Computers and Technology, Education and Literacy
In a decade, virtual education in its contemporary form of asynchronous, computer-mediated interaction between a teacher and students over the Internet has grown from a novelty to an established mode of education that may provide all or part of formal schooling for nearly one in every 50 students in the US. In a non-random 2007 survey of school districts, as many as three out of every four public K-12 school districts responding reported offering full or partial online courses.
There can be little question that virtual courses in certain areas (e.g., math, English, social studies) produce tested achievement results on a par with those of their conventionally taught counterparts. Nor is it debatable that more complex areas of the curriculum (e.g., the arts) are beyond the reach of these new arrangements. Nevertheless, the rapid growth of this new form of schooling raises questions of cost, funding, and variable quality that require the immediate
attention of policymakers.
August 1970
Geographic Focus:
Community and Economic Development;Computers and Technology;Education and Literacy
Colleges and universities should embrace the concept of increased openness in the use and sharing of information to improve higher education. That is the core recommendation of this report. The report was produced by CED's Digital Connections Council (DCC), a group of information technology experts that advises CED's business leaders on cutting-edge technologies.
August 1970
Geographic Focus:
How did academic quality rankings of colleges and universities become so powerful in higher education? A review of their historical development in the first section of this study may surprise many readers. While college professors and administrators alike largely decry rankings today, their origin lies in academia itself. Begun as esoteric studies by lone professors, college rankings' development into the most popularly accepted assessment of academic quality was fueled by the very institutions of higher education they now judge. While the purpose and design of academic quality rankings has evolved during the century since their creation, their history teaches one clear lesson: college rankings fill a strong consumer demand for information about institutional quality, and as such, are here to stay for the foreseeable future.
August 1970
Geographic Focus:
Children and Youth;Education and Literacy
Of the Massachusetts graduates from the Class of 2005 who enrolled in public colleges, an appalling 29 percent enrolled in a developmental (remedial) math course during the fall semester. Nationally, 63 percent of college students who remediate in mathematics do not earn a 2- or 4-year degree. At a time when a college degree is one of the critical components of one's ability to afford a home and support a family, that such high rates of Massachusetts' high school graduates require remediation in math is cause for alarm - and action. The Rennie Center for Education Research and Policy has produced a policy brief that proposes a new pathway in high school mathematics aimed at eliminating the need for college remediation in math.
The policy brief, entitled Alternative High School Math Pathways in Massachusetts: Developing an On-Ramp to Minimize College Remediation in Mathematics, proposes a plan designed to significantly reduce, and ultimately, eliminate the number of students who require college remediation in mathematics.
Rather than the traditional progression of math courses (Algebra I, Geometry, Algebra II, Calculus), we propose three new math courses at the middle and high school levels - including a new fourth year math course titled: Topics in Applied Mathematics for College Preparation that would provide an alternative to Pre-calculus/Calculus for students pursuing non-math related majors. We recommend that Massachusetts policymakers and school and district leaders should take the following steps toward establishing to a well-aligned, effective system that ensures all students are ready for college-level mathematics:
- Ensure mastery of arithmetic by the end of seventh grade;
- Focus on mastery and application of algebraic concepts;
- Offer the ACCUPLACER(R) test to high school juniors;
- Provide guidance based on the Elementary Algebra ACCUPLACER(R) score; and
- Encourage all students to take mathematics during their first college semester.
August 1970
Geographic Focus: North America / United States (New England)
Arts and Culture, Education and Literacy
Questions about district leadership and capacity -- particularly in light of the new funding -- served as the impetus for this study. Through a survey of leaders in 385 districts, we assessed districts' capacity with respect to arts education, explored early spending choices, and examined the relationship between the two. We also studied changes in arts education since the new resources became available and worked to understand the barriers that continue to stand in the way of comprehensive arts education for all California students.
August 1970
Geographic Focus: North America-United States (Western)-California
Arts and Culture, Education and Literacy
The 2008 Arts Education Performance Indicators Report shows an increase in the number of school districts that are building infrastructure in this area, demonstrating a long-term commitment to improving arts education. The report is issued periodically by the Arts Commission as part of the county's regional Arts for All initiative to return quality, sequential arts education to the county's 81 school districts.
Overall progress includes:
- 64 percent of districts report having an arts education policy, compared to 37 percent in 2005.
- 61 percent of districts report a board-adopted arts education plan or indicated they are developing one, compared to 35 percent in 2005.
- 39 percent of districts report having an arts coordinator, compared to 12 percent in 2005.
- 16 percent report having a 400 to 1 ratio of students to credentialed arts teachers, compared to 10 percent reporting that ratio in 2005.
- 98 percent of districts report using general fund budgets to support arts education programs (sources of arts ed budgets were not included in previous surveys).
The 2008 AEPI Report is based on self-reported data from superintendents, assistant superintendents, directors of curriculum and/or district arts coordinators. Of the 81 school districts, 72 responded.
August 1970
Geographic Focus: North America-United States (Western)-California-Los Angeles County-Los Angeles
Education and Literacy, Government Reform, Health
The advent of the AIDS epidemic in the 1980s spurred states to reevaluate their sex education policies and, in some cases, expand their requirements. Most states require that public schools teach some form of sex or STI/HIV education. Most states, including some that do not mandate the instruction itself, also place requirements on how abstinence or contraception should be handled when included in a school district's curriculum. This guidance is heavily weighted toward stressing abstinence; in contrast, while many states allow or require that contraception be covered, none requires that it be stressed. Further affecting whether students receive instruction on sex or STIs/HIV are parental consent requirements or the more frequent "opt-out" clauses, which allow parents to remove students from instruction the parents find objectionable.
August 1970
Geographic Focus:
Children and Youth;Education and Literacy;Immigration
Immigrant parents face significant barriers as they try to engage with their children's early educational experiences, including greatly restricted access for many due to limited English proficiency and functional literacy. Parental engagement is critical for young children's early cognitive and socioemotional development, and for their participation in programs that are designed to support early learning. Reducing the barriers to parent engagement in early childhood education and care (ECEC) programs would encourage school success, and help many young children of immigrants close the gaps in kindergarten readiness with their native peers.
Recent years have seen a rapid increase in the size and share of the U.S. young-child population with at least one immigrant parent, posing challenges to policymakers and front-line programs in the early childhood arena. These demographic changes are converging with efforts in many states to expand early childhood services and improve their quality. With one in four young children in the United States living in an immigrant family, efforts to build trust and establish meaningful two-way communication with these families is an urgent priority if system expansion efforts are to realize their purpose.
Many programs face difficulties engaging with immigrant and refugee parents who often require support building U.S. cultural and systems knowledge and in overcoming English language and literacy barriers. These difficulties have been exacerbated in recent years as adult basic education and English instruction programs, which early childhood programs such as Head Start had previously relied on to support parents in need of these skills, have been significantly reduced.
Against this backdrop, this report identifies the unique needs of newcomer parents across the range of expectations for parent skill, engagement, and leadership sought by ECEC programs, and strategies undertaken to address these needs. The study is based on field research in six states, expert interviews, a literature review, and a sociodemographic analysis.
December 1969
Geographic Focus: North America-United States
