These Louisiana state social studies model lessons, developed and written with the assumption that the lessons would be presented by teachers who are certified in the content areas, are designed to be student driven instruction, is inquiry- and performance-based, and assessment is meaningful and authentic. The lessons focus on understanding…

This curriculum framework is intended to serve as a comprehensive guide for redesigning curriculum, instruction, assessment, and professional development around the new Colorado state model of content standards for K-12 geography education. The framework enumerates strategies and ideas for implementing the new standards at the district, school,…

Educating students in the arts provides benefits not available through any other means. This guide to essential learning requirements for the arts for Washington state students defines the arts as creative expressions using sound, image, action, and movement. The guide explains that the arts help students to develop intellectual, social, personal,…

The Northwest Regional Educational Laboratory profiled 12 schools in Alaska, Washington, Oregon, Idaho, and Montana that had made significant improvement in student achievement. While specifics of reform may vary, research shows that it is an ongoing process of determining goals and benchmarks by conducting needs assessments, using data to guide…

Describes school libraries in Australia. Highlights include the title of teacher librarian and their education; the history of the role of school libraries in Australian education; empowerment; information skills and benchmarks; national standards for school libraries; information literacy; learning outcomes; evidence-based practice; digital…

Benchmarks are designed to demystify educational goals and illuminate the nature of good performance for teachers, students, and parents. Since 1987, the Toronto Board of Education has developed over 100 language and mathematics benchmarks at grades 3, 6, and 8, combining observation with holistic evaluation. Instruction, learning, and evaluation…

For more than 50 years, the International Association for the Evaluation of Educational Achievement (IEA) has been conducting comparative studies of educational achievement in a number of curriculum areas, including mathematics and science. TIMSS 2011 represents the fifth cycle of the Trends in International Mathematics and Science Study (TIMSS),…

A team of faculty from both Stark State College of Technology (SSCT) and the Canton City Schools (CCS) reviewed their respective curricula opposite the Ohio Academic Content Standards, assisted by a crosswalk indicating which of those standards were measured by COMPASS/ESL a widely used college placement test. This study found that the skills…

The work of the Arizona Commission for Postsecondary Education (ACPE) is guided by a 5-year strategic plan. The purpose of the plan is to provide focus for the activity of this small agency and its seven staff members in order to increase productivity and impact in the areas of its statutory authority. The mission and goals were accepted by…

While there exist many examples of institutional use of the results of the National Survey of Student Engagement (NSSE), there is a relative paucity of research explicitly linking student outcomes to responses on the survey. A major Doctoral-Extensive institution in the Southeast recently conducted a large-scale implementation of the National…

This article reviews the results from an in-depth multisite case study of 20 institutions examining approaches to student engagement exploring differences by institutional type. The two research questions pursued were: Is size related to distinctive approaches for creating an engaging environment for students? If so, in what ways? The results…

This article reviews the literature and practice concerned with the evaluation of science, technology, and innovation (STI) policies and the way these relate to theories of the innovation process. Referring to the experience of the European Union (EU), the authors review the attempts to ensure that the STI policy theory is informed by advances in…

Schools and programs of social work continually strive to develop effective gatekeeping procedures to promote optimal functioning of students while maintaining quality control in professional education. Program administrators and classroom, field, and adjunct faculty are key to the process of developing and implementing student standards. This…

This statistical report examines trends in children's well-being in Iowa. Data are based on eight indicators: (1) infant mortality rate; (2) percent of births with low birth weight; (3) birth rates to teenagers age 16 to 17 years; (4) percent of all births to unmarried teenagers; (5) child abuse and neglect rates; (6) percent of students entering…

This paper describes the third phase of a multi-year study that has been assessing professional knowledge and perceptions of beginning teacher education students. This phase of the study reports on responses to a questionnaire designed to compare student knowledge across cohorts and institutions. The data reported here are from a total of 291…