New Guide Offers Help On Education Finance
The Finance Project has published a guide designed to help state and local leaders improve the financing of education and other services for children.
The report from the nonprofit organization formed to improve equity in funding for education and other children’s services, lays out principles for directing a state’s finance reforms. It also provides specific guidance in the areas of revenue generation, budgeting, and intergovernmental and public-private partnerships. Each section presents options and outlines strategies to help leaders build a strong base of political and public support for change.
“Money Matters: A Guide to Financing Quality Education and Other Children’s Services,” $20, from the Finance Project, 1341 G St. N.W., Washington, D.C. 20005; (202) 628-4200.
Model Teaching Programs: While the process of improving teacher education in North Carolina has seen some impressive success, the job is far from complete, according to a new report by the North Carolina Model Clinical Teaching Network.
The second of two installments on the progress of the state’s 14 model clinical teaching programs, the report characterizes the accomplishments of each program since 1992 and some of their remaining problems. The collective results of the projects illustrate various practices in teacher education that the model programs have tested, verified, and implemented.
“Accomplishments in Teacher Education in North Carolina,” $5 (payable to the N.C. State Extension Trust Fund), from the North Carolina Model Clinical Teaching Network, North Carolina State University, Box 7801, Raleigh, N.C. 27695-7801; (919) 515-9400; fax: (919) 515-6978; e-mail: MCTN@ncsu.edu.
Service Learning: Fostering community partnerships and garnering institutional support are among the most pressing issues facing K-12 service learning, concludes a report by the National Society for Experiential Education.
Through a survey of its service-learning educators’ network, the society has compiled a series of case studies addressing seven critical issues identified in the report. The writers detail the successes and challenges of particular service-learning programs as well as suggested strategies and resources for program improvement and long-term success.
Because they face a complex array of service-learning models and obstacles, practitioners need “practical and transferable principles” more than manuals and guides, the editors suggest.
“Critical Issues in K-12 Service Learning,” $25 ($20 for NSEE members), plus shipping and handling, from the National Society for Experiential Education, 3509 Haworth Drive, Suite 207, Raleigh, N.C. 27609; (919) 787-3263; e-mail: nsee@datasolv.com.
Welfare-Overhaul Impact: States should consider children’s development as they implement their new welfare-to-work policies, argues a recent report from the National Research Council’s Board on Children, Youth, and Families.
The publication summarizes a workshop held last April on the impact of welfare on young children. For example, it says that children in welfare families have been found to have weaker cognitive skills and more behavior problems than other children.
The workshop focused on the long-term effects of welfare dependence on children, but also looked at what happens to them when their mothers begin working. One study found that children’s development was not compromised when their mothers both worked and received public assistance.
Copies of the report are $10, from the National Academy Press, 2101 Constitution Ave. N.W., Lock Box 285, Washington, D.C. 20005; (800) 624-6242. It is also available on the World Wide Web at http://www.nap.edu.
Workforce Preparation: Corporate leaders say today’s college graduates have impressive skills compared with those of past graduates, but these executives question whether college students are being prepared for the rigors of world-class competition, according to a report.
University leaders say that job preparation is the responsibility of their teachers, who they admit often have little contact with the business community. The report recommends creating a better dialogue between higher education and the work world.
“Spanning the Chasm: Corporate and Academic Cooperation To Improve Work-Force Preparation,” $10, from the Business-Higher Education Forum, American Council on Education, 1 Dupont Circle, Suite 800, Washington, D.C. 20036; (202) 939-9345.
