An effective social studies program provides coordinated, systematic study, drawing upon such disciplines as economics, geography, history, law, philosophy, political science, psychology, religion, and sociology. It prepares students to be personally and socially aware, promotes multiple perspectives, encourages intellectual curiosity, promotes…

The National Survey of Student Engagement (NSSE) annually collects information about key aspects of the undergraduate experience that college and universities can use to improve student learning. The NSSE asks students questions about their campus experiences, focusing on five clusters of activities shown by research to be linked to desired…

This report outlines the major themes of the 1999 annual conference of the Center for Research on Evaluation, Standards, and Student Testing (CRESST), which focused on creating benchmarks for accountability in education. Opening the conference, a panel of experts focused on recent work regarding standards, quality, and fairness in the assessment…

In fall 2003 New Jersey Governor James E. McGreevey and Commissioner of Education William L. Librera asked Achieve to review the new academic standards the state had developed in social studies to learn how New Jersey's new standards compared with those of other states. This summary report outlines the main findings from Achieve's review of the…

This paper advocates a strategy of "full informational capture" to ensure that digital objects rich enough to be useful over time are created in the most cost-effective manner. Digital benchmarking is a systematic procedure to forecast a likely outcome. The benchmarking approach can be applied across the full continuum of the…

This document is designed to be a companion to the "Canadian Language Benchmarks 2000: Theoretical Framework." It builds on the original document with an extensive listing of additional sample task ideas for reading, listening, speaking, and writing benchmarks. The document provides additional examples of tasks for stage I reading…

Nevada's academic standards for geography explain that geography is a field of study that enables people to find answers to questions about the world around them, where things are, and how and why they got there. The aim of Nevada's geography standards is for students to graduate from Nevada schools with an understanding of the people, places, and…

Nevada's nine academic standards for economics call for specific educational outcomes in grades 2, 3, 5, 8, and 12. They contain performance level descriptors. Nevada's standards aim to help students develop fundamental economic concepts; learn about economic performance in the United States; demonstrate a knowledge of how investment,…

Nevada's nine academic standards in music education call for specific educational outcomes in grades 3 and 5, as well as in middle school and secondary school. Nevada's standards relate to singing, playing instruments, listening to music, writing and reading music, and cultural and historical connections in music. The standards present performance…

The geography standards for Colorado schools offer suggestions for geography education that prepare students to cope with the complexities of contemporary life. The standards give students a firm grasp of the place and terrain that surrounds them; the patterns of human development around the world; and the interactions of peoples, places, and…

The Colorado Student Assessment Program (CSAP) has been underway since 1997. Since then, fourth grade students have been assessed annually on the Colorado Model Content Standards for Reading and Writing. In 1998, testing began on third grade reading. Over the course of time, other grades and subject areas will be phased in. In the fall of 1999,…

Success by Eight is a pilot program of the Fairfax County (Virginia) Public Schools for students in kindergarten through grade 2. The initiative is designed to provide a group of six pilot schools with training and additional resources in implementing a specific set of components to prepare students for the third grade. These components are: (1)…

Asserting that there is so little understanding of what "opportunity" means within the context of access to higher education that use of the word may cloud rather than clarify policy debate, this concept paper served as a resource document to aid participants at a 1999 seminar sponsored by the Council for Opportunity in Education. The paper…

This document outlines the performance standards for dance in North Dakota public schools, grades K-12. Four levels of performance are provided for each benchmark by North Dakota educators for K-4, 5-8, and 9-12 grade levels. Level 4 describes advanced proficiency; Level 3, proficiency; Level 2, partial proficiency; and Level 1, novice. Each grade…

Dance should be seen as an authentic avenue for allowing students to learn kinesthetically by using movement that is essential to brain development. Ideally students would be exposed to dance forms and patterns in other art forms like music and drama as well as units within physical education classes. These North Dakota standards may be taught…