Abstracts of Articles Published in Volume 7, 1999
Education Policy Analysis Archives
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that precedes the
abstract.
Volume 7 Number 1 |
January 14, 1999 |
ISSN 1068-2341 |
Ethnic Segregation in Arizona Charter Schools
Casey D. Cobb
University of New Hampshire
Gene V Glass
Arizona State University
[The editorial review and decisions on this article were
the
responsibility of Anthony G. Rud Jr. of the Editorial
Board.]
ABSTRACT: Among the criticisms of
charter schools is their potential to further stratify schools along ethnic
and class lines. This study addressed whether Arizona charter schools are more
ethnically segregated than traditional public schools. In 1996-97, Arizona had
nearly one in four of all charter schools in the United States. The analysis
involved a series of comparisons between the ethnic compositions of adjacent
charter and public schools in Arizona's most populated region and its rural
towns. This methodology differed from the approach of many evaluations of
charter schools and ethnic stratification in that it incorporated the use of
geographic maps to compare schools' ethnic make-ups. The ethnic compositions
of 55 urban and 57 rural charter schools were inspected relative to their
traditional public school neighbors. Nearly half of the charter schools exhibited evidence of substantial ethnic separation. Arizona charter schools not only contained a greater proportion of White students, but when comparable nearby traditional public schools were used for comparison, the charters were typically 20 percentage points higher in White enrollment than the other publics. Moreover, the charter schools that had a majority of ethnic minority students enrolled in them tended to be either vocational secondary schools that do not lead to college or "schools of last resort" for students being expelled from the traditional public schools. The degree of ethnic separation in Arizona schools is large enough and consistent enough to warrant concern among education policymakers.
Volume 7 Number 2 |
January 23, 1999 |
ISSN 1068-2341 |
Educational Research in Latin America:
A Response to Akkary and
Pérez
Mariano Narodowski
Universidad Nacional de Quilmes
ABSTRACT: In a recent article which
appeared in Educational Policy Analysis Archives 6 (7) 1998,
"Educational Research in Latin America: Review and Perspectives," Abdeljalil
Akkari and Soledad Pérez envisage carrying out a general analysis of the
situation of educational research in Latin America, in an attempt to describe
the context of its historical formation. They focus on the main theoretical
framework, they identify the principal institutions involved in educational
research, and consider the priorities for future research in the region.
Volume 7 Number 2 |
January 23, 1999 |
ISSN 1068-2341 |
La Investigación Educativa en América Latina:
Una Respuesta a Akkari y
Perez
Mariano Narodowski
Universidad Nacional de Quilmes
Resumen: En un reciente artículo
aparecido en Educational Policy Analysis Archives 6 (7) 1998,
"Educational Research in Latin America. Review and Perspectives," Abdeljalil
Akkari & Soledad Pérez intentan realizar un análisis general de la
situación de la investigación educativa en América Latina, tratando de
describir el contexto de su formación histórica, focalizando sus más
importantes estructuras teóricas (theoretical framework), identificando las
principales instituciones implicadas en la investigación educativa y,
finalmente, considerando las prioridades para el futuro de la investigación
educativa en la región.
Volume 7 Number 3 |
February 8, 1999 |
ISSN 1068-2341 |
Effects on Students of a 4 X 4 Junior High School Block Scheduling Program
R. Brian Cobb
Stacey Abate
Research and Development Center for the
Advancement of Student Learning
Colorado State University
Dennis Baker
Poudre (CO) School District
ABSTRACT: The effects of a 4 X 4
block scheduling program in a middle school on a variety of student measures
were investigated. These measures included standardized achievement tests in
mathematics, reading, and writing, cumulative and semester grades in middle
school and high school, attendance rates, and enrollment rates in advanced
high school courses (in mathematics only). The block scheduling program had
been in effect for four years allowing analyses of current middle and high
school students who had experienced a minimum of one and one-half years of
block scheduling while in middle school. The primary research design was a
post-test only, matched pairs design. Students were matched on school
characteristics, gender, ethnicity, grade level, and 5th grade standardized
reading scores. Results were relatively consistent with the extant literature
and generally positive.
Volume 7 Number 4 |
February 11, 1999 |
ISSN 1068-2341 |
Less Truth Than Error?
An independent study of the Massachusetts
Teacher Tests
Walt Haney, Clarke Fowler, Anne Wheelock
Damian Bebell and Nicole Malec
Ad Hoc Committee to Test the Teacher Test
Center for the Study of
Testing, Evaluation and Educational Policy
Boston College
Abstract: The Massachusetts Teacher
Tests (MTT), introduced last year, have never been subject to external review
as required by the measurement profession's standards and many legal
precedents. Neither the Massachusetts Department of Education (DOE) nor the
tests' manufacturer have made public information about the exams' reliability
(consistency) or validity (meaningfulness). Using data from state and academic
reports from the April and July test dates, an ad hoc committee of
nationally-known researchers has now been able to make a preliminary
assessment of the exams. The committee focused on the Communications and
Literacy exam that was required of all prospective teachers regardless of
grade level or subject area. The purpose of the analysis was to determine the
accuracy of the tests in assessing the reading and writing skills of the
test-takers.
- The Massachusetts Board of Education should immediately suspend the administration of the Massachusetts Teacher Tests.
- The Commonwealth should convene an independent panel to audit the tests' development, administration, and use.
- An investigation should be launched to uncover why the state contracted with this test developer even after learning of the company's poor past performance in developing tests of this type.
Volume 7 Number 5 |
February 17, 1999 |
ISSN 1068-2341 |
Some Comments on the Ad Hoc Committee's
Critique of the Massachusetts
Teacher Tests
Howard Wainer Educational Testing Service
ABSTRACT: The critique of the
Massachusetts Teacher Tests (MTT) by Haney and his colleagues is deserving of
comment, both because of the impact of the MTT and because of the evocative
manner in which the tale is told. Their emphasis on examples makes for a
forceful argument, and I fear that my reliance on precepts may look meager by
comparison. Nevertheless, I hope that some of the observations that follow
contribute to the more reasoned assessment of these instruments and their use
not just in Massachusetts but in the many other states where similar programs
are being developed or contemplated.
Volume 7 Number 6 |
February 18, 1999 |
ISSN 1068-2341 |
College Students' Use of the Internet
Anna C. McFadden
University of Alabama
ABSTRACT: Over the last several
years there has been mounting concern about children being exposed to
sex-related material on the Internet. Concern about pornography and obscenity
is widespread and this concern has spawned a host of products to block or
filter content. The purpose of this study was to determine the nature of
Internet uses by students in a computer lab of a major state university. Of
particular interest was the percentage of "hits" associated with pornography
and gambling sites. No gambling sites (0%) were contacted and contact with
sexually explicit sites was low (1%).
Volume 7 Number 7 |
March 1, 1999 |
ISSN 1068-2341 |
Restructuring the Schoolbook Provision System in Indonesia:
Some Recent
Initiatives
Dedi Supriadi
Institute of Teaching and Educational
Sciences
Bandung-Indonesia
ABSTRACT: Schoolbooks account for
between 65% and 75% of all publishing activity in Indonesia. The amount of
money allocated is continually increasing. Priority is given to the primary
and junior secondary school levels (6+3 years), which are compulsory. Between
1969 and 1988, the Government of Indonesia (GOI) has produced some 550 million
primary textbooks and library books. Up to the year 2000, the GOI has decided
to allocate the total of US$ 355.2 million to produce 250 million copies of
primary and junior secondary school textbooks to reach the ratio of one book
for each student. In addition, around Rp 20-50 billion (US$ 10-20 million)
annually is spent to purchase 8-17 million copies of reading books which are
aimed at stimulating the reading interest of primary school children. These
books are distributed free to some 168,000 primary and 26,969 junior secondary
schools throughout Indonesia. Following the massive efforts to increase book
availability at schools, some innovative policies are being taken. Book
evaluation standards have been improved to ensure that only high quality books
are used at schools. The distribution system has been restructured to
guarantee that books reach targeted schools. Consequently, the book monitoring
system has had to be strengthened to examine whether or not the books really
reach the schools and are used properly by students and teachers in the
classrooms. In the last three years, there has also been a growing concern
with multicultural issues in schoolbook provision programs. In such a
culturally diverse nation as Indonesia, schoolbooks should also be culturally
sensitive and be recognize the varied sociocultural backgrounds which affect
students' learning.
Volume 7 Number 8 |
March 23, 1999 |
ISSN 1068-2341 |
Scholastic Achievement and Demographic Characteristics
of Home School
Students in 1998
Lawrence M. Rudner
ERIC Clearinghouse on Assessment and
Evaluation
College of Library and Information Services
University of
Maryland, College Park
ABSTRACT: This report presents the
results of the largest survey and testing program for students in home schools
to date. In Spring 1998, 20,760 K-12 home school students in 11,930 families
were administered either the Iowa Tests of Basic Skills (ITBS) or the Tests of
Achievement and Proficiency (TAP), depending on their current grade. The
parents responded to a questionnaire requesting background and demographic
information. Major findings include: the achievement test scores of this group
of home school students are exceptionally high--the median scores were
typically in the 70th to 80th percentile; 25% of home school students are
enrolled one or more grades above their age-level public and private school
peers; this group of home school parents has more formal education than
parents in the general population; the median income for home school families
is significantly higher than that of all families with children in the United
States; and almost all home school students are in married couple families.
Because this was not a controlled experiment, the study does not demonstrate
that home schooling is superior to public or private schools and the results
must be interpreted with caution. The report clearly suggests, however, that
home school students do quite well in that educational environment.
Volume 7 Number 9 |
March 26, 1999 |
ISSN 1068-2341 |
High School Staff Characteristics and Mathematics Test Results
Mark Fetler
California Department of Education
ABSTRACT: This study investigates
the relationship between measures of mathematics teacher skill and student
achievement in California high schools. Test scores are analyzed in relation
to teacher experience and education and student demographics. The results are
consistent with the hypotheses that there is a shortage of qualified
mathematics teachers in California and that this shortage is associated with
low student scores in mathematics. After controlling for poverty, teacher
experience and preparation significantly predict test scores. Short-term
strategies to increase the supply of qualified mathematics teachers could
include staff development, and recruitment incentives. A long-term strategy
addressing root causes of the shortage requires more emphasis on mathematics
in high school and undergraduate programs.
Volume 7 Number 10 |
March 26, 1999 |
ISSN 1068-2341 |
Investigación en educación en América Latina:
una continuación del
debate
Abdeljalil Akkari
Fribourg University
Soledad Pérez
Geneva University
Resumen: Recibimos la reacción de
Narodowski (1999) publicada por Education Policy Analysis Archives 7(2)
como un búsqueda de un debate fructuoso sobre la educación en América Latina.
En primer lugar, queremos llamar la atención, sobre el hecho que nuestro
primer artículo no tiene un carácter exhaustivo, dado que en ningún momento
pretendemos presentar todos los aspectos de la investigación educativa sobre
América Latina, trabajo que necesitaría varios equipos de investigación y
numerosas obras. Nuestro objetivo, modesto por cierto, es realizar un
acercamiento a la evolución de la investigación educativa y lanzar el debate
sobre los temas que nos parecen prioritarios en la región.
Volume 7 Number 11 |
March 31, 1999 |
ISSN 1068-2341 |
First Year Implementation of the
School to Work Opportunities Act
Policy:
An Effort at Backward Mapping
Arthur M. Recesso
Valdosta State University
ABSTRACT: This study examined the
intent of federal policy and the actual implementation within local school
districts. Specifically, the focus is on the Federal School to Work
Opportunities Act of 1994 and its implementation in 47 school districts in
upstate New York as part of a consortium during the 1995-96 school year. The
purpose of the study was to determine 1) the extent to which an agreement to
participate in a consortium arrangement designed to facilitate the
implementation of a specific Federal or state policy resulted in the active
implementation efforts by individual consortium members, and 2) how a high
school setting where School to Work activities were perceived by local
stakeholders as having great specific and important effects differed from a
high school setting where School to Work activities were perceived by local
stakeholders as having some or no effect. A bottom-up backward mapping policy
analysis model was used for the purposes of this study. Local level data was
used to create performance, environment, technology implementation, and School
to Work implementation profiles of local high schools. Regression and
correlation analyses were used to determine the relationship between
stakeholder perceptions and local high school characteristics. Results of the
study were reported and interpreted with the aim of furthering research and
knowledge of policy analysis and the use of local level data to determine the
success of policy implementation. This study found that variation between
federal intent and local adaptation is explained by characteristics of the
high school and perceptions of stakeholders. School to Work policy
implementation, perceived by the high school administrator as a stakeholder,
varied significantly by high school student performance, environment in which
the high school operates, and level of technology implementation in the high
school. Results indicated that the backward mapping policy analysis model is
effective in determining the actual levels of policy implementation. Backward
mapping results in a definitive explanation of the role of the local actor and
the use of discretion in decision making. The final analysis as a result of
backward mapping goes beyond the measurement of policy objectives being met
and explains the meaning of local level participation.
Volume 7 Number 12 |
April 10, 1999 |
ISSN 1068-2341 |
Hiring Policy in United States Spanish Departments:
Considerations of
Social Class, National Origin, and Ethnicity
Jerry Hoeg
Eric Cohen
Christine Fullen
Penn State
University
ABSTRACT: The present study focuses
on two inter-related factors specific to United States college and university
Spanish Departments: the unique demographic profile of the entry-level faculty
in terms of gender, ethnicity, national origin, and social class; the relation
between these factors and hiring practices, especially regarding field of
specialization, pay scale, and tenure-track opportunities. We believe these
issues are important in that they underscore the value of considering
questions of social class as well as ethnicity and gender when analyzing
academic job segmentation.
Volume 7 Number 12 |
April 10, 1999 |
ISSN 1068-2341 |
Segmentación académica en departamentos de español en E.U.:
Cuestiones
de clase social, origen nacional, y etnicidad y
Jerry Hoeg
Eric Cohen
Christine Fullen
Penn State
University
Resumen: El presente estudio
pretende enfocar dos factores específicos de los departamentos de español, a
nivel universitario, en E.U.: el perfil demográfico de los recién doctorados
en términos de sexo, etnicidad, origen nacional, y clase social; la relación
entre estos factores demográficos y el nivel de éxito logrado--en términos de
campo de especialización, salario, y la posibilidad de lograr permanencia
(tenure)--en el intento inicial por conseguir empleo como catedrático en E.U.
Volume 7 Number 13 |
April 11, 1999 |
ISSN 1068-2341 |
Contextualizing Homeschooling Data:
A Response to Rudner
Kariane Mari Welner
University of California, Los Angeles
Kevin G. Welner
University of Pennsylvania
ABSTRACT: Rudner (1999) presents the
results of a survey and testing program, administered by Bob Jones University
(BJU), for homeschooling students. In this response, we applaud Rudner's
contribution to building a greater understanding of the homeschooling
movement. However, we also voice a strong concern that what Rudner contributed
with one hand, he took back with the other. We contend that Rudner's analysis
of the BJU data fails to offer a straightforward explanation of important and
striking limitations. The unfortunate result is an inaccurate portrayal of
homeschoolers as a white, Christian, monolithic population. Although the
results of Rudner's analyses are likely valid for the particular population he
studied, his insufficient attention to the data's bias has led to an erroneous
picture of homeschooling.
Volume 7 Number 14 |
April 13, 1999 |
ISSN 1068-2341 |
Supporting Community-Oriented Educational Change:
Case and Analysis
Linda Mabry
Indiana University
Laura Ettinger
Indiana University
ABSTRACT: A study of a federally
funded program to develop and implement community-oriented social studies
curricula and curriculum-based assessments grounds cautions for educational
change initiatives. In this case, despite the project director's stated intent
to support teachers' desire for instruction regarding local culture and
history, top-down support for classroom-level change evidenced insensitivity.
Production and implementation of the planned curricula and assessments was
obstructed by teacher's lack of cultural identification with the targeted
community groups, workload, competing instructional priorities, inadequate
communication, and organizational politics. Professional development was
sometimes beneficial but more often ineffective--either perfunctory,
unnecessary, or disregarded. The findings offer insight regarding educational
change and a systemic analysis.
Volume 7 Number 15 |
April 13, 1999 |
ISSN 1068-2341 |
Elección Educacional Entre
Escuela Pública y Escuela Privada en
Galicia:
Un análisis comparativo del gasto de los
hogares en las
escuelas públicas y privadas
Prof. Dr. María Jesús Freire
Departamento de Análisis
Económico
Universidad de La Coruña (España)
Prof. Dr. José Venancio Salcines
Departamento de Análisis
Económico
Universidad de La Coruña (España)
Resumen Este trabajo tiene como objeto analizar la elección educativa entre escuela pública y escuela privada para los siguientes niveles educativos: infantil, primaria y secundaria en el contexto de los hogares de Galicia (España). Este artículo también analiza en que medida está relacionado el tipo de centro educativo al que asisten los niños con la renta familiar y, la educación recibida por los padres; de esta forma, esperamos aprender algo mas acerca de la desigualdad que existe entre los dos sistemas educativos.
Abstract
The goal of the current work is to analyze educational
choice between public and private schools at the pre-primary, primary and
secondary levels in Galicia, Spain. We also analyze the relationship between
the type of educational institution the children attend and the family income
and parents' educational level. The overarching purpose of this work is to
learn more about how social inequalities are mediated by public and private
educational systems.
Volume 7 Number 16 |
April 26, 1999 |
ISSN 1068-2341 |
Race and Policy
Ernest R. House
University of Colorado
ABSTRACT Beliefs about race have played a central role in American history, literature, and education. Racial beliefs are embedded in the national identity in complex and disguised ways. These beliefs attribute presumed character traits to African Americans and other minorities, who are thought of as different in character and ability, especially the ability to govern themselves. These beliefs lead to education policies which separate, differentiate, and mandate different curricula and treatment for minorities, policies justified as being fair and democratic. These beliefs influence not only curriculum content, but how the schools are organized, financed, and administered at a deeper level than is commonly understood.
Volume 7 Number 17 |
April 29, 1999 |
ISSN 1068-2341 |
Paradojas en la redefinición del trabajo del profesorado
José Contreras Domingo
Universitat de Barcelona
ABSTRACT En el actual ambiente de reformas educativas que estamos viviendo, la autonomía del profesorado y de los centros educativos está siendo una referencia habitual. Presentada como devolución de competencias al profesorado, en realidad, la autonomía, tal y como viene siendo propiciada y argumentada en las nuevas políticas educativas, no puede ser considerada como una simple ganancia de atribuciones profesionales. Cuando menos supone una paradoja: la que representa que ésta venga obligada. Pero hay otras. El presente texto está organizado en cuatro secciones. En la primera se exponen diversos factores -que van desde las nuevas formas de organización de los servicios sociales y su relación con el estado, hasta los actuales patrones de producción y consumo, pasando por el papel de legitimación que desempeña la clase académica- que están dando lugar a la retórica de la autonomía. En la segunda, se describen algunos de los cambios que se vienen produciendo en la institución escolar y que están proporcionando un sentido muy especial a la autonomía escolar y profesional. En la tercera sección se analizan las paradojas que acompañan a las políticas actuales de autonomía escolar. En la cuarta, por fin, se extraen algunas conclusiones de los análisis precedentes y se sugieren algunos elementos que deberían tenerse en cuenta para recuperar otro significado político y pedagógico para la autonomía.
Abstract
In the present atmosphere of education reform in Spain, autonomy of the faculty and the educational institutions is continually referred to. "Autonomy" as it is currently used in this context poses a paradox: autonomy as obligation. Not just this paradox but others as well are discussed. The present article is organized in four sections. In the first section, the article analyzes a set of factors (from the new organizational arrangments of social services and their relationship with the State to the current patterns of production and consumption) present in the autonomy rethoric. In the second section the author describes the main changes in the school as institution, changes that are affecting academic and professional autonomy. In the third section, the paradoxes surrounding present policies of scholastic autonomy are analyzed. In the fourth, suggestions are made for recovering the political and pedagogical meaning of autonomy.
Volume 7 Number 18 |
May 30, 1999 |
ISSN 1068-2341 |
Demonstrated Actions of Instructional Leaders:
An Examination
of Five California Superintendents
George J. Petersen
University of Missouri-Columbia
ABSTRACT This exploratory study focuses on the perceived and actual leadership characteristics and actions of five district superintendents in California who focused on the core technology of education - curriculum and instruction. In-depth interviews were conducted with these superintendents, their principals and members of their boards of education. The selection of superintendents for this study were guided by three criteria: peer recognition as instructional leaders, district demographics and aggregated increases in CAP (California Assessment Program) scores in grades 3, 3&6, and 3 6&8 for the academic years of 1986-87 to 1989-90. Interview responses indicated that superintendents in this study perceived four attributes to be essential in their ability to be successful instructional leaders. These attributes are: (1) Possession and articulation of an instructional vision; (2) the creation of an organizational structure that supports their instructional vision and leadership; (3) assessment and evaluation of personnel and instructional programs; and (4) organizational adaptation. By employing responses given by the superintendents in this study and looking closely at what they articulated as their role in promoting curriculum and instruction as well as the larger organizational structure a preliminary model of perceived superintendent behaviors was constructed.
To confirm perceptions, actions, and behaviors articulated by the district superintendents, triangulation interviews were conducted with school principals and school board members in each of the participating districts. A 52-item questionnaire was also administered to every principal and school board member in these districts. Responses of these personnel confirmed the articulated actions and behaviors of these superintendents in their promotion of the technical core of curriculum and instruction.
Volume 7 Number 19 |
June 4, 1999 |
ISSN 1068-2341 |
A Statist Political Economy and
High Demand for Education in South Korea
Ki Su Kim
Memorial University of Newfoundland
Canada
ABSTRACT In the 1998 academic year, 84 percent of South Korea's high school "leavers" entered a university or college while almost all children went up to high schools. This is to say, South Korea is now moving into a new age of universal higher education. Even so, competition for university entrance remains intense. What is here interesting is South Koreans' unusually high demand for education. In this article, I criticize the existing cultural and socio-economic interpretations of the phenomenon. Instead, I explore a new interpretation by critically referring to the recent political economy debate on South Korea's state-society/market relationship. In my interpretation, the unusually high demand for education is largely due to the powerful South Korean state's losing flexibility in the management of its "developmental" policies. For this, I blame the traditional "personalist ethic" which still prevails as the modus operandi of the agents in the education market as well as state bureaucrats.
Volume 7 Number 20 |
June 8, 1999 |
ISSN 1068-2341 |
Testing On Computers:
A Follow-up Study Comparing Performance On
Computer and On Paper
Michael Russell
Boston College
ABSTRACT Russell and Haney (1997) reported that open-ended test items administered on paper may underestimate the achievement of students accustomed to writing on computers. This study builds on Russell and Haney's work by examining the effect of taking open-ended tests on computers and on paper for students with different levels of computer skill. Using items from the Massachusetts Comprehensive Assessment System (MCAS) and the National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP), this study focuses on language arts, science and math tests administered to eighth grade students. In addition, information on students' prior computer use and keyboarding speed was collected. Unlike the previous study that found large effects for open-ended writing and science items, this study reports mixed results. For the science test, performance on computers had a positive group effect. For the two language arts tests, an overall group effect was not found. However, for students whose keyboarding speed is at least 0.5 or one-half of a standard deviation above the mean, performing the language arts test on computer had a moderate positive effect. Conversely, for students whose keyboarding speed was 0.5 standard deviations below the mean, performing the tests on computer had a substantial negative effect. For the math test, performing the test on computer had an overall negative effect, but this effect became less pronounced as keyboarding speed increased. Implications are discussed in terms of testing policies and future research.
Volume 7 Number 21 |
July 8, 1999 |
ISSN 1068-2341 |
Facing the Consequences:
Identifying the Limitations of How
We Categorize People in Research and Policy
Cynthia Wallat & Carolyn Steele
Florida State University
ABSTRACT Social policy researchers and policy rules and regulation writers have not taken advantage of advances in assessing ways in which social representations of ideas about people can convey alternative explanations of social life. During the past decade a growing number of scholars have considered how representational practices and the representations that are outcomes of such practices have value. Neglecting to consider representational practices has consequences including failure to mobilize and sustain alternative ideologies that reject narrow perspectives on families and communities. As evidenced by recent OMB rulings on census categories, the dominant sense of meaning of population--and hence family and community--is quite similar to the 17th century sense of people as objects of a particular category in a place from which samples can be taken for statistical measurement. However, the contrastive analysis presented in this paper points out how sustained attention to consequences of use of sets of information categories collected to enumerate population to inform social policy can still materialize. In the wake of federal welfare reform, policy makers are particularly interested in questions of benefit relative to social service delivery and community revitalization. The presentation includes lessons learned from several dozen family, youth, school and community research projects.
Volume 7 Number 22 |
July 22, 1999 |
ISSN 1068-2341 |
Teachers in Charter Schools and Traditional Schools:
A Comparative Study
Sally Bomotti, Rick Ginsberg & Brian Cobb
Colorado State University
ABSTRACT Teachers from charter and traditional schools in Colorado were queried about their perceptions of their level of empowerment, school climate, and working conditions. Using a cluster sampling design, approximately 100 teachers from 16 charter schools and 100 teachers from seven traditional schools were surveyed by combining several well-established instruments to measure empowerment, school climate, and working conditions. Factor analyses yielded three composite variables each for the three constructs. One-way analyses of variance were used to explore these teachers' differences in perceptions. Results yielded consistent and practically significant differences in these charter and traditional school perceptions of empowerment, school climate, and working conditions. Not all of these differences, however, were consistent with expectations given the educational and legislative contexts driving Colorado's charter school movement. Implications and recommendations for future research are given.
Volume 7 Number 23 |
August 1, 1999 |
ISSN 1068-2341 |
Academic Program Approval and Review Practices
in the United State & Selected Foreign Countries
Don G. Creamer & Steven M. Janosik
Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University
ABSTRACT This report outlines general and specific processes for both program approval and program review practices found in 50 states and eight foreign countries and regions. Models that depict these procedures are defined and the strengths and weakness of each are discussed. Alternatives to current practice by state agencies in the U.S. are described that might provide for greater decentralization of these practices while maintaining institutional accountability.
Volume 7 Number 24 |
August 12, 1999 |
ISSN 1068-2341 |
Autonomia Universitária no Brasil: Uma Utopia?
Maria de Lourdes de Albuquerque Fávero
ABSTRACT The purpose of this work is to trace the historical stages through which university autonomy in Brazil has evolved. It begins with 1931 when Minister Francisco Campos conceded "relative autonomy" to the universities and describes developments to the present day. The history of autonomy in Brazilian universities is related to various political regimes and national movements through which Brazil has passed in the last 70 years. Final thoughts on the the challenges facing academic autonomy in present-day Brazil are presented.
Volume 7 Number 25 |
August 25, 1999 |
ISSN 1068-2341 |
The Quality of Researchers’ Searches of the ERIC Database
Scott Hertzberg & Lawrence Rudner
University of Maryland
ABSTRACT During the last ten years, end-users of electronic databases have become progressively less dependent on librarians and other intermediaries. This is certainly the case with the Educational Resources Information Center (ERIC) Database, a resource once accessed by passing a paper query form to a librarian and now increasingly searched directly by end-users. This article empirically examines the search strategies currently being used by researchers and other groups. College professors and educational researchers appear to be doing a better job searching the database than other ERIC patrons. However, the study suggests that most end-users should be using much better search strategies.
Volume 7 Number 26 |
August 29, 1999 |
ISSN 1068-2341 |
Solving the Policy Implementation Problem:
The Case of Arizona Charter Schools
Gregg A. Garn
University of Oklahoma
ABSTRACT When Republican legislators in Arizona failed to approve educational vouchers in four consecutive legislative sessions, a charter school program was approved as a compromise. The charter school policy was written during a special summer session and within three years, over 30,000 students were enrolled in 260 charter schools across the state. Republican policy makers, who failed to enact voucher legislation, proclaimed the charter school program to be an overwhelming success and protected it from amendments by Democrats and potential actions of bureaucrats that could have altered the policy intent. Research on the implementation of policy indicates that state and local implementors frequently undermine or alter legislative intentions. However, when Arizona policy makers approved the charter school policy, they overcame this persistent implementation phenomenon and, in fact, succeeded in preserving the legislative intentions in the working program. This policy study analyzes how they were able to achieve this elusive result. Key policy makers attended to four significant features of policy implementation in creating the charter school policy: communication, financial resources, implementor attitudes, and bureaucratic structure. Manipulating these key variables allowed policy makers to reduce implementation slippage.
Volume 7 Number 27 |
September 6, 1999 |
ISSN 1068-2341 |
Homeschooling and the Redefinition of Citizenship
A. Bruce Arai
Wilfrid Laurier University
ABSTRACT Homeschooling has grown considerably in many countries over the past two or three decades. To date, most research has focused either on comparisons between schooled and homeschooled children, or on finding out why parents choose to educate their children at home. There has been little consideration of the importance of homeschooling for the more general issue of citizenship, and whether people can be good citizens without going to school. This paper reviews the research on homeschooling, as well as the major objections to it, and frames these debates within the broader issues of citizenship and citizenship education. The paper shows that homeschoolers are carving out a different but equally valid understanding of citizenship and that policies which encourage a diversity of understandings of good citizenship should form the basis citizenship education both for schools and homeschoolers.
Volume 7 Number 28 |
September 7, 1999 |
ISSN 1068-2341 |
Project Hope and the Hope School System in China:
A Re-evaluation
Samuel C. Wang
University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign
ABSTRACT I investigate the creation, development, contributions and limits of Project Hope, a huge government-endorsed education project seeking non-governmental contributions to overcome educational inadequacy in poverty-stricken rural communities in transitional China. By reexamining the composition of sponsored students, the locations of Hope Primary Schools and non-educational orientations for building and expanding schools, I argue that Project Hope and its Hope School system have not contributed to educational access, equality, equity, efficiency and quality as it should have. Poverty-reduction-oriented curriculum requirements in Hope Primary Schools are theoretically misleading and realistically problematic.
Volume 7 Number 29 |
September 19, 1999 |
ISSN 1068-2341 |
Block Scheduling Effects on a State Mandated Test of Basic Skills
William R. Veal
University of North Carolina-Chapel Hill
James Schreiber
Indiana University
ABSTRACT This study examined the effects of a tri-schedule on the academic achievement of students in a high school. The tri-schedule consists of traditional, 4x4 block, and hybrid schedules running at the same time in the same high school. Effectiveness of the schedules was determined from the state mandated test of basic skills in reading, language, and mathematics. Students who were in a particular schedule their freshman year were tested at the beginning of their sophomore year. A statistical ANCOVA test was performed using the schedule types as independent variables and cognitive skill index and GPA as covariates. For reading and language, there was no statistically significant difference in test results. There was a statistical difference mathematics-computation. Block mathematics is an ideal format for obtaining more credits in mathematics, but the block format does little for mathematics achievement and conceptual understanding. The results have content specific implications for schools, administrations, and school boards who are considering block scheduling adoption.
Volume 7 Number 30 |
September 30, 1999 |
ISSN 1068-2341 |
Grade Inflation Rates among Different Ability Students, Controlling for Other Factors
Stephanie Mc Spirit
Kirk E. Jones
Eastern Kentucky University
ABSTRACT This study compares grade inflation rates among different ability students at a large, open admissions public University. Specifically, this study compares trends in graduating grade point average (GPA) from 1983 to 1996 across low, typical and higher ability students. This study also tests other explanations for increases in graduating GPA. These other explanations are changes in 1) ACT score 2) gender 3) college major and 4) vocational programs. With these other explanations considered, regression results still report an inflationary trend in graduating GPA. Time, as measured by college entry year, is still a significant positive predictor of GPA. More directly, comparisons of regression coefficients reveal lower ability students as experiencing the highest rate of grade increase. Higher grade inflation rates among low aptitude students suggest that faculty might be using grades to encourage learning among marginal students.
Volume 7 Number 31 |
October 12, 1999 |
ISSN 1068-2341 |
Children's Rights & Education in Argentina, Chile and Spain
David Poveda
Universidad de Castilla-La Mancha
Viviana Gómez
Claudia Messina
Autonomous University of Madrid
ABSTRACT This article is a first attempt to relate the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child to education policy. It compares three countries, Argentina, Chile and Spain in an attempt to both present particular problems that are of pressing concern in each and to propose a framework that might reveal some possible obstacles to the implementation of children's rights. The article is divided into three sections. In the first section, a comparative review of the formal dispositions and legislative changes in the three countries is presented. Some of the most notable contrasts are briefly contextualized in the history of each nation-state. In the second section, particular problems in each nation are reassessed through the lens of the Convention. Three cases are examined: in Argentina, the funding and organization of public compulsory education; in Chile, an instance of international cooperation in education; in Spain, the relations between public and private education and ethnic segregation. Finally, a general framework is discussed using these three cases as examples
Volume 7 Number 32 |
October 23, 1999 |
ISSN 1068-2341 |
O Perfil da Universidade para o próximo milênio
Vidal Sunción Infante
Universidade Federal do Rio Grande do Norte (Brasil)
ABSTRACT In this article, I analyze the role of the university in meeting the demands for new knowledge (scientific, artistic and technological) presented by an era of globaliztion of knowledge that is destroying old paradigms and creating new models of management and behavior. These demands include the need to train new professionals, who are highly skilled both in knowing "how to produce" as well as "why to produce." My recent research indicates that the university is not embarked on the path that leads to training professionals who know "how to produce." Nevertheless, I believe that it is possible to restructure the university to meet these goals. Activities and strategies are being devised to increase the university's ability to generate the basic knowledge that will increase the employability of the new professional with a university diploma.
Copyright 1999 by the Education Policy Analysis ArchivesThe World Wide Web address for the Education Policy Analysis Archives is http://epaa.asu.edu/ General questions about appropriateness of topics or particular articles may be addressed to the Editor, Gene V Glass, glass@asu.edu or reach him at College of Education, Arizona State University, Tempe, AZ 85287-0211. (602-965-9644). The Book Review Editor is Walter E. Shepherd: mailto:shepherd@asu.edu. The Commentary Editor is Casey D. Cobb: mailto:casey.cobb@unh.edu. EPAA Editorial Board
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