This report includes expanded versions of two papers by Frances Kemmerer and Alan P. Wagner which were first presented at a 1983 working seminar on the recommendations of five national educational task forces and their implications for New York State educational policy. Included also is a major additional paper contributed by W. Paul Vogt. The task force reports discussed are those of the College Board, the Education Commission of the States' Task Force on Education and Economic Growth, the National Commission on Excellence in Education, the Paideia Group, and the Twentieth Century Fund. The first paper, "Change and Continuity in Educational Policy" (Vogt), presents an overview of the history of educational reform, with special attention to Federal and State issues, and assesses the strengths of various reform agents, including parents and local citizens; teachers and their organizations; school boards and local educational administrators; the Federal government; and State governments. The second paper, "The National Reports: Research and Recommendations" (Kemmerer), discusses the role of the State in education and considers the constraints and opportunities endemic to multilevel decision-making. Major task force recommendations are analyzed in the light of recent research, and necessary linkages among recommendations are noted. The third paper, "Financing Improvements in Educational Quality" (Wagner), assesses the costs of implementing a number of key recommendations in New York State and the nation as a whole. Also included in the document are the 1983 seminar agenda; a list of participants; an attachment containing cost estimates for an educational improvement plan in New York; an appendix containing statistics pertaining to teacher salaries, cost of education, pupil enrollment, and achievement, etc.; and a bibliography. (KH)