This paper is the first of a series that will compare estimates of error that arises when state assessments are linked to the National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP). Different forms of linkage are discussed. Comparisons are made between whole-sample regression, repeated half-sample replication, bootstrap, and jackknife estimates of the…

This booklet prepares a student to take New Jersey's Grade Eight Proficiency Assessment (GEPA), a test that measures the knowledge and skills that will be tested later in the state's High School Proficiency Assessment. The GEPA has three test sections (content areas): Language Arts Literacy, Mathematics, and Science. The booklet tells students…

This field memo to all teachers and administrators of public and nonpublic schools is the first of three in a series of updates from the Deputy Commissioner of the Office of Elementary, Middle, Secondary, and Continuing Education on standards and assessments in New York. This document contains information on New York's learning standards and the…

This report summarizes statewide findings about Maine's Reading Recovery (RR) program based on data from the 1996-97 school year. The information presented in the report includes a brief history of the program in Maine, school-level implementation of the program, demographic information about the children served, the amount of time children spent…

As part of program evaluation for the Reading Recovery (RR) program in Maine, parents, classroom teachers, administrators, and RR teachers responded to open-ended survey questions, and they rated the program along dimensions of quality. This report summarizes and synthesizes the responses received across the state of Maine to the surveys…

The National Forum on Family Literacy was convened to encourage and facilitate collaboration among programs at the state level to improve the quality of family literacy services. This forum provided an opportunity for state-level representatives of Head Start, Even Start, Even Start Statewide Family Literacy Initiatives, and Adult Education to…

Over the past five and one-half years, the Idaho Educational Technology Initiative has distributed 56 million dollars to Idaho public schools. This report reviews the progress made toward accomplishing goals established by the Idaho Council on Technology in Learning (ICTL). It is based on data collected during visits to 36 schools in 16 school…

Recognition of the link between child care and the success of welfare reform has given rise to questions about how states are spending child care funds provided through Temporary Assistance to Needy Families (TANF) and the Child Care and Development Fund (CCDF). At the request of members of Congress, this report from the General Accounting Office…

This report examines policy issues related to the preparation of educators working with children who are blind or visually impaired. Forty-five state directors of special education were surveyed on the status of personnel serving children with blindness and low vision, recruitment and retention efforts, certification and credentialing, accuracy of…

This report presents findings from the evaluation of the second year of the professional services agreement between the Detroit, Michigan, Public Schools and Sylvan Learning Systems, Inc. Under a contract with the school system, Sylvan attempted to improve the reading achievement of low-achieving students in 10 Title 1 schools. The program…

This document comprises the 12 issues for 1999 of the "Child Support Report," which explores problems related to child support enforcement, reports on federal and state government child support enforcement initiatives, and summarizes research related to child support. Editorials and information on events and conferences of interest and…

The purpose of this report is to provide information about the level of student performance in the area of writing based on results for 1998-99 from the annual on-demand writing sample of the North Carolina Writing Assessment at grades 4, 7, and 10 (English II). It notes student performance increased at grades 4 and 7 when compared to student…

Alaska Goals 2000 is part of a coordinated, statewide effort to improve public education for all students in Alaska. In 1997-1998, 90% of Alaska's federal funding was used to fund grants to local school districts, and 10% was used to fund state-level activities through the Alaska Department of Education. During 1997-1998, curriculum frameworks and…

The number of children and youth identified with autism has grown exponentially over the past decade and a half. During 1992-93 (the first required reporting year for the category of autism) only 7,168 students with autism ages 6-21 were served under the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA) (U.S. Department of Education, 1994). This…

This publication outlines tests that are included in the North Carolina Testing Program. The end-of-grade tests are curriculum based multiple-choice reading comprehension and mathematics tests that measure curricular competencies described in the North Carolina Standard Course of Study. These tests are administered to all eligible students within…