Describes Career Switching Program at Old Dominion University. The program's first class was composed of former military personnel with verifiable teaching experiences in their fields. Students received their teaching licenses after successfully completing a summer program of instruction and 1 year of mentor-supervised on-the-job training. Program…

Examines differences between old state-designed norm-referenced tests and new tests aligned with the curriculum. Concludes that new state tests are very similar to old ones. Discusses impact of new high-stakes standardized tests on students and teachers. Argues the new wave of standardized testing is not the answer to improving student…

Argues for improving the quality of education assessment by focusing on the needs of the educational consumers. These needs require more carefully designed assessment systems, better professional development, improvements in students' testing experiences, expanded use of technology, and an open public dialogue about assessment means and ends. (PKP)

Describes an EdVisions Cooperative made up of eight small charter schools in Minnesota. EdVisions, funded by the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, provides charter schools with guidelines to develop teacher-driven professional accountability systems linked to project-based learning for students. (PKP)

Argues that no solid basis exists in the research literature for developing, placing, and aligning educational standards in school curricula or for placing subject-matter content at specific grade levels (scope and sequence). Welcomes input from readers who have information regarding educational standards and their development, placement, and…

Describes results of survey of Ohio certified-teacher attitudes toward state education policy, classroom climate, and high-stakes testing. Found a large majority of teachers expressed strong dissatisfaction with educational policy, its impact on classroom climate, and the use of high-stakes testing. (11 references) (PKP)

Examines differences in new teacher and veteran teacher attitudes toward Virginia's Standards of Learning test. Finds that veteran teachers' attitudes are characterized by a perceived loss of power and professionalism. New teachers' attitudes are characterized by gains in collaborative opportunities and instructional freedom. (PKP)

Criticizes Jeremy Finn's March 2002 "Kappan" article, "Small Classes in American Schools: Research, Practice, and Politics," reporting positive results for small classes in Tennessee's Student Teacher Achievement Ratio (STAR) Project. (PKP)

Defends positive results of small classes in Tennessee's Student Teacher Achievement Ratio (STAR) Project reported in his March 2002 "Kappan" article. (PKP)

Shows how school personnel at Farragut Elementary School in Saint Louis have "communally bonded" with African American families and the surrounding community to foster an academically supportive environment. Discusses how investigation into the school extends to the broader issues of urban education, academic excellence, parent and community…

Discusses so-called "gender war" in the classroom. Presents report card on differences between males and females involving grades and tests, academic enrollment, academic interaction and special programs, health and athletics, and career preparation, family, and parenting. (25 references) (PKP)

Argues that sex equity issues should be a standard part of the university-based teacher education programs. (Contains 13 references.) (PKP)

Discusses results of latest Program of International Student Assessment developed by the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development that tested 15-year-olds in 32 countries in reading, mathematics, and science. Focuses on reaction to below-average results in Germany. (PKP)

Argues that 1998 Digital Millennium Copyright Act, providing increased protection against unauthorized access to copyrighted electronic media, and the Sonny Bono Copyright Term Extension Act, extending the term of most copyrighted books, unduly burden users of electronic media and books. Discusses the negative impact of recent federal laws to…

Analyzes Massachusetts case involving Salem State College decision to prevent a student from continuing his student teaching at an elementary school because of his continued expression of strongly held religious views in the classroom. First Circuit Court of Appeals upheld the college's decision rejecting the student's claim that his 1st and 14th…