This research synthesis is the first in a series that will examine key issues in the field of family and community connections with schools. The issues highlighted in this synthesis represent critical areas of work in family and community connections with schools where clarification, agreement, and further development are needed, as well as…

Value-added modeling (VAM) to estimate school and teacher effects is currently of considerable interest to researchers and policymakers. Recent reports suggest that VAM demonstrates the importance of teachers as a source of variance in student outcomes. Policymakers see VAM as a possible component of education reform through improved teacher…

To cope with changing financial and demographic environments, colleges are encouraged to change management strategies. Suggestions are made for policy formation and improved use of human and material resources in the areas of fiscal management, student recruitment, staffing, campus management, academic programing, and links with business,…

It is suggested that Australian higher education must change as student exchange increases. Issues discussed include a broader array of delivery methods for instruction, cooperative learning, teaching of generic skills (critical thinking, weighing evidence), curriculum design, teaching location, student communication skills, computer-assisted…

Over the last several years the author conducted 126 interviews and held four focus groups with academic staff, administrators and others associated with Australian universities, about the problems and challenges they believed faced the system of tertiary education. Widespread concern and pessimism pervaded the interviews about the future of…

Achievement gaps have real consequences for students, particularly those facing the challenge of passing the California High School Exit Exam (CAHSEE), now a requirement in order to receive a high school diploma in California. The combined 2005 CAHSEE passing rates reveal significant discrepancies between White and Asian students and their African…

This case study is part of a broader research project examining state policies and governance structures that span K-12 and postsecondary education. Florida has implemented some of the most sweeping education governance changes of any state; all levels of education are housed in the Department of Education, which is overseen by a commissioner who…

The bilingual (Chinese/English) journal published annually for Hong Kong educators contains articles in a wide range of areas and at all levels of education. Articles include: "Micropolitics in Managing Bi-Sessional Primary Schools: A Case Study of the Interactions between Partner School Heads" (Cheung Wing-ming); "On Features of…

This report, which is intended for government officials, educators, and others interested in using technology in educational programs for adults, examines the effects of modern technologies on the accessibility, outcomes, and costs of adult learning programs. It draws on conclusions of previous Centre for Educational Research and Innovation (CERI)…

This book examines the identity and schooling of working class women through the stories of 15 women from a working-class Philadelphia neighborhood and 15 women from southern rural communities who eventually moved to neighborhoods near Duke University in North Carolina. Chapter 1 provides an overview of the book and the study on which it is based.…

This guide, which is designed for practitioners, contains descriptions of 137 resources concerned with strategies, resources, programs, and research on inclusion, detracking, ability grouping, mainstreaming, and cooperative learning. The entries describing each resource are organized into seven sections: publications, newsletters, journals,…

The Neighborhood Schools Project in Iowa was designed to evaluate a new special education service delivery system emphasizing prereferral intervention, collaboration, problem solving assessment, and frequent performance monitoring. Approximately 130 students with Individualized Educational Plans at 12 schools and an equal number at comparison site…

The typical public school classroom is more diverse, linguistically and ethnically, than 20 years ago, with a dramatic increase in the proportion of limited-English-proficient (LEP) students. This pattern is reflected in secondary as well as elementary schools. Research indicates many of these students are at risk of failure or dropping out. A…

The state of Victoria (Australia) needs a well-educated, adaptable work force to face the numerous challenges stemming from the following: shifts in employment toward "knowledge workers"; the impact of competition, technological change, and microeconomic reform; aging of the population; disparate views regarding the purpose of education;…

A party of vocational educators from the United Kingdom (UK) traveled to the Federal Republic of Germany (FRG) to observe the nature and scope of vocational counseling and guidance in that country. During their study, the observers focused their attention on the problems of the transition from school to working life; arbeitslehre, or education…