ethanporcaro/eric-fulltext-meta huggingface dataset:
Local Skills Case Study. Research Report
Author: Green, Anne
Date: 2017-03-00
Type: Reports - Research
Subjects: Foreign Countries,Governance,Delivery Systems,Local Government,Government Role,State Government,Public Policy,Employment,Job Skills,Employment Qualifications,Case Studies,Planning,Partnerships in Education,Policy Formation,Competition,Cooperation,Employers,Financial Support,Barriers

This study, jointly conducted by the University of Warwick Institute for Employment Research (IER) and SQW Ltd., discusses the UK Government's intention to accelerate the process of ceding more responsibility for delivering a range of services to the local level. The logic is that local actors are better placed to identify local priorities. This raises the issue of how local skills systems--including further education and apprenticeship providers, schools, universities, employers, local authorities and associated agencies, Local Enterprise Partnerships, and the voluntary sector--can work better. Overall the study on which this report is based provides an opportunity to understand the way in which local-national and local-local collaborative working needs to develop if it is to enhance skill development in England. This entailed: (1) identifying how other countries have devolved their skills and employment policy to local or regional levels; (2) undertaking a local case study, that encompassed multiple local authorities--where moves to shape local skills provision to local demand were already in train--to understand how local skills devolution can be best realised. The Black Country in the West Midlands was selected as the case study; and (3) reflecting upon the international and local evidence to develop a framework to be used as a tool that will allow local actors to use their combined local knowledge to answer key questions about the context, drivers for change and desired outcomes to enable them to more effectively deliver local skills to meet local needs. The study provides learning lessons from abroad that were drawn from the USA, Canada, Australia, Belgium (Flanders), and Sweden. All have skill systems and models of local governance that reflect their unique historical development. But this does not preclude learning lessons from their experiences that can inform the process local areas in England are embarking upon. The following are appended: (1) Local skills ecosystem analysis framework, and (2) Key features of skills planning and delivery and local partnership working in the Black Country.
Degrees of Freedom: Expanding College Opportunities for Currently and Formerly Incarcerated Californians. Executive Summary
Author: University of California, Berkeley. Chief Justice Earl Warren Institute on Law and Social Policy
Date: 2015-00-00
Type: Reports - Descriptive
Subjects: Access to Education,Correctional Education,Institutionalized Persons,Correctional Institutions,Higher Education,Interviews,Community Colleges,Correctional Rehabilitation,Educational Quality,Success,Academic Support Services,Student Personnel Services,Teacher Recruitment,Sustainability,Educational Finance,Quality Control,Program Evaluation,Networks,Educational Policy,College Admission,Student Financial Aid,Safety,Labor Market,Public Colleges,Enrollment Trends,Unemployment,Educational Attainment,Income,Barriers

&quot;Degrees of Freedom&quot; challenges California to include currently and formerly incarcerated students in the vision set by the state's 1964 Master Plan for Higher Education--a vision of college access for all, for the benefit of the entire state. A college education strengthens economies, changes lives and renews communities, and yet, for Californians involved with the criminal justice system, the state's commitment to their education has often stopped at a GED or high school diploma. This is an expensive and unsustainable oversight that does a disservice to thousands of potential students, their families, and all our communities. &quot;Degrees of Freedom&quot; is based on over 175 interviews, academic research, and historical investigation; it demonstrates how to pave the pathways that will help these underserved students become college graduates. The report profiles existing programs and sets out recommendations for critical growth and sustainability because these programs do not come anywhere close to meeting the need. It highlights challenges and successful strategies, and sets out a series of concrete recommendations to ensure that future programs are sustainable, scalable, and high quality. It demonstrates how the state's existing structures can bring education and criminal justice systems together to achieve mutual goals, including increasing college graduation rates, preparing students to meet the demands of the labor market, and increasing the chances of reentry success. It is a resource for anyone interested in the subject, whether a policymaker, a potential student, or a college administrator. The report is part of the Renewing Communities Initiative. [For the full report, see ED574151.]
Guided Pathways to College Completion. Policy Snapshot
Author: Fulton, Mary
Date: 2017-04-00
Type: Reports - Descriptive
Subjects: Graduation,Strategic Planning,Time to Degree,Majors (Students),Course Selection (Students),State Policy,College Students,Services,State Legislation,Educational Legislation

Guided pathways are emerging as a strategy to help students complete a credential in a timely manner by encouraging or requiring them to select a program, and develop a degree plan or map, on a specified timeline. At a minimum, institutions may ask students to identify a meta-major, which is a broad area of academic programs with related courses (for example, business, health care or social sciences). Guided pathways programs typically include structured course plans and intensive support services to keep students on track to finish their credential or transfer to complete a degree. This report from the Education Commission of the States examines state policies related to guided pathways and concludes that in 2016 two bills were enacted, ten were introduced, and at least six states considered guided pathways legislation. The report provides an additional update from the 2017 legislative session and profiles states that have passed related policies in recent years.
The &quot;City of Firsts&quot; Charts a New Path on Turnaround. Linking State and Local School Improvement
Author: Jochim, Ashley
Date: 2017-04-00
Type: Reports - Research
Subjects: School Turnaround,Educational Improvement,Public Schools,Middle Schools,Institutional Autonomy,Accountability,Urban Schools,Educational Innovation,Partnerships in Education,Nonprofit Organizations,Principals,Instructional Leadership,Teacher Recruitment,Governance,Program Effectiveness

In 2014, the Springfield Public School district in Massachusetts had tried just about every strategy in the turnaround playbook to improve a set of struggling middle schools, but these efforts failed to generate the desired improvement. In 2015, drawing inspiration from national efforts to infuse schools with enhanced autonomy and accountability, the district voluntarily ceded operational control of six middle school campuses to the newly formed Springfield Empowerment Zone Partnership (SEZP), an independent nonprofit charged with overseeing the turnaround effort. SEZP offers principals freedom from district rules in exchange for increased accountability for results. These changes, along with a new collective bargaining agreement for teachers working in SEZP and new supports for students and principals, represent a marked departure from Springfield's previous efforts. This case study profiles SEZP, comparing and contrasting it with conventional turnaround strategies such as district-led turnaround, reconstitution, chartering, and state-initiated turnaround. Key findings include: (1) SEZP brought together a package of reforms aimed at generating improvement and a new governance model that gives schools much greater freedom to change without needing to ask permission or fear regulatory second-guessing; (2) SEZP offers a &quot;middle way&quot; between other school turnaround strategies: providing more local participation and less controversy compared to either state takeovers or chartering, and committing more deeply to school autonomy, tailored support, and choice of talent compared to conventional district-led turnarounds; and (3) Thus far, SEZP has seen less controversy and more goodwill than many other turnaround efforts, but whether the strategy results in improved student outcomes remains to be seen.
Simplification May Not Be So Simple: Gauging State Alignment with the FAFSA
Author: Pingel, Sarah
Date: 2017-04-00
Type: Reports - Research
Subjects: Alignment (Education),Financial Aid Applicants,Student Financial Aid,Job Simplification,State Programs,State Policy,State Action,College Bound Students,College Students,Efficiency,Grantsmanship,Federal Aid,Paying for College

Applying for financial aid can be a complicated, time-consuming endeavor for students and their families. Fortunately, many state aid programs have taken strides to align aid applications to the form used for federal aid programs, the Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA), making state aid more readily accessible. New conversations surrounding simplifying the FAFSA can lead to new efficiencies for students completing the process--but only if state-level stakeholders are willing to rework current alignments. This special report explores state alignment with the FAFSA and provides a synopsis of both federal- and state-level efforts related to FAFSA simplification. Research supporting the importance of timely FAFSA completion is briefly reviewed, followed by a synopsis of enacted state and federal level simplification efforts. The report discusses findings of a national survey and policy analysis of state-level reliance on the FAFSA. The results show that most state aid application procedures are highly aligned with the current FAFSA. Policy considerations intended to enhance collaborative approaches between states and federal policy leaders are presented. [This report was written with the research assistance of Liliana Diaz-Solodukhin.]
Physics Bachelors: Initial Employment. Data from the Degree Recipient Follow-Up Survey for the Classes of 2013 and 2014. Focus On
Author: Mulvey, Patrick
Date: 2017-04-00
Type: Reports - Evaluative
Subjects: Physics,Bachelors Degrees,College Graduates,Employment,Graduate Surveys,Salaries,Graduate Study,Part Time Employment,Unemployment,Private Sector,Engineering,Computer Science,Job Skills,Job Satisfaction,Secondary School Teachers,Government Employees,Military Personnel,Colleges,School Personnel,Gender Differences

New physics bachelors entering the workforce receive some of the highest starting salaries of any undergraduate majors. Bachelors accepting STEM (science, technology, engineering, mathematics) positions in the private sector had a median starting salary of $55,000. Physics bachelors from 2013 and 2014 were contacted in the winter following the academic year in which they received their degrees. They were asked to share their employment or graduate school experiences. This report describes the findings from the 2013 and 2014 follow-up surveys of physics bachelors.
Paradigm Shift: Understanding and Implementing Change in Second Language Education
Author: Jacobs, George M.
Date: 2001-00-00
Type: Reports - Evaluative
Subjects: Second Language Learning,Second Language Instruction,Educational Change,Thinking Skills,Cooperative Learning,Teaching Methods,Communicative Competence (Languages),Independent Study

Change seems to be a constant in education. We can better understand and implement change in second language education if we look for connections between changes. The concept of paradigm shift offers one means of making such connections. This article describes eight changes that fit with the paradigm shift in second language education toward what is most often described as communicative language teaching. These eight changes are: learner autonomy, cooperative learning, curricular integration, focus on meaning, diversity, thinking skills, alternative assessment and teachers as co-learners. The paradigm shift of which these changes are part is put into perspective as an element of larger shifts from positivism to post-positivism and from behaviorism to cognitivism. The authors argue that in second language education, although the paradigm shift was initiated many years ago, it still has been only partially implemented. Two reasons for this partial implementation are: (1) by trying to understand each change separately, second language educators have weakened their understanding by missing the larger picture; and (2) by trying to implement each change separately, second language educators have made the difficult task of change even more difficult. [This content was published in &quot;TESL-EJ&quot; v5 n1 2001; see EJ624991.]
Helping Students Chart Stereotypes in Literature
Author: Jacobs, George M.
Date: 1993-09-04
Type: Speeches/Meeting Papers
Subjects: Stereotypes,Literature,Consciousness Raising,Teaching Methods,Critical Literacy,Social Attitudes,Reading Materials,Critical Thinking,Charts,Learning Activities,Critical Reading

The paper has two main parts. In the first part, some current thinking on the nature of the stereotypes and the role of schools in their propagation, as well as in their analysis, is reviewed. In the second part, suggestions are described and exemplified for some classroom techniques--to be used mainly with the reading of literature--which may help students to become more fully literate.
Analysing Stereotypes
Author: Jacobs, George M.
Date: 1995-04-00
Type: Speeches/Meeting Papers
Subjects: Stereotypes,Teaching Methods,Critical Thinking,Critical Literacy,Information Literacy,Social Attitudes,Charts,Consciousness Raising,Reading Materials,Literature

We believe that it is not enough to just take in information when we listen, read, and watch. We must also critically analyze that information. One part of this critical analysis involves looking for stereotypes, the focus of this paper. The paper has two main parts. In the first part, we briefly review some current thinking on the nature of the stereotypes. In the second part, we describe and demonstrate classroom techniques which may help students to critically analyze stereotypes.
Cooperative Learning in the Thinking Classroom: Research and Theoretical Perspectives
Author: Jacobs, George M.
Date: 1997-06-00
Type: Information Analyses
Subjects: Cooperative Learning,Classroom Techniques,Group Activities,Intermode Differences,Instructional Effectiveness,Thinking Skills,Educational Theories,Educational Research,Social Psychology,Developmental Psychology,Cognitive Psychology,Motivation,Multiple Intelligences,Global Education,Moral Values,Teaching Methods

In this paper, the following key questions will be examined. What is distinctive about cooperative learning, which makes it different from just groupwork? What has research found about the effectiveness of cooperative learning in promoting thinking? What conditions in cooperative learning help promote thinking? What theoretical perspectives support the &quot;cooperation - thinking&quot; link?
Creating Environmental Education Materials to Teach English to Non-English Majors at Indonesian Universities
Author: Jacobs, G. M.
Date: 2002-12-00
Type: Speeches/Meeting Papers
Subjects: Foreign Countries,English (Second Language),Nonmajors,College Second Language Programs,Environmental Education,Material Development,Educational Trends,Instructional Materials

The purpose of this paper is to explain the rationale behind the creation of a set of environmental education materials that would simultaneously teach English to non-English majors at Indonesian universities. The thinking behind both the environmental education and English learning elements of the materials is explained.
Collaborative Learning or Cooperative Learning? The Name Is Not Important; Flexibility Is
Author: Jacobs, George M.
Date: 2015-00-00
Type: Reports - Evaluative
Subjects: Cooperative Learning,Group Activities,Educational Practices,Learning Strategies,Learning Processes,Teaching Methods,Teaching Models,Educational Strategies

A great deal of theory and research, not to mention students' and teachers' practical experience, supports the use of group activities in education. Collaborative learning and cooperative learning are two terms commonly used in discussions of how and why to use group activities. This article looks at the issue of whether the two terms--collaborative learning and cooperative learning--are synonymous or whether they represent different conceptualisations of how and why students should interact as part of their learning. Those scholars who differentiate the two terms often see collaborative learning as more student centered and cooperative learning as a more teacher centered way to facilitate student-student interaction. The present article argues that collaborative and cooperative learning should be seen as synonymous student centric approaches, and that teachers and students, regardless of which of the two terms they use, should and will vary the ways they shape their learning environments in order to best facilitate the cognitive and affective benefits that student-student interaction offers.
The Usefulness of a Suggested Paradigm for Improving Paragraph Coherence
Author: Siu, Fiona Kwai-peng
Date: 2016-12-00
Type: Reports - Research
Subjects: Rhetorical Invention,Paragraph Composition,Writing Strategies,Writing Skills,Expository Writing,Second Language Learning,Teaching Methods,Achievement Gains,Instructional Effectiveness,Student Attitudes,English for Academic Purposes,Control Groups,Experimental Groups,Persuasive Discourse,Questionnaires,Essays,College Second Language Programs,Foreign Countries,College Students

This study aims to explore the effectiveness of a paradigm to teach native Cantonese-speaking university students the hierarchical structure of expository prose to improve paragraph coherence. Most of the diagnostic argumentative essays the participants in this study wrote in the course were incoherent, failing to meet readers' expectation of &quot;topic maintenance&quot; (Connor &amp; Farmer, 1985), nor did the essays show any of the progression patterns, as identified by Lautamatti (1987). Above all, the students seemed unaware that most English expository texts are characterized by a hierarchy of ideas. Accordingly, a paradigm in which causation or aspect constitutes major text structure, was devised. Minor elaboration skills (e.g., definition) were suggested for lower-level ideas. The paradigm was first introduced in two lessons of two hours each and then reinforced through two individual teacher-student advising sessions, in which a three-layer mind map was used to demonstrate the thinking process of generating a hierarchy of ideas. The experimental group (75 participants) scored significantly higher marks in Discourse Competence (DC) and in Task Fulfillment (TF) than did the control group (75 participants) in the end-of-course writing examination. Findings from questionnaires suggested that most participants found the paradigm conceptually useful. However, it was difficult to put it into practice for lack of adequate ideas and for unfamiliarity with writing deductively, which might arise from their &quot;employing a rhetoric and a sequence of thoughts&quot; (Kaplan, 1966, p.4) typical of their L1 writing. The following are appended: (1) Student Handout; (2) Sample Text Illustrating Paragraph Coherence; (3) A Student Essay Written in the Pre-test; and (4) The End-of-Course Exam Essay Written by the Same Student. [This article was published in the &quot;Journal of Second Language Teaching and Research,&quot; v5 n1 p89-119 Dec 2016.]
Degrees of Freedom: Expanding College Opportunities for Currently and Formerly Incarcerated Californians
Author: Mukamal, Debbie
Date: 2015-02-00
Type: Reports - Evaluative
Subjects: Access to Education,Correctional Education,Institutionalized Persons,Correctional Institutions,Higher Education,Interviews,Community Colleges,Correctional Rehabilitation,Educational Quality,Success,Academic Support Services,Student Personnel Services,Teacher Recruitment,Sustainability,Educational Finance,Quality Control,Program Evaluation,Networks,Educational Policy,College Admission,Student Financial Aid,Safety,Labor Market,Public Colleges,Enrollment Trends,Unemployment,Educational Attainment,Income,Barriers

&quot;Degrees of Freedom&quot; finds that California has not been adequately providing effective college opportunities for criminal justice-involved students, despite the fact that such access will help California build safer and more economically viable communities. This report is part of a larger initiative--Renewing Communities--to expand college opportunities for currently and formerly incarcerated students in California. The study discussed in this report is a joint project of the Stanford Criminal Justice Center at Stanford Law School and the Chief Justice Earl Warren Institute on Law and Social Policy at the University of California Berkeley School of Law. This report targets policymakers, potential students, and college administrators in California. It also provides a valuable blueprint for other states seeking to build effective college pathways that will help these underserved students become college graduates. Based on over 175 interviews, academic research and historical investigation, the report profiles existing programs and identifies recommendations for critical growth and sustainability. It highlights challenges and successful strategies, and sets out a series of concrete recommendations to ensure that future programs are sustainable, scalable, and high-quality. It demonstrates how the state's existing structures can bring education and criminal justice together to achieve mutual goals, including increasing college graduation rates, preparing students to meet the demands of the labor market, and increasing the chances of reentry success. The following are appended: (1) List of Contacts; (2) Reference Programs; (3) College Admissions and Financial Aid Overview for Currently and Formerly Incarcerated Students; (4) County-Level Data on 1170(h) Population; (5) Overview of Public Safety Realignment; (6) Labor Market Considerations; and (7) Sample MOU. Contains a glossary, notes, and a bibliography. [This report was written with the assistance of Nicole Lindahl. For the Executive Summary, see ED574136.]