_Progress of Education in the United States of America - 1990 through
   1994_
   
                                   FOREWORD
                                       
   
   
   During the past four years, the "education reform movement" in the
   United States has made significant progress, though much remains to be
   done. In 1989, as reported in _Progress of Education in the United
   States of America: 1984 Through 1989_, President George Bush invited
   the Nation's 50 Governors to an Education Summit, where a remarkable
   consensus emerged concerning the state of U.S. education and the need
   for a national strategy to remedy its deficiencies.
   
   Following the Summit, the Nation's Governors, in cooperation with the
   White House and the Congress, adopted six National Education Goals to
   guide Federal, State, and local authorities in devising plans for the
   overall improvement of the system. The development of these Goals was
   a bipartisan effort that was generally applauded by the Nation's
   educators and its ors and its citizens.
   
   At that point leaders at every level of the education system began to
   consider a number of specific strategies to achieve the Goals. At the
   Federal level, the Bush Administration proposed AMERICA 2000, its
   specific recommendations for systemic reform. At the State level, a
   number of educators and agencies began to rethink old approaches and
   devise new ones. And at the local level, superintendents, principals,
   and teachers, sensing a new freedom, began to experiment with
   innovative ways of motivatin g and instructing students. When
   President Clinton took office in January of 1993, he appointed Richard
   W. Riley, a former Governor known for his bold initiatives in school
   reform, as Secretary of Education; and within weeks after the
   inauguration, the Clinton Administration had introduced its own
   innovative strategy for systemic educational reform throughout the
   Nation--Goals 2000: Educate America. This Act, together with the
   School-to-Work Opportunities Act, greatly accelerated the reform
   movement. T he whole Nation had finally accepted the proposition that
   education in the United States would change and change for the better.
   
   
   This report is, in part, the story of the years during which the
   Nation has begun a conscious and concerted effort to revitalize its
   schools and do a better job of educating its youngsters. Of course, in
   order to reach this point, Americans had to acknowledge the
   shortcomings of the current education system--comparing U.S.
   achievement with that of other nations. This self-examination has been
   a sobering experience, as reflected in some of the studies and
   statistics chronicled in this report.
   
   On the other hand, there are signs even now that the reform movement
   is taking hold, that our schools are beginning to improve, and--more
   importantly, perhaps--that some of the innovative programs produced by
   the spirit of reform are successful and will soon be ready for
   replication in the system as a whole. Many reforms at the State and
   local levels have been bold, all-encompassing, and ingenious. In
   States like Kentucky and in cities like Edmonds, the past has been
   swept aside with an impatience, and an entirely new way of operating
   schools established in its place. While the final verdict is not in on
   such innovations, they show every promise of effecting vast
   improvements in systems that were in danger of collapse.
   
   In addition to a general summary, this report will concentrate on
   these innovative strategies as well as on individual programs
   developed by master educators. Included will be specific details of
   reform efforts at the national, State, and local levels, as well as
   details of legislative initiatives by two national administrations.
   
          _Part I_ describes briefly the basic system of education in the
          United States of America -- its administration, organization,
          and financing. It is, of course, a system in transition, since
          many of the reform measures are specifically designed to
          transform current structure and policy.
          
          _Part II_ presents new national education data for the past
          four years and summarizes major Federal legislation passed
          during that time.
          
          _Part III_ outlines the most recent developments in the ongoing
          effort to restructure and revitalize U.S. education. This
          section is divided into three parts: (1) an examination of
          actions taken at the federal, State, and local levels; (2) an
          assessment of success in the mission of the American education
          system to guarantee equal access to education by all citizens;
          and (3) a measurement of progress toward the fulfillment of the
          National Education Goals.
          
          _Part IV_ gives an annotated list of selected books, articles,
          and reports prepared or published during the period from 1990
          to 1994. This bibliography should provide interested scholars
          with enough resources to understand what has happened in United
          States education since 1989.
          
   This report is available not only in English but also in several
   foreign languages as well. The translations are for use by
   participants at international education conferences, by the thousands
   of visitors from abroad who seek information from the U.S. Department
   of Education, and by non-English-speaking educators and policymakers
   in many other countries.
   
   Many units of the U.S. Department of Education have provided
   information and advice for this report. Primary among these are:
   Planning and Evaluation Service of the Office of the Under Secretary,
   headed by Alan Ginsburg; the Office of Educational Research and
   Improvement, headed by Sharon Robinson; and the National Center for
   Education Statistics, headed by Emerson J. Elliott.
   
   Those who have been especially helpful in gathering data are: Val
   Plisko and Nelson Ashline of the Office of the Under Secretary, Steve
   Sniegosky of the office of Educational Research and Improvement, and
   Tom Snyder of the National Center for Education Statistics. This
   publication, in part an update of _Progress of Education in the United
   States: 1984 through 1989_, was written by Thomas Landess,
   International and Territorial Services Staff, directed by Stewart
   Tinsman.