The goals of education for the next century require a new conception of accountability, one that seeks to create responsible and responsive schools. This volume tries to outline such a conception of learner-centered accountability, and show how it looks in action in real schools. The first chapter provides a conceptual overview of a…

Viewing writing as a way to heal wounds and even reconstruct past experiences also helps heal the composition discipline's dichotomy between the academic and the personal, the self and the institution. Academicians are not the only writers undermined by this perceived separation: most incoming university students, in particular basic writers,…

Intended for use in classes in children's literature at the preservice and graduate levels in education or English departments and in library schools in colleges and universities, this book provides a rationale and suggestions to teachers for planning and evaluating a literature-based curriculum. The three-part organization of the book emphasizes…

Portfolio assessment is valuable for promoting reflective practice in student teachers. This paper describes how a university supervisor required her student teachers to select three professional goals at the beginning of their practicum and provide the proof that they achieved them by the end of the semester. The supervisor began by showing the…

This digest explains why teacher comments on report cards are important, offers suggestions on how to construct effective comments, points out words or phrases to be cautious about using, and indicate sources of information for report card comments. Teacher comments are important in that they often convey information that is not completely…

This collection discusses the teaching of social justice. Following a preface, "Of Stories, Seeds and the Promises of Social Justice" (Jean Ann Hunt), a foreword, "Popular Education--Teaching for Social Justice" (William Ayers), and an introduction "Teaching for Social Justice" (Maxine Greene), the following chapters…

The focus of this report is the way standards are influencing instruction in Philadelphia classrooms and how the various parts of the system are working together to support standards-driven instruction at the classroom level. The 1996-97 school year was still an early one in the implementation of standards-based instruction in Philadelphia. The…

These two issues are intended for secondary school educators who teach about insurance in any of their courses. The following substantive articles are contained in the January 1998 issue: "Teen Drivers and Automobile Insurance: New Laws Safeguard Teen Drivers" (Insurance Information Institute); "National Advisory Council of…

This paper examines strategies to enhance learning, based on innovations in technology. It represents an evolution of thought from the ancient masters, great thinking, and the Great Learning all the way to the present. A syllabus for the future is constructed, using a model of communication, the Rhetorical Systems Model. The model is based on a…

As of June 1995, the federal government had granted to 28 states waivers from current federal laws and regulations, allowing states to test a wide range of welfare reform approaches. This study, conducted by the National Center for Children in Poverty, examined the evaluation plans of 21 waiver experiments in 17 states, focusing on the impact of…

The purpose of this policy is to establish guidelines for alcohol and controlled substances testing that comply with the Omnibus Transportation Employee Testing Act of 1991 and to set forth the procedures for implementing this policy in the state of Utah. The text details an awareness program and specifies the general prohibitions and sanctions…

The late 1980s witnessed the deregulation and decentralization of education in Belgium. To examine some of the effects of this reform, four dimensions of general secondary education in the Flemish community following reforms are provided here. Each dimension is explored in a chapter. The first dimension, the structure of Flemish education,…

This paper focuses on how people learn to help educators design curriculum that will enable students to successfully complete a distance learning class. Up-front organization, clear communication about performance expectations, outcome driven assessment, and imaginative learning strategies are critical to successful distance learning.…

National Board of Professional Teaching Standards (NBPTS) certification offers experienced teachers opportunities via written portfolios to match their practice to NBPTS standards. In creating standards and requiring teachers to argue in writing that they have realized the standards in their teaching, NBPTS offers a national discourse. However,…

This packet introduces some concepts in evaluation and accountability for mental health professionals in schools. The first section presents two briefs from the Clearinghouse of the Center for Mental Health in Schools. The first, "Mental Health in Schools: Quality Control, Evaluating Outcomes, and Getting Credit for All You Do," highlights the…