This newsletter issue focuses on the theme of fostering collaboration between parents and professionals in meeting the mental health needs of children. Structured group interviews (focus groups) were held with both parents and professionals who have been members of decision making boards and committees. Interview excerpts illustrate findings that…

In 1990, pursuant to the Washington community college system's request, the Washington state legislature appropriated additional funding to pursue assessment at the local college level as a way to address issues of institutional improvement. Each college submitted preliminary plans to the State Board for Community College Education (SBCCE) which…

This report examines the newly proposed systemwide library plan of the California State University (CSU), which will govern the planning and development of library space on CSU campuses for the next 10 years. The commission's report evaluates the state university's updated library space standards and discusses policy issues that relate to on-site…

Unauthorized copying and use of computer software, currently protected by the Copyright Act of 1976 (U.S.C. 117), is believed to occur in public schools and on university and college campuses by administrators, teachers, and students. The study described in this paper was undertaken to ascertain the nature, scope, and extent of unauthorized…

To provide information for federal deliberations on the reauthorization of more than 50 elementary and secondary education programs, this report describes efforts by states to improve schools, examines trends and conditions in primary and secondary education, and analyzes options for changing the federal role in education. Following an overview of…

This paper is an inquiry into standard setting as educational reform, stimulated by the emergence of projects and initiatives engaged in during the development of new standards. The publication is organized into five sections. The first section provides a brief discussion of the idea of a standard together with a definition that indicates the…

In response to the legislative mandate and the increasing need for timely and high-quality data by policymakers at various levels, the National Center for Education Statistics (NCES) has initiated a number of actions, programs, and surveys to improve the amount and quality of education information. To improve the relevance of data, the NCES has…

Unlike many other countries of the world, the United States and Canada have yet to use distance education as a deliberate instrument of a comprehensive public policy agenda. Despite this shared failure to use distance education to advance public policy, the individual states of the United States and Canada's provinces differ widely in their…

An appraisal was made of the policy implications of a commitment by the University of the West Indies (UWI) to develop distance education as an integral feature of its teaching responsibilities. Information was gathered through interviews with 163 educators and administrators at the 3 campuses of the University of the West Indies, its 8 member…

Two recent reports on education that should be read by policy makers are reviewed with a focus in the achievement of Hispanic American students. The first is "Quality Counts: A Report Card on the Condition of Public Education in the Fifty States", published in "Education Week." The second is "What Matters Most: Teaching…

A project was conducted to examine the impact of vocational education and training (VET) research on decision making in VET in Australia. Data were collected from the following: a literature review; a symposium attended by state-, territory-, and national-level VET policymakers and planners and VET providers; semistructured telephone interviews…

This manual is designed to give public library trustees basic information on the structure of library service in Michigan, with emphasis on the trustees' major areas of responsibility, in order to help trustees understand and fulfill their obligations. In particular, the "Action Checklist" at the end of each chapter is designed to assist…

The dramatic increase in the number of births after World War II, the "baby boom," lasted until the early 1960s. Another surge in births was recorded in 1977, the start of the baby boom echo. However, the number of births is not expected to decline again, with long-range projections indicating a rising number of births over the coming…

This book is an introduction to the Internet and World Wide Web for educators. The purpose is to provide a practical handbook for administrators and teachers, as well as to reflect on the potential of this new technology to redefine the traditional curriculum in elementary and high schools. Throughout this book appear boxed definitions and…

This document consists of four issues (a year's worth: Nov 1995; Jan,Mar,Oct 1996) of a newsletter devoted to issues of importance regarding community college education and provides updates on activities and policies of the Academic Senate for California Community Colleges. The November 1995 issue highlights affirmative action and offers a…