About Children
Recommendations for Improving the Assessment and Monitoring of Students with Limited English Proficiency
Recommendations for Improving the Assessment and Monitoring of Students with Limited English Proficiency, Council of Chief State School Officers.
Clear, concise guidance for improving procedures for screening and assessing LEP students for placement and reclassification. The report suggests effective data collection procedures, a service delivery model, and policy recommendations, with federal, state, and local implications.
Available from CCSSO, One Massachusetts Ave., NW, Washington, DC 20001. 1992. 18 pp. Large paperbound. $6.
Retention in Grade
Retention in Grade: Looking for Alternatives, Center for Evaluation, Development, Research, Phi Delta Kappa.
A recent entry in Phi Delta Kappa's Hot Topics Series, this publication makes a case against retention. The authors review selected research; discuss students who are at risk for retention; offer views on retention, school readiness, and policy implications; and then explore alternatives.
Available from Phi Delta Kappa, Box 789, Bloomington, IN 47402. 1991. 326 pp. Large paperbound. $25 each, three or more, $20 (plus $3 shipping).
Children with Exceptional Needs in Regular Classrooms
Children with Exceptional Needs in Regular Classrooms, edited by Libby G. Cohen.
With an eye on emerging trends and preferred practices, the contributors discuss the characteristics of children with exceptional needs, how to accommodate them in regular classrooms, effective instructional strategies, legal requirements, and performance evaluation strategies. Addresses the needs of students with behavior disorders, mild and severe disabilities, visual and hearing impairments, and the gifted. A special chapter tells how the microcomputer is an effective tool for instruction and classroom management.
Available from National Education Association Professional Library, P.O. Box 509, West Haven, CT 06516. 1992. 184 pp. Paperbound. $11.95.
About Community Education
Community Education
Community Education: Building Learning Communities, 3rd. ed., Larry E. Decker and Associates.
This slim volume is a guide to using available community resources—including the resources of the school—to meet the needs of all community members. It discusses principles and results of community education, getting started, program components, funding options, and assessment. Brief descriptions are included for 10 active community education programs.
Available from the National Community Education Association, 801 N. Fairfax St., Suite 209, Alexandria, VA 22314. 1992. 24 pp. Paperbound. $2.95 (add $2 postage and handling unless prepaid).
Educational Restructuring and the Community Education Process
Educational Restructuring and the Community Education Process, Larry E. Decker and Valerie A. Romney, eds.
This book brings national education leaders and current practitioners together to consider the 55-year history of community education, its present role, and its future. Specific programs in South Carolina, Kentucky, and Ohio are considered, as well as community education in urban and rural communities. Authors also discuss community education in the context of America 2000.
Available from the National Community Education Association, 801 N. Fairfax St., Suite 209, Alexandria, VA 22314. 1992. 140 pp. Paperbound. $9.95 (add $2 postage and handling unless prepaid).
About Writing
Portfolios in the Writing Classroom
Portfolios in the Writing Classroom, edited by Kathleen Blake Yancey.
Are portfolios worth the extra effort? Definitely yes, according to this collection of essays. Eleven contributors who've been there share the rewards and challenges of portfolio use with students in middle and high schools and college basic writing classes. Contains an annotated bibliography. Intended for teachers and supervisors of secondary school and college writing programs.
Available from National Council of Teachers of English, 1111 Kenyon Rd., Urbana, IL 61801. 1992. 136 pp. Paperbound. $10.50, NCTE members, $7.95.
Thinking/Writing
Thinking/Writing: Fostering Critical Thinking Through Writing, Carol Booth Olson.
Born out of the National Writing Project/University of California, Irvine, this collection of lessons demonstrates concrete strategies teachers can draw on to develop instruction that integrates listening, speaking, reading, writing, and critical thinking. The lessons—for use with students of all ages and abilities—are categorized by the cognitive levels identified in Bloom's taxonomy. Intended for teacher educators, inservice trainers, prospective and practicing teachers.
Available from HarperCollins Publishers, 10 E. 53rd St., New York, NY 10022. 1992. 508 pp. Paperbound. $18.
About Middle Schools
This We Believe
This We Believe, National Middle School Association.
This concise statement, originally published in 1982, sets forth the Middle School Association's consensus as to what constitutes “clear philosophical and programmatic bases for middle level education.” Chapters define the middle school, address its rationale, and discuss characteristics of emerging adolescents.
Available from NMSA, 4807 Evanswood Dr., Columbus, OH 43229. 1982/1992. 48 pp. Paperbound. $7 (plus $3 shipping).
How to Get Funding
Guide to Federal Government Support
Guide to Federal Government Support, rev. ed., edited by Ginny Gutierrez.
In addition to a section on “how to develop and write grant proposals to a federal agency,” this mammoth guide offers “hundreds of untapped funding and support programs from more than 100 federal government offices.” For K–12 educators seeking alternative funding from corporations, associations, foundations, nonprofit organizations, and government agencies.
Available from Education Interface, P.O. Box 3649, Princeton, NJ 08543. 1992. 500 pp. Large paperbound. $199.
