This week the White House released a report that examines the nation's progress over the last 8 years in standards and accountability, student performance, closing the achievement gap, technology, access to college, and other areas. "Brief on Educational Progress 1992-2000" points to areas where improvements are needed and looks at the benefits of targeted investments and accountability for results.

This week President Clinton announced GEAR UP grants aimed to help more than 710,000 disadvantaged middle school students prepare for and pursue a college education. The President said that GEAR UP (Gaining Early Awareness and Readiness for Undergraduate Programs) "is a partnership with low-income kids that says, if you'll aim high and aspire to college, we'll help you get there with counseling, mentoring, tutoring and financial aid."

State grants went to GEAR UP programs in AZ, HI, KY, MO, NC, VA, and WV. Partnership grants will support 73 partnerships in 33 states and Puerto Rico.

Under the program, high-poverty middle schools partner with at least 2 community and business organizations and local colleges and universities to provide all students in a grade (typically beginning with Grade 6 or 7) and their families with enhanced curricular offerings, summer academies, and information about college options, the college application process, and financial aid. The Department this year again received more GEAR UP applications than could be funded. Only 7 of 21 state grant applications and 73 of 262 of partnership applications could be funded. The President requested $325 million in FY2001 to serve some 1.4 million low-income students. Funding for the current fiscal year is $200 million.
http://www.ed.gov/PressReleases/09-2000/0912.html
http://www.ed.gov/gearup/

On September 13, Secretary Riley released "Early Implementation of the Comprehensive School Reform Demonstration (CSRD) Program," a report showing that this program is helping bring research-based, whole-school reform to 1,800 mostly high-poverty or low-performing schools across the U.S. The 2-year-old CSRD program helps schools -- particularly low-performing schools -- rethink their entire school operations, use proven strategies, coordinate their reform efforts, and more effectively use Title I and other federal, state, and local resources.

Findings suggest that...

• CSRD schools compare favorably against Title I schools in supporting the priorities of Title I and in providing ongoing teacher professional development, involving parents, and extending learning time.
• CSRD is being used by states as a model for restructuring their own school reform efforts.
• Nearly half of CSRD schools use one of 17 models cited in the CSRD legislation.

Advice, resources, lessons learned, and more are available in the 80-page report, which is at
http://www.ed.gov/PressReleases/09-2000/0913.html
http://www.ed.gov/offices/OUS/eval/elem.html#Miscl

The Department released 2 reports this week at the Conference on Educational Technology. "E-Rate and the Digital Divide" tells that the E-Rate program has provided more than $3 billion for America's public schools, that 3 out of 4 public schools and districts applied in the first 2 years, and that per-pupil funding for high-poverty schools was more than twice the national average and nearly 10 times that of the wealthiest schools.

"The E-Rate and educational technology can open up tremendous opportunities for students -- but only if teachers are trained to use it effectively," Secretary Riley said, pointing to a second report, "Teachers' Tools for the 21st Century: A Report on Teachers' Use of Technology." Based on a 1999 survey of teachers, this NCES report says...

• Nearly all public school teachers (99%) reported that computers were available somewhere in their schools.
• In their classrooms, most public school teachers (84%) had at least one computer. 38% said they had 2 to 5 computers in their classrooms; 10% had more than 5; and 36% said they had one computer in their classrooms.
• At home, most public school teachers (82%) had a computer. 63% said they had the Internet at home, and 27% said their school had a network they could use to access the Internet from home.
• Barriers to using computers and the Internet for instruction most frequently reported by public school teachers were not enough computers (78%), lack of release time to learn how to use computers or the Internet (82%), and lack of time in schedule for students to use computers in class (80%).

Secretary Riley said that if teachers are to be better prepared to use technology, "all of us have to get serious about this issue. We need more school-college partnerships and more private-public partnerships. And we at the national level should contribute more, also. We are asking Congress to double the funding, to $150 million, to help prepare teachers to use technology.

"Another challenge for us: While much of the funding for the E-Rate has gone to high-poverty schools," he said, "the poorest of the poor are not yet benefiting as much as they should from the E-Rate. Many of the poorest schools can't even afford the 10% match or can't overcome other obstacles -- such as 19th-century school buildings -- that prevent them from taking advantage of 21st-century technology."

The reports, speech, and conference papers are at http://www.ed.gov/Speeches/09-2000/000911.html

Last month the Department released "School Involvement in Early Childhood," a 50-page report that helps answer questions such as...

Why should schools be involved in early childhood, and what roles should schools play? What facilitates school involvement in early childhood, and what challenges do public schools face with involvement in early childhood? What are the key issues for professional development?

Dozens of examples describe how states and communities are expanding and improving preschool care and education. For instance:

• Georgia uses state lottery funds to offer voluntary prekindergarten for all 4-year-olds. The program, begun in 1993, now enrolls 61,000 children in schools, Head Start, and child care centers. In an ongoing 12-year study, kindergarten teachers rated 64% of the former prekindergartners as above average in readiness for kindergarten, and at the end of the year, 68% as above average in readiness for first grade.
• North Carolina initiated Smart Start in 1993, a program that has grown from 18 to all 100 counties. The county-based program is designed to improve school readiness primarily by subsidizing child care costs and improving child care quality. A 6-county evaluation found that Smart Start assistance that focused directly on improving child care classroom quality improved children's skills and behavior in kindergarten. Only 9% of children from centers that received this direct assistance had low cognitive skills and 10% had behavior problems, compared with 17% and 18% of their peers.

http://www.ed.gov/pubs/schoolinvolvement/

A September 28 satellite broadcast, "Safer Schools: Helping Students Resist Drugs," will focus on afterschool programs that help students resist peer pressure to use drugs. Specialists will discuss the link between substance abuse and violence, and students will share their views. The broadcast is produced by the National Education Association in collaboration with the White House Office of National Drug Control Policy. For details and satellite coordinates, visit http://www.nea.org/

On October 14-17, the Department's Safe and Drug-Free Schools and Communities Program will sponsor its 14th annual national meeting on Alcohol, Other Drug, and Violence Prevention in Higher Education. "Campus and Community Collaboration: A Confluence of Commitment" is the theme of the meeting, which will be held in Pittsburgh, PA. The strategy of forming coalitions and partnerships in prevention will be highlighted. Participants will also look at research-based strategies, professional development, and current issues and controversies. For details and to register online, please visit http://www.higheredcenter.org/natl/2000/

On October 12 afterschool programs across the country will turn on their lights and host open houses for their communities. At the events, everyone from parents and grandparents to media and elected officials to community leaders and residents will learn firsthand what afterschool can offer children and youth. You can sign up to host a Lights On event, find planning tips and event ideas, and search for an event in your community by visiting http://www.afterschoolalliance.org/lightson.html "Lights On Afterschool" is sponsored by the Afterschool Alliance, a partnership between the Charles Stewart Mott Foundation, the Department, JCPenney, the Entertainment Industry Foundation, the Creative Artist Agency Foundation, the Ad Council, and People Magazine.

NPEC Sourcebook on Assessment, Volume 1: Definitions and Assessment Methods for Critical Thinking, Problem Solving, and Writing is a compendium of information about postsecondary tests used to assess 3 skills: critical thinking, problem solving, and writing. http://nces.ed.gov/pubsearch/pubsinfo.asp?pubid=2000195

NPEC Sourcebook on Assessment, Volume 2: Selected Institutions Utilizing Assessment Results presents case studies highlighting successful uses of assessment data for external policy-related decisions. http://nces.ed.gov/pubsearch/pubsinfo.asp?pubid=2000196

"Early Literacy in the Northeast" is the focus this month at The Knowledge Loom, a searchable collection of promising practices in education. You can read about school-level early literacy practices and school success stories, review research about the practices, add your own stories and questions, participate in online events and discussions, and discover supporting organizations and resources. You are invited to participate in a discussion with experts in early literacy September 15 - October 15. (Click on "Early Literacy in the Northeast" under the heading Spotlight Library; then click on "participate.") http://knowledgeloom.org

ED Initiatives is made possible by many contributors, including Stephanie Babyak, Adriana de Kanter, Kathy Doherty, John Emekli, Jane Glickman, Donna Hinkle, Peter Kickbush, Melinda Kitchell Malico, Mary Anne Mather, Bill Modzeleski, Tracy Sisser, David Thomas, Melinda Ulloa, and others.

Have a comment or suggestion on ED Initiatives? Please send it to Kirk Winters in the Office of the Under Secretary at kirk.winters@ed.gov.