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The challenges facing our children in the 21st century are rapidly changing. As a result, schools bear a greater responsibility to prepare students for college, career, and life and must be held accountable for more than just testing and reporting on a narrow set of outcomes aimed at minimum levels of competency. Thus, scholars, educators, and reform advocates are calling for a more meaningful next phase of school accountability, one that promotes continuous support and improvement rather than mere compliance and efforts to avoid punishment (Center for American Progress & CCSSO, 2014; Darling-Hammond, Wilhoit, & Pittenger, 2014). This paper reviews state and district level accountability systems that incorporate a multiple measures approach to accountability and highlights the following features that represent redesigned systems of accountability: 1) broader set of outcome measures, 2) mix of state and local indicators, 3) measures of opportunities to learn, 4) data dashboards, and 5) School Quality Reviews. The paper concludes with guidance for policymakers and practitioners on ways to support the development and implementation of a multiple measures system of accountability so that school accountability becomes synonymous with responsibility for deeper learning and support for continuous improvement.

This paper complements Fritjof Capra's paper in this issue, "Sustainable Living, Ecological Literacy, and the Breath of Life." It explores how concepts essential to ecological literacy can also guide strategies for overcoming barriers to introducing integrated, multidisciplinary pedagogy into school curricula. It examines how the crisis of childhood obesity and nutrition-related illness constitutes a point of systemic instability that creates an opportunity to integrate experiential learning and academics, and to promote ecological thinking while addressing mandated standards. It illustrates the contributions to environmental education that a small third-party organization with a clear conceptual framework can make. (Contains 1 note.)

The purpose of this paper is to analyze and discuss current policies and position statements related to religious music and teaching about religion and propose a four-part framework for stakeholders to incorporate or amend policy on religious music in the public schools. The framework is based off of an analysis of sixteen public school district policies, the National Education Association (NEA) Policy on Religion in the Public Schools, and the National Association for Music Education's (NAfME) Sacred Music in Schools Position Statement. The framework contains the following four themes: (1) Religious Expression--I suggest that policy stakeholders clearly state that while religious or non-religious expression may manifest among the students, classrooms are non-devotional spaces that do not promote or inhibit religions; (2) Teaching About Religion--I suggest that in their policy and position statements, stakeholders address the context of religious music within the curriculum; (3) References--I suggest that stakeholders carefully consider the references they put forth in their policy documents and provide relevant related research, current case law, and statements that consider multiple perspectives within a nonpublic forum; and (4) Intercultural Perspective--I suggest that stakeholders develop policies that require an intercultural perspective of religious music in the public schools and avoid language that may serve as a rationale to program mostly Christian music.

In the very near future, Latino students will become the majority in California's public schools and because of their great numbers and presence, the pattern of lackluster academic achievement must be a major concern of teachers, school leaders, and policy makers. Despite having made great strides in narrowing the gap that separated them from their White classmates during the 1960s and 1970s, the academic progress of Latino students declined in the mid-1980s. Although there has been some improvement in the achievement of Latinos during the past three decades, their achievement gains in relation to the achievement of White students has been insignificant. The poor academic achievement of Latino students is indicative of a complex, multifaceted problem that must be addressed because as the Latino student population continues to grow, their poor achievement especially in mathematics and reading has significant implications not only for California's public educational system, but also for the state's and nation's social, political, and economic future. For Latino students to succeed academically, the author suggests that substantial and significant changes in the educational system must be in the offing, especially what is taught, how it is taught, the manner in which Latino students are perceived by teachers and administrators, and the condition of the schools in which Latino students are enrolled. (Contains 2 tables.)

Information about several papers discussed at the 2007 Association of Educational Communications and Technology Conference in Anaheim, California is presented. Topics include the use of visual communication elements in virtual learning, the use of self-regulated learning in a Web-based general science course and instructor immediacy behaviors. Reviewers of these papers include Les Moller, Gary Anglin and Vance Durrington.

The primary objective of this paper is to suggest a mechanism by which current trends in public education, in particular the rise of externally defined numerical metrics of achievement to define school success, operate to shape school policy, curriculum and practice. Here, we argue that the modern school's focus on the cognitive dimension of learning in combination with the extensive use of standardized tests as primary evidence of a quality education exploit students as a particular kind of commodity: one that is held in common. This opens the door for a pernicious set of predictable outcomes, known collectively as "tragedies of the commons", first described by the ecologist Garrett Hardin in 1968. From our perspective as researchers, we first describe how a tragedy of the commons can arise in schools. Next, we present a description of a tragedy of the commons at a particular school, illustrating how the school deals with external accountability pressures as would be predicted by the logic of the tragedy of the commons, and how these pressures shape school policy, curriculum and practice. Finally, we suggest how these pressures might be attenuated by purposefully building a strong sense of school community that fosters communication and trust.

The FAIR Education Act (SB 48) was signed into law in California in July of 2011, amending the Education Code by requiring representation of lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender persons in the social sciences. In this article, the author uses James Banks' model of the Four Levels of Integration of Multicultural Content to suggest ways in which lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender content could be located in the K-12 curriculum. Examples are provided at each of the levels including topics such as Gertrude Stein, Harvey Milk, Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, and Transgender History Month, the Gay Rights Movement, Don't Ask Don't Tell policy, Matthew Shepard Act, It Gets Better Project, Gay Straight Alliance, and Stop SB 48 campaign, among others. The examples are offered to education boards and others to initiate conversations around ways to appropriately integrate the roles and contributions of lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender persons into the curriculum, emphasizing places where such issues are already latent in social science content standards.

In the knowledge-based economy that characterizes the 21st century, most previously industrialized countries are making massive investments in education. The United States ranks poorly on many leading indicators, however, primarily because of the great inequality in educational inputs and outcomes between White students and non-Asian "minority" students, who comprise a growing share of the U.S. public school population. Standards-based reforms have been launched throughout the United States with promises of greater equity, but while students are held to common standards--and increasingly experience serious sanctions if they fail to meet them--most states have not equalized funding and access to the key educational resources needed for learning. The result of this collision of new standards with old inequities is less access to education for many students of color, rather than more. This article outlines current disparities in educational access; illustrates the relationships between race, educational resources, and student achievement; and proposes reforms needed to equalize opportunities to learn. (Contains 6 figures, 5 tables and 2 notes.)

A broader view of literacy has emerged as part of the larger debate about educational reform across the globe. Many now argue that availing children with additional skills in technological and media literacy will foster creativity, motivate youth, and improve their economic opportunities while increasing the core of high skilled labourers available to meet the needs of the "knowledge" economy. From Canada and England to Australia and New Zealand, media literacy has become part of the core curriculum. Within the U.S., implementation of reform in this vein has been slow and a number of informal education institutions have stepped in to meet the perceived need, augmenting the core curriculum with media literacy and production opportunities. Yet there are serious questions about what skills the children are actually learning and whether the literacy discourse is yet another attempt at ignoring persistent educational inequalities along the lines of gender, race, and class. In this paper, we consider the viability of combining critical media literacy with standpoint theory to strengthen the multiliteracies movement, offering a more critical and empowering pedagogy. To this end, we analyze an exemplary site of this approach in Los Angeles. (Contains 4 notes.)

During a time of reform and accountability, school districts are closely monitoring teachers' instructional decisions, practices, and classroom environments. In this paper, we apply neocolonial theory to describe the experiences of elementary grade teachers in one California school district who are required to follow a scripted basal reading program. This framework allows us to view teachers' interactions with program mandates through a critical lens. Focusing upon district surveillance of teachers, we suggest that through the implementation of a standard curriculum the district is exercising overt control. We introduce the following three characteristics as they connect to the teachers' situation: "redefined", "restricted", and "subsumed". These terms are then related to the theory of neocolonialism. After a brief description of teachers' reactions to the curriculum, we use the terms as embedded in the theory to describe the situation of mandates and colonization tactics used by the district.

Although few would question the public school's legitimate role in transmitting societal values, controversy surrounds what those values should be and who should make such decisions. School boards should have policies in place to handle curriculum challenges and to establish review committees with broad representation for the selection of instructional materials. (JOW)

Describes and argues for the California Initiative for Family Choice, a voucher plan proposed for the state of California. (IRT)

Describes new perspectives that should be used to teach fourth-grade topics in the 1981 California History/Social Science Framework, California Indians and the major historical periods, and the diverse people who made that history. Lists of materials and organizations that have current Indian publications are included. (AM)

The point of all the services, accommodations, and modifications required by California and federal law is equity. Every child, regardless of disability, has the right to access the same opportunities as nondisabled kids. Schools' highest priorities should be to ensure a quality curriculum and provide continuous and individual assessment to identify learning needs. (MLH)

BACKGROUND: We developed the Tobacco Prevention Toolkit (Toolkit) to enhance the impact of school‐based tobacco education. This study describes the process of developing the Toolkit, its contents, and reach. METHODS: Qualitative community‐based participatory research (CBPR), including focus group discussions (N = 152) and working groups with parents, educators, researchers, and youth (N = 87) were used to develop the Toolkit and design its implementation. Toolkit reach was assessed through number of trained educators using the Toolkit, estimated number of youth recipients of the Toolkit resources, and using Google Analytics for online engagement. RESULTS: The Toolkit is a free, online resource aimed at preventing tobacco use by middle and high school students. Toolkit content addresses varied forms of tobacco including electronic cigarettes, hookah, smokeless tobacco, and cigarettes; addiction; and positive youth development; and is available in multiple interactive formats such as real‐time quizzes, factsheets, activities, and presentations. The Toolkit is mainly delivered by trained educators, who adapt its content and duration to tailor their drug prevention teaching to student needs. As of April 2020, when data for this paper were collected, 4,750 educators have reached an estimated 1.3 million youth. The Toolkit website has 186,116 users and 802,602 page views, growing steadily since 2016. As of August 2021, additional students have been reached, for now a total of 1.85 million students reached. CONCLUSION: The Toolkit resources are evidence‐based, comprehensive, responsive, interactive, easily accessible, and flexible. Applying CBPR was instrumental in developing the Toolkit and expanding its reach. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background and Purpose: In health professional programs, training for educators in instructional design is sparse and may be absent altogether. Implementing evidence-based, systematic instructional design can improve pharmacy curricula. This paper describes Gagné's instructional design model which is particularly effective because the instructional steps align with learners' cognitive processes. The model is applied to the teaching of liver pharmacotherapeutics in a pharmacy curriculum., Educational Activity and Setting: Second-year pharmacy students completed 25 hours of liver pharmacotherapeutics instruction that was developed using Gagné's nine instructional events: gain attention, inform about objectives, stimulate recall of prior information, present information, provide guidance, elicit performance, provide feedback, assess performance, and enhance retention., Findings: Students completed individual and team-based assessments including SOAP notes, recorded case presentations, web-based quizzes, a pre- and post-knowledge assessment, and midterm and final exam multiple-choice test. Students demonstrated significant improvement in liver pharmacotherapeutics knowledge from the pre- to post-knowledge assessment. Student course instructor evaluations also reflected effectiveness of the format., Summary: Evidence-based instructional design strategies, such as Gagné's model, can enhance learning of challenging pharmacotherapeutics concepts using a systematic framework that aligns with cognitive processing., (Copyright © 2018 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.)

Textbooks are a widely used educational intervention that can affect student achievement, and the marginal cost of choosing a more effective textbook is typically small. However, we know little about how textbooks get from the publisher to the classroom. The purpose of this paper is to investigate the ways mathematics textbook adoption practices vary and predict adoption decisions. We use interviews with district leaders in a stratified random sample of 34 California school districts. We find isomorphic, highly formalized adoption processes in most districts. However, we observe some differences along dimensions of district size, technological interest/infrastructure, and English learner concentration. We recommend states produce and update lists of high-quality materials early and often, and that they use a highly rigorous evaluation process. We also recommend states experiment with encouraging similar districts to partner on textbook evaluation and adoption to respond to district demands for information and capacity building around curricula. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Guilt, shame, pride and rage ripple through conversations about racism within the juvenile justice system where the racial contours of mass incarceration challenge the legitimacy of the American ideology of being a colourblind meritocracy. This paper argues that projects of emotional regulation, especially the regulation of young people's emotional response to the hypervisibility of race, are central to the governance of youth in carceral spaces. Drawing on ethnographic research in a southern California juvenile hall, I explore how young people engage with an evolving biopolitics of emotion and the ways carceral spaces shape young people's constructions of racial boundaries and solidarities. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper presents a curriculum, textbook and test result analysis for the new (to California) elementary school “Key Standard” mathematics curriculum, transplanted in 1998 from it's foreign roots in Asia and Europe, locations with far different cultural and economic backgrounds. Based on topic analysis methods developed by Michigan State University, this curriculum is a “quality” curriculum, since it is closely aligned with the curriculum of the six leading TIMSS math countries. Five-year test results are presented for two cohorts totaling over 13,000 students, all from four “early adoption” urban districts where 68% of the students were economically disadvantaged. Included are two cohorts of English learning immigrants totaling over 4,400 students. Performance was found to be statistically superior to similar (control) districts which continued with the old 1991 curriculum and textbooks (0.003 < p < 0.015). The focus of this paper is on the transition from far-below to above average learning performance of these students over the 1998–2002 period. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

(1) Background/Objective: California has one of the highest rates of pediatric dental caries in the nation. One way to combat this problem is through non-dental provider training programs that focus on prevention. However, there are limited data on healthcare provider training program integration and evaluation of oral health curricula focused on prevention of early childhood caries. This study will assess the change in healthcare providers' attitudes, knowledge, and skills by implementing an interprofessional educational (IPE) oral health curriculum in medicine and nurse practitioner programs at one university in Southern California. (2) Methods: A mixed method design was employed using a pre- and post-educational survey, and end-of-program focus group interviews. Descriptive statistics and paired t-tests were used to assess group differences and thematic analyses for the focus groups. (3) Results: A total of 81 students (14 pediatric medicine residents, 18 pediatric, and 49 family nurse practitioners) completed the curriculum and surveys. Attitudes related to oral hygiene remained unchanged, with the nurse practitioner group showing improved clinical skills (all questions; p < 0.021). Knowledge scores significantly improved across all groups (paired t-test; p < 0.001). All focus groups expressed the helpfulness of the educational modules, the usefulness of the skills learned, and the benefits of IPE activities. (4) Conclusion: Healthcare providers showed improved oral health knowledge and clinical skills acquired through the oral health program and can serve as a model to educate across disciplines on the prevention of early childhood caries. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Given today's investment environment and the recent Bear market confronting investors, it is more important than ever to take a reasoned, fundamental approach to selecting common stocks. This paper presents a fundamental approach to selecting common stocks based upon the precepts of Benjamin Graham and Warren Buffett. The paper presents a detailed description of a semester investment project that incorporates different analysis and models to identify publicly traded corporations that are "good buys" based on intrinsic value and future prospects for growth. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Physicians are increasingly approached by individuals seeking integrative approaches to health care and well-being. Many integrative modalities include a physical activity component. Patients seek guidance from primary and specialty care providers on the safe and effective incorporation of these modalities into their lifestyle. Physicians and other health professionals receive very limited training in the clinical applications of exercise science. This paper reports on a curriculum designed to teach health professionals key exercise constructs for application to clinical practice for prevention and management of lifestyle-related disease, and incorporating the curriculum into a preventive medicine residency training program. The course was developed in 2012-2013, data collected in 2013-2015, and analysis was done in 2015. Six modules were developed as part of a 24-hour course. Each module included didactic, laboratory, and case examples. The modules included energetics, exercise and cardiorespiratory health, bone health, obesity and sarcopenia, balance and fall prevention, and behavior change and the use of technologies. The delivery was found feasible for all three components, delivered in 2-4-hour segments. The incorporation into the residency curriculum was feasible, efficacious, well received, and easily incorporated into the existing curriculum. This comprehensive curriculum has the potential to close the gap in medical school, residency, graduate, nursing, and integrative curricula on this important topic. Current practitioners would benefit in primary care and geriatric settings. This curriculum would also be useful for cross-disciplinary researchers, including public health, health behaviors, and integrative medicine practitioners., (Copyright © 2015 American Journal of Preventive Medicine. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.)

Purpose: Higher education teaching has been traditionally delivered through a lecture format, limiting the opportunities for interpersonal communication between faculty and students. The purpose of this study was to determine whether entry-level dental hygiene (DH) students and faculty perceive social media (SM) applications as an effective out-of-class communication (OCC) tool for enhancing learning in a dental hygiene program. Methods: A cross-sectional, comparative research design was used for this pilot study. An investigator-designed, paper survey was administered to a convenience sample of entry-level DH students and faculty from nine dental hygiene programs in Utah, Idaho, Oregon, Washington, and California. Data were analyzed using descriptive and inferential statistics (p=0.05). Results: A total of 418 students and 149 faculty members met the eligibility criteria; 325 DH students (n=325) and 77 faculty completed the surveys (n=77) for a combined response rate of 70.9%. While most faculty and DH students agreed SM could enhance learning for OCC, their level of comfort using these applications varied. Both faculty and DH students use SM applications for questions about assignments, clarification on lecture topics, and feedback on assignments. Statistical significance was found for the frequency of using SM applications for OCC (X2 =16.92; df =4; p =.002). Learning management systems were used and preferred most by both groups followed by Facebook. Statistical significance was found between both groups when ranking electronic devices for OCC. Conclusion: Dental hygiene students and faculty differ in their frequency and levels of comfort in using SM for out-of-class communication. Additional research related to the phenomenon of social media and communication to enhance learning in dental hygiene should be explored. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The increase in adverse health impacts of disasters has raised awareness of the need for education in the field of emergency public health. In the past, most traditional models of graduate education in schools of public health have not incorporated the theory and practice of disaster public health into their curricula. This paper describes the development of a curriculum in emergency public health within a US masters program in public health, and provides a description of the courses that comprise an area of specialization in the field. The interdisciplinary nature of the faculty, close ties with public health practitioners, and practical applications of the nine courses in this program are highlighted. The curriculum is presented as one model that can be used to meet the educational needs of professionals who will assume the responsibility for planning for and responding to the public health impacts of mass-populations disasters.

In the past decade, the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation's 2002 report Means to a Better End: A Report on Dying in America Today and other studies brought attention to deficiencies in care of the dying in the USA. Palliative care's mandate is to promote a 'good death' through expert symptom management and compassionate care that addresses the psychosocial needs and dignity of persons at the end of life. The End-of-Life Nursing Education Consortium (ELNEC) Geriatric 'train-the-trainer' project was launched in 2007 to increase the knowledge and educational skills of nurses and unlicensed staff providing end-of-life care for older adults in nursing homes, skilled nursing facilities, long-term care, and hospices. From 2007 through 2009, 351 California-based nurses and nursing home staff attended one of four ELNEC Geriatric courses. This paper describes programme development, implementation, follow-up evaluations, and examples of participants' use of the ELNEC Geriatric curriculum. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Today's engineers must be more than just technically competent. To be successful in our increasingly global economy in which teamwork and interdisciplinary interaction are the norm, engineers must have excellent communication skills. In recognition of industry needs, the San José State University College of Engineering redesigned its technical communication course to ensure that students graduate with writing and speaking skills that will transfer readily to their career needs and the global arena. The course aims to motivate students through exploring topics that are meaningful to them and using communication formats that they will see in the workplace. Combining technical communication with study of the environment broadens the course to meet multiple Accreditation Board of Engineering and Technology outcomes. This paper describes the course goals, organization, management, selected assignments, and assessment. Assessment data indicate that at the end of the semester students, on average, have gained between 0.8 and 1.1 points on a 12-point evaluation rubric and have gained an appreciation of the unique characteristics of and need for technical writing. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]