No Subject

For more information, visit RAND at
http://www.rand.org/publications/MR/MR1118.


*****************
FEATURE STORY
*****************

9.) ********  Beefing Up On Writing:  California's Experience
(Goal Three:  Student Achievement And Citizenship & Goal Four:  Teacher
Education And Professional Development)

EDUCATION WEEK highlights California's experience in improving writing
classes for students who must meet high state standards in writing (Manzo,
12/12).  "We know that the state test will be either a persuasive essay, a
response to literature, or a personal narrative," said Cynthia Marten, a
reading specialist at Los Penasquitos.  "Now, teachers are scrambling for
how to prepare kids for that [type of test].  We'll probably end up teaching
the three genres pretty well.  But it ends up changing the focus of writing
from communication to writing for a test." 

Lucy McCormack Calkins, director of the Reading and Writing Project at
Teachers College, Columbia University, notes that in the past some teachers
taught writing well while others did not teach it at all.  "In a lot of
states, state testing has put a spotlight on the teaching of writing," she
added.  "The problem is that . . . instead of really good instruction in
writing, [too often] it's test prep in writing."

George Hillocks, an English professor at the University of Chicago,
commented that writing assessments drive instruction in writing.  "In
certain states, because of the assessment, teachers teach formulaically;
they teach the infamous five-paragraph essay," which means methodical
writing.  

According to EDUCATION WEEK, an independent evaluation of the National
Writing Project, a federally financed project based at the University of
California at Berkeley, finds that student writing improves significantly
and teacher instruction changes dramatically as a result of their
participation in the intensive writing program.  The project has local
centers in most states and provides workshops for about 130,000 teachers a
year.  "The programs rarely focus on meeting test requirements," writes
EDUCATION WEEK.

For more information, visit the National Writing Project at
http://www.writingproject.org.

************************************
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NEGP Acting Executive Director: John Barth 
Publisher: Barbara A. Pape 
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WHAT IS THE NATIONAL EDUCATION GOALS PANEL? 
The National Education Goals Panel is a unique bipartisan body of state and
federal officials created in 1990 by President Bush and the nation's
Governors to report state and national progress and urge education
improvement efforts to reach the National Education Goals. 

WHAT DOES THE GOALS PANEL DO?
The Goals Panel has been charged to: 
* Report state and national progress toward the National Education Goals. 
* Work to establish a system of high academic standards and assessments. 
* Identify promising and effective reform strategies. 
* Recommend actions for state, federal, and local governments to take. 
* Build a nationwide, bipartisan consensus to achieve the Goals. 

WHAT ARE THE NATIONAL EDUCATION GOALS? 
There are eight National Education Goals set for the year 2000. They are: 
1) All children will start school ready to learn. 
2) The high school graduation rate will increase to at least 90%. 
3) All students will become competent in challenging subject matter. 
4) Teachers will have the knowledge and skills they need. 
5) U.S. students will be first in the world in math and science achievement.
6) Every adult American will be literate. 
7) Schools will be safe, disciplined, and free of drugs, guns and alcohol. 
8) Schools will promote parental involvement and participation. 

WHO SERVES ON THE GOALS PANEL AND HOW ARE THEY CHOSEN?
Eight governors, four state legislators, four members of the U.S. Congress,
and two members appointed by the President serve on the Goals Panel. Members
are appointed by the leadership of the National Governors' Association, the
National Conference of State Legislatures, the U.S. Senate and House, and
the President. The number of Republicans and Democrats are made even by
appointing five governors from the party that does not control the White
House.
 
The current Panel Members are Governors Frank O'Bannon, IN (Chair,
2001); Jim Geringer, WY (Chair-elect); John Engler, MI; Jim Hodges, SC;
Frank	Keating, OK; Paul E. Patton, KY; Jeanne Shaheen, NH; Tom Vilsack,
IA;
U.S. Senator Jeff Bingaman, NM; U.S. Senator Jim Jeffords, VT; U.S.
Representative George Miller, CA; Representative G. Spencer Coggs,
WI; Representative Mary Lou Cowlishaw, IL; Representative Douglas R.
Jones, ID; Senator Stephen Stoll, MO. 

The annual Goals Report and other publications of the Panel are available
without charge upon request from the Goals Panel or at its web site
http://www.negp.gov. Requests can be made by mail, fax, e-mail, or Internet.


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