The purpose of this study was to investigate the potential viability of the variable certification by the National Board for Professional Teaching Standards (NBPTS) as a policy-relevant predictor of student achievement. Because research has identified the teacher as the most important school-related predictor of student achievement, more research…

In an effort to understand teachers' and administrators' experiences with public school accountability, Policy Analysis for California Education (PACE), with the support of the Noyce Foundation, established the Educator Responses to Accountability Project (ERAP). During the 2002-2003 school year, the authors conducted in-depth interviews with…

The Southeast Center for Teaching Quality (The Center) has conducted a study of the costs of high quality Teacher Preparation on behalf of the Regional Education Laboratory at SERVE and at the request of the Alabama State Department of Education. In light of the recommendations issued by Alabama's Task Force to Improve Educator Preparation and the…

The high poverty rate (13.8 percent) among Nebraska's children is cause for concern, since there is strong evidence that poverty can hinder development and adversely affect children's ability to become productive adults. It is commonly assumed that poor children live in families where parents could work but do not. Yet in Nebraska, of poor…

Many Canadian provinces are looking to Alberta for guidance about charter schools. This case study examines the closure of one charter school to identify the obstacles other schools may face. This study uses critical policy analysis and the "politics of interpretation" to examine the political context of educational policy issues. While…

The Illinois Institute for Rural Affairs (IIRA) started at Western Illinois University in 1989. An outgrowth of the population declines and economic stagnation during the early 1980s, it provides a comprehensive program of applied research, technical assistance, policy evaluation, and educational outreach to community leaders and residents in…

The aim of this paper is to describe and critique key policies and policy documents relevant to older adults' learning and education from the 1980s to 2001. It describes relevant aspects of the historical struggles between competing discourses and ideologies which took place during the period. It then examines the impact of these struggles on the…

Impact of introducing service-learning in a Providence College (Rhode Island) public policy course was measured in terms of student attitude and value change and student learning. Results indicate no significant impact on student attitudes, despite perceptions of both instructor and students that instructional quality was enhanced. Possible…

Analyzes the history of public concern regarding children's rights in the 20th century. Details the political process leading to the U.N. Convention on the Rights of the Child, the ratification of the Convention, and its political effects, and presents hypotheses regarding determinants of the Convention's worldwide impact. Notes areas where…

Summarizes findings of a graduate school study on community networks (electronic townhalls) and their involvement with local public libraries. Representatives of 24 networks participated, answering telephone queries on network services, users, goals, funding, governance, technical design, social benefits, government information provision,…

Argues that the rural development policy for Australia proposed by Jonathan and Katrina Sher in a previous issue of this journal is inadequate because the analysis on which it is based is generally unsubstantiated, supportive arguments have been found invalid, the richness of Australian society is overlooked, and economic arguments are flawed.…

The method used by an elite private university to assess the effects of its student aid policy on enrollment is described. A checklist helps guide preliminary assessment of financing strategies to identify areas of particular concern, by measuring ratios or trends in 10 financial, enrollment, and financial aid indicators. (MSE)

Examines three possible "levers" for changing standards for professional growth for teachers in Jewish schools: state licensing requirements for preschools, state requirements for continuing teacher education, and community incentives for training supplementary school teachers. Presents results based on secondary analysis of data from a survey of…

A survey of one national and three statewide studies (in Tennessee, Texas, and Alabama) of class-size achievement effects revealed no consistent pattern across various subjects and grade levels. However, smaller classes can improve student achievement, particularly in early grades and when teacher quality remains constant. (Contains 36 footnotes.)…

Summarizes prior studies with a focus on untangling how changes in student financial aid policy have influenced changes in opportunity. Also recommends new strategies for lowering student loan debt, increasing federal and state cooperation in providing adequate need-based grant aid, and developing policies that target debt forgiveness for…