The paper presents a brief overview of the inservice training of European Community foreign language teachers in their own member state and in other member states. The information describing such training was collected as preparation for the LINGUA program (which promotes improvement in foreign language competence and includes measures to promote…

A survey method was developed and used to determine interest in new course topics at the Learning Institute for Elders (LIFE) at the University of Central Florida. In the absence of a known validated method for course concept testing, this approach was modeled after the "message pretesting," or formative, research used and validated in…

This paper addresses issues in integrating higher order thinking into the general curriculum. Data are based on a series of telephone interviews conducted in April and May 1992 with six leading thinkers in educational reform. They included: (1) Michael Apple, John Bascom Professor of Curriculum, Instruction, and Educational Policy Studies at the…

This report is a summary of a March 1994 meeting to agree on guidelines for making inclusion and accommodation decisions concerning students with disabilities in national and state large-scale assessments. Much of the discussion at the meeting focused on the National Assessment of Educational Progress. Factors that lead to the exclusion of…

A quality evaluation program is needed to determine student progress in the language arts. Evaluation procedures emphasized should appraise in terms of stated objectives. A variety of procedures should be used since no approach is perfect. Approaches include: instructor observation of student progress; completion of checklists or rating scales;…

Noting that quality children's literature is one of the most valuable resources teachers have at their disposal, this fastback presents a practical approach to values education incorporating literature that can be used in the absence of, or in addition to, a formal program. The fastback discusses the rationale for values education, the literature…

The Communication and Theatre Arts Department at Heidelberg College (a private liberal arts college in northwestern Ohio) developed a departmental assessment plan. The department faculty began by working to establish "exit criteria" during an all-day meeting. Unlike other disciplines, communication has no standardized tests and…

Indicators as measures of performance have become considered fundamental to improving educational systems. While many attempts have been made to design frameworks to help manage organizations in education, most of these projects are in the developmental stage. Although these models have not been tested as leadership tools, the indicator concept…

This paper examines the use of paraprofessionals at reference desks in a random sample of Ohio public libraries. The assumption underlying this research is that before one can address the effectiveness of reference paraprofessionals, it is necessary to understand the extent to which they are used; the tasks they perform; and the conditions…

Rural communities can successfully integrate service learning into academic subject areas. In service learning, students develop a deeper understanding of academic subjects while engaging in meaningful service to their school or greater community. Barriers to implementing service learning in rural areas include lack of time, transportation,…

Writing teachers are constantly confronted with the problem of forming effective responding strategies to help student writing improve. Even though the way writing is taught has shifted from a product- to a process-oriented approach, teachers' responding practices seem particularly resistant to modification. "Practitioner lore" suggests…

This booklet first looks at principles in evaluating services for people with mental retardation and strategies for evaluating and monitoring community services. It then describes two programs which involve parents/families in the evaluation and monitoring of community services in New Zealand. Basic principles include the importance of written…

This document considers both self-examination and external evaluation of gifted and talented education programs. Principles of the self-examination process are offered, noting similarities to external evaluation models. Principles of self-evaluation efforts include the importance of maintaining a nonjudgmental orientation, soliciting views from…

It is proposed that "method" is not a relevant construct for fostering change in the second language classroom, and that concern with specific methods can divert educators' attention from important instructional issues. Teachers usually organize instruction around tasks rather than methods, and therefore it would be more useful to analyze,…

In order to meet the needs of the High Plains Intermountain Center for Agricultural Health and Safety, research was conducted to develop product evaluation methods for instructional videos. Compiling suggestions from the literature and synthesizing the instructional design methodology of several researchers, an instrument was developed to help a…