and Washington. After a brief introduction, section II's attention to the evolution of state boards offers a historical perspective of state intervention in educational policy-making, a review of major questions concerning the…