(1996). The Arts and Prosocial Impact Study: A Review of Current Programs and Literature. Much informal evidence argues that the arts can contribute significantly to social well-being, enhance community and individual development, and in so doing help reduce crime and violence. The broad goal of this study was to provide evidence to corroborate the informal findings. The paper reports the results of Phase 1 of the project which examined all studies that claim a relationship between arts interventions and positive social outcomes for at-risk youth. Work in Phases 1 and 2 provided a foundation for the important tasks of Phase 3, a rigorous empirical examination of the social benefits of a carefully designed fine arts intervention program. The research plan comprised several steps: a review of current literature on arts interventions, compiled in a database; an examination of the theoretical literature for research that offered insights into why arts interventions succeed; and the development of a conceptual framework applied to the studies in the project database. The…
(1996). Family Involvement and Federal Funding: An Effective Combination for the Reduction of Substance Abuse in an Ethnic Minority Community. This report evaluates the Okiyapi Community Partnership, a 5-year federally funded program that aimed to reduce alcoholism on the Devils Lake Sioux Reservation in rural North Dakota. The major goals of the project included development of an interagency coordinating body, establishment of family circle groups, and training of Native American addiction counselors. During the first 2 years of the project, five tribal members completed college courses in addiction counseling, with two of the five receiving degrees in addiction counseling. These individuals made up the project's core staff, which facilitated the creation of a stable interagency coalition and implemented prevention awareness activities through four district family circle groups. The coalition, led by Little Hoop Community College, consisted of over 30 members from local schools, the Tribal Council, and various tribal and public agencies. Interagency coordination involved sharing of data and human and material resources,… [PDF]
(1991). Improving and Extending Rural Library Services in Idaho. This study of rural libraries in Idaho was designed to identify appropriate alternative local revenue sources to support library services as well as ways of improving the coordination and delivery of library services in the state and extending library access to unserved areas. Data were gathered from U.S. Bureau of the Census reports and special local government finance reports; field work conducted with library science instructors and practitioners; visits to both large and small libraries; a survey of 50 state libraries; and an extensive review of the professional literature. Public libraries in Idaho were also surveyed and state legislation affecting libraries was reviewed. Recommendations based on the findings include: (1) tax regulations should be changed to permit more local control over tax revenues for library services; (2) public libraries need to tie their efforts more closely with local and statewide development programs; (3) cooperative arrangements and research sharing…
(1998). Head Start on Science Preliminary Findings. For many Head Start teachers and staff, the word "science" conjures up uncomfortable feelings and memories. The purpose of this project–a collaborative effort of California State University, Long Beach and the Head Start Program of Long Beach Unified School District (LBUSD)–was to prepare Head Start staff to become more capable, comfortable, confident, and enthusiastic about their own and their Head Start families'"sense of wonder" about the world through hands-on science experiences. The training program components included a curriculum of over 100 science activities, summer institutes for Head Start teachers, follow-up "friendly visits" by project staff to provide ongoing support, and periodic follow-up meetings for field trips and sharing of experiences. The program was tested and refined with additional Head Start agencies in Los Angeles County and in Syracuse, New York. Evaluation activities included baseline study of reactions to science tasks,… [PDF]
(1989). Faculty Replacement Needs for the Next 15 Years: A Simulated Attrition Model. Faculty replacement needs for the next 15 years are projected at a multi-institutional level within the context of a simulated attrition model. Study participants are members of the Higher Education Data Sharing Consortium. The first study phase consisted of summary data from 60 institutions on mean age, standard deviation, and median age of full-time faculty by rank. The second phase involved faculty attrition ratios such as the annual rate of faculty loss for each of several reasons. Another statistic from the colleges was the anticipated annual rate of overall faculty growth over the next several years. The third phase, formulation of the faculty replacement needs model, relied on attrition ratios and on actual faculty age distributions. Results suggest that: (1) the next 15 years will see a steep increase in the annual net loss of college faculty, with replacement exacerbated by growth in the overall size of the professoriate; (2) the distribution of current age, retirement… [PDF]
(1992). Communication/Culture Study for Victor Valley College, Victorville, California, November 1991-April 1992. In November 1991, a study was conducted to assess the corporate culture and state of communication at Victor Valley College (VVC), in Victorville, California. The study was designed to determine the extent to which "trust" or "distrust" existed at VVC, and whether the lack of communication on campus was real or perceived. Study methodology involved individual and group interviews, observations from meetings, the administration of two assessment instruments, and a review of meeting minutes, policies, and other documents. Conclusions emanating from the 5-month study included the following: (1) the president's management style was closer to autocratic than participative, although he was working to change this; (2) there was significant confusion over the roles of the Faculty Senate and the Faculty Association, with current leadership styles of the two groups fostering territorialism and adversarial relations with management; (3) lack of communication between… [PDF]
(1996). Creating Powerful Learning Opportunities for All Children: The Development and Use of a Self-Monitoring Checklist for Teachers. Draft. Powerful learning is the premise that the type of education provided for gifted children works well for all children. This long-range study examined the usefulness of elements from a more aggressive approach to powerful learning than the one implicit in the accelerated schools model–specifically a teacher checklist, collegial coaching, reflective teaching, and structured seminars –in assisting teachers to integrate powerful learning theory and practice into their classrooms as their schools transformed themselves into accelerated schools. Study sites were two magnet elementary schools; training and coaching was provided by the authors. The Powerful Learning Checklist, developed in Year 2, consisted of 51 items in 5 categories–classroom, materials, students, curriculum, and teacher–with level of usage rated on a 5-point scale. This checklist also required respondents to identify three strengths and challenges from their classroom. The Powerful Learning Project, initiated in Year… [PDF]
(1996). Moving Mountains: Reform, Resistance, and Resiliency in an Appalachian Kentucky High School. This dissertation examines how stakeholders in an Appalachian Kentucky high school addressed educational problems that they targeted for reform. Set against the backdrop of the Kentucky Education Reform Act (KERA), this ethnographic study describes the challenges of effectively coupling top-down state mandates with bottom-up advocacy and engagement, and the multiple and often conflicting ways in which reform became real in one community's life. Prominent in the local response to KERA was resistance to state-mandated policies. Resistance fueled state threats of punitive action to encourage compliance, but paradoxically, these threats engendered greater resiliency among stakeholders to make the high school reflect local priorities and ways of working together. Drawing on over a year of participant observation at "Central High School" and extensive interviews in school and community, the research examines six interwoven themes critical for understanding local paradigms and… [PDF]
(1997). Changes in Maternal/Child Discourse across Repeated Storybook Readings. This pilot study examined, from a dynamic systems perspective, changes in maternal/child discourse behaviors across repeated readings of a storybook. Four Caucasian children (2 boys, 2 girls), ranging in age from 2 years 7 months to 2 years 10 months, were videotaped reading unfamiliar storybooks with their mothers. The videotapes were transcribed, and maternal and child behaviors were coded on several dimensions. Maternal behaviors were topic control, turn control (control of mother and child taking turns reading), and use of decontextualized language. Child discourse behaviors were topic control, turn control, lexical diversity, and decontextualized language. After 10 successive readings of the storybook, another videotape of the children reading the now familiar storybook with their mothers was made, and interactions were coded and analyzed for changes. A time frame of 3 weeks was used to control for developmental changes in child language abilities as alternative explanations… [PDF]
(1990). Against the Odds: Parenting in Disadvantaged Communities. This report discusses the results of a qualitative evaluation of the Maternal Infant Health Outreach Worker (MIHOW) project which served over 500 low-income women from 1982 through 1990. The MIHOW project provides outreach services to low-income families in rural communities in Tennessee, Kentucky, Virginia, and West Virginia. Working in partnership with Vanderbilt University, locally based community organizations provide training and supervision to local women leaders, all of whom are uniquely qualified to support their peers and to implement high quality child development services. Forty-six participants responded to open-ended questions which were defined through focus groups. The report describes the poverty of the participants and their lack of education, health care, and employment. The extended family is often a source of support for mothers, but if the mother is unmarried, she is often rejected by her family. Although fathers are not active in the program, they show some… [PDF]
(1991). Great Lakes Environmental Education. Special Report. The International Joint Commission report builds on a previous report to the Governments of the United States and Canada that recommended the Great Lakes (GL) States and Provinces incorporate the GL ecosystem as a priority topic in existing school curricula. This report begins by building an argument showing the need for environmental education (EE) as a way to reduce the contradictions between societies' values and actions. It suggests that governments, industries, and the public work together to create an environmental ethic that prevents pollution, avoids ecosystem exposure to persistent toxic substances, and leads to specific funded programs to remediate existing environmental contamination. To this end, the commission recommends that EE include critical thinking skills and motivation development. Despite several constraints to the inclusion of environmental and GL education into the formal education system, the commission notes several education programs that have been created…
(1987). Using Technology for Instruction in Vocational Education. Preconference Workshop, Advanced Instructional Technology (Columbus, Ohio, October 6, 1987). Computer-assisted instruction, when properly designed, can help students retain more of what they learn by requiring them to use more of their senses in the learning process. Although they are not without drawbacks, microcomputers can be effective teaching aids. They can assist teachers by performing routine clerical tasks (grading and recordkeeping), serving as an audiovisual device, and providing access to large educational databases and computer systems. Microcomputers can also assist vocational administrators by allowing them to formulate and revise budgets quickly, perform all the normal business functions entailed in administering a vocational education program, and keep in constant communication with other administrators and with state education officials via modem. Computer-assisted and computer-managed instruction allow vocational educators to individualize instruction. The key to all of these applications, however, is that teachers be given sufficient released time to…
(2005). Alaska State Educational Technology Plan. Alaska Department of Education and Early Development The Alaska Department of Educational and Early Development (EED) has developed this five-year educational technology plan based on the recommendations of a taskforce representing education stakeholders throughout the state and has submitted this report to the Office of Educational Technology at the U.S. Department of Education. A state technology plan is required under NCLB, specifically the Enhancing Education Through Technology (Ed Tech)–Title II, Part D. Although this plan is required by NCLB, it provides much more than the fifteen requirements (as referenced in appendix 2). The taskforce recommendations for educational technology go beyond merely satisfying the federal requirements but create a plan that can meet the districts' needs and expand the implementation of technology in an equitable manner. The Alaska State Educational Technology Plan provides a blueprint to guide future state and local technology planning. Through implementation of this plan, EED hopes to inform and… [PDF]
(2001). Has the Jury Reached a Verdict? States' Early Experiences with Crowd Out under SCHIP. Occasional Paper Number 47. Assessing the New Federalism: An Urban Institute Program To Assess Changing Social Policies. Prior to the enactment of the State Children's Health Insurance Program (SCHIP), policymakers examined the need to safeguard the private insurance market from "crowd out," the substitution of public health insurance coverage for private health insurance coverage. This qualitative study examined how 18 states are addressing crowd out, the degree to which state officials perceive crowd out to be occurring, and the implications of crowd-out prevention strategies on enrollment. Data were collected through site visits and telephone interviews with a broad range of key informants in the 18 states (Alabama, California, Colorado, Connecticut, Florida, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, Mississippi, Missouri, New Jersey, New York, North Carolina, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Texas, Washington, and Wisconsin). Findings indicate that 17 states adopted policies to address crowd out. Seven types of crowd-out strategies were identified: (1) waiting periods; (2) monitoring/application questions… [PDF]
(2006). Workforce: North Dakota. Western Interstate Commission for Higher Education Between 2002 and 2012, the rate of job growth in North Dakota will be modest: under 1 percent annually. However, a large number of positions-close to a quarter of all jobs in the state-will open up for hiring due to retirements and separations. In addition, the demand for well-educated employees will only increase over the next several years. In the decade leading up to 2012, healthcare occupations will see growth of 14 percent. Educators will be in demand: some 7,000 new teachers, librarians, and trainers will need to be hired. Computer-related professions will see their ranks swell by 25 percent. The growth of these sectors is good news for North Dakota's citizens, since wages for jobs in these areas are significantly higher than the average for North Dakota in general. The problem for North Dakota and other Western states is how, in this time of tight budgets, to meet the increasing demands on higher education, thereby meeting the needs of an increasingly sophisticated economy…. [PDF]