This report examines the overlap between student test results on the Iowa Test of Basic Skills (ITBS) and the Washington Assessment of Student Learning (WASL). The two tests were compared and contrasted in terms of content and measurement philosophy, and analyses studied the statistical relationship between the ITBS and the WASL. The ITBS assesses…

In 1999, the Georgia Department of Education received a grant to implement character education programs in 25 schools. The intent of the four year grant was to identify schools with best practices to serve as models for the dissemination of successful programs in the state. The study included 6 high schools, 7 middle schools, and 12 elementary…

This manual is designed to assist educators in using the Massachusetts Comprehensive Assessment System (MCAS) Alternate Assessment, an assessment intended to allow students with the most significant disabilities to participate in MCAS. The manual provides guidelines, materials, and procedures necessary for the preparation of student portfolios for…

This publication presents science, mathematics, and technology programs that are fully aligned with Vermont's Framework of Standards and Learning Opportunities. It also identifies elementary, middle, and high school programs that incorporate content and best practices as identified by the Vermont framework. The materials in the accompanying list…

The Matrix Project is a program that has been established in central Scotland with the aim of reducing the risk of offending and anti-social behavior among vulnerable children. The project provides a range of services to children between eight and 11 years of age who are at risk in the local authority areas of Clackmannanshire, Falkirk and…

An evaluation was conducted of student use of the PLATO computer assisted instruction system in the Highland Park Independent School District, Amarillo, Texas, a school district that has one elementary school, one middle school, and one high school. The evaluation was based on telephone interviews with the Assistant Superintendent, three written…

In 1996, a subcommittee of the State Collaborative on Assessment and Student Standards commissioned a study of the use of performance-based assessments in large-scale accountability systems. The idea was to look into current state assessment work on performance-based assessments to see what has been learned, but not widely reported, by those who…

This study, one of a series designed to answer practical questions about performance based assessment, examined the comparability of school scores on short, nonparallel test forms. The data were obtained from mathematics tests with both multiple choice (MC) and performance assessment (PA) items. The tests were administered in a statewide testing…

This report reviews the research on summer school and demonstrates that summer school makes a difference in students' lives if it is done right. A survey of more than 1,000 schools in the southern United States found that one-third of the responding schools did not offer summer school, many programs being the victims of budget cuts. Of those…

Launched by the Annie E. Casey Foundation in the early 1990s, Plain Talk is a community-based initiative that seeks to reduce the incidence of teen pregnancy and STDs by improving adult/teen communication about sex. A key component of the program is parental involvement--which was once seen by many in the adolescent reproductive health (ARH) field…

This report is California's response to the four questions that the United States Department of Education (USDE), Division of Adult Education and Literacy, requires of all states and territories receiving federal funding from the Adult Education and Family Literacy Act (AEFLA), Title II of the Workforce Investment Act (WIA). The questions…

Interdisciplinary research and education have long been part of the university programmatic structure. More recently, however, university interdisciplinary projects, programs, centers, and institutes have grown in number, diversity, and complexity. This growth generally reflects the need for new combinations of disciplinary knowledge and research…

The purpose of this study is to move beyond debates about income-contingency or non-income contingency as a means of loan repayment and focus on the specific nature of the debt burden facing students in different countries. In particular, it will explore how much students in different countries owe in student loan debt, the conditions governing…

Turkey can be regarded as a cultural bridge between the East and the West. After Turkish Republic was established by Ataturk in 1923, many radical revolutions, including the Turkish Education System, were made in order for Turkey to reach the level of contemporary civilizations. In the last two decades, Multiple Intelligences (MI) theory has been…

This report describes some of the key immediate and long-term outcomes achieved by the Appalachian Regional Commission (ARC)-Oak Ridge National Laboratory (ORNL) Summer Institute for Math/Science/Technology for student and teacher participants. This two-week summer program provides high school students and teachers from the Appalachian region the…