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Based on the experience of the past, current viewpoints, and opinions about the future as conceived by the Committee on Vocational Education Research and Development (COVERD), this paper explains a framework for considering alternative policy options and discusses the relationships among the social environment, status and trends in vocational education, and federal policy options for conducting Vocational Education Research and Development (VERD). Policy options for federally supported VERD are profiled on the dimensions of control, funding, performers, continuity, standards, functions, program areas, occupational focus, and populations, institutions, and demographic settings served. Included also are illustrative generalizations and a tabled schematic display of a number of general propositions about the relation between federal policy options and their outcomes for the quality of VERD findings and products, their effect on building capacity, the utility of findings and products, and the consequent political support for VERD. Appended is a schematic model for Project Baseline that provides for an analysis of both VERD processes and impacts. The model is described in a cumulative series of five figures using a combination of actual and hypothetical data. (NJ)

The taxonomy is designed to characterize, summarize, and generalize about the career education movement. It describes career education projects by the following paradigm: topics, dimensions, measures, and descriptors. (The four topics are: school district, career education project, career education instructional program, and evaluation of career education project.) Volume 1 provides an 11-page working outline of the taxonomy developed by an analysis of 72 representative elementary and secondary career education projects throughout the United States. It also contains 68 easily-readable charts which analyze to the nearest 10 percent the data of the 72 projects in a form corresponding to the taxonomic outline. Volume 1 also contains an excerpt from the U. S. Office of Education publication, Career Education: Programs and Progress, and 60 pages of sample career education project director's interview forms. Volumes 2, 3, and 4 contain unevenly detailed, alphabetically listed, profiles of over 200 career education projects in the 50 States, which follow this form: district and project information, approach to career education, project staff, school staff, training, community resources, curriculum materials, and ideas that worked. Volume 2 contains profiles for Alabama--Iowa; Volume 3 for Kansas--New Mexico; Volume 4 for New York--Wyoming. (JR)

An evaluation was done of three sites (Cincinnati, Cleveland, and Springfield) participating in Ohio's Career Development Program for students in grades K-10 from 1975-1976 to (1) assess leadership characteristics of the individual programs and classroom teaching activities of the program teachers and (2) determine the amount and type of student learning of career education concepts in grades 3, 6, 8, and 10. To assess the program process, the local program directors, school administrators, teachers, and students were interviewed, instructional materials were examined, and classrooms were visited during 2-day site visits. Utilizing tests developed in Ohio, the pretest status and pre- and posttest growth of program and non-program students were analyzed to evaluate student learning. The 11 conclusions regarding student learning suggest that the program has influenced the learning of students, has made slightly more impact on cognitive than affective learning, and has been most successful in the elementary grades. The four conclusions about program process indicate that program directors and coordinators are capable of assuming a leadership role in infusing career development concepts into their schools, and appear to be providing for program expansion. (The appendix comprises two-thirds of this report and includes process evaluations and the pre- and posttest findings from the three study sites.) (EM)

This paper compares and contrasts minimum competency testing and transferable skills in order to identify the important questions and issues to be considered by educational planners in developing programs intended to prepare students to meet the demands of both work and life. Each of the seven sections addresses a specific question related to minimum competencies and transferable skills. Sections included are (1) Why the Current Interest in Them?; (2) Whether Competencies or Skills?; (3) What Competencies and Skills?; (4) How Many?; (5) How Measured?; (6) When Measured?; and (7) What to Do with the Incompetent? Examples of transferable skills and characteristics are appended. (LRA)

The effective utilization of research and development products ranks as one of the top priorities in American public education. The document contains two concept papers by recognized authorities on knowledge utilization activities: A Diffusion Mechanism for the Center for Vocational and Technical Education, Egon G. Guba; and Alternative Diffusion Strategies, Henry M. Brickell. The first paper begins with a review of diffusion models: considers six tactics including telling, showing, helping, involving, training, and intervening; and offers an explication of a diffusion program for the Center as its major thrust. Advocated within the program as mechanisms for effective diffusion are: (1) a distributor relations division; (2) a warranty division; (3) a training division; (4) a promotions division; and (5) a market studies division. Each division's functions are outlined and evaluation criteria are reviewed. The second paper considers 10 images of the practitioner (regarding educators as adopters of innovations); implications of these images for diffusion; characteristics of the adoption setting; characteristics of the innovation, with a summary of desirable characteristics; and diffusion tactics. This paper concludes with alternative diffusion strategies describing sample case strategies for the adoption of an innovation in an educational setting. (NH)

A study examined the reasons for and the timing of adult learning. A national sample of almost 2000 American age 25 or older were interviewed face-to-face or by telephone. Questions examined the causes and timing of adult learning and the procedures used by adults to meet their learning objectives. Examination of the characteristics of learners and non-learners among survey participants revealed that learners are considerably younger, better educated, and in higher income brackets than non-learners and are more likely to be white, unmarried, and live in urbanized areas. Most respondents (83 per cent) said they were learning to cope with career, family, health, religious, or citizenship changes. Desire to pursue leisure and art activities was cited by 17 per cent of the respondents. The timing of adult learning was directly dependent on the timing of these transitions. Analysis of adult learning procedures revealed that over half of the respondents studied career-related topics, about 30 per cent learned on their own, 30 per cent learned in educational institutions, and 40 per cent learned elsewhere. Eighteen conclusions and a series of implications for adult educators, counselors, policy makers and learners were made. (Appendixes contain fifty-nine tables summarizing survey results.) (MN)

The Michigan Department of Education developed an operational model for career education which combined the elements of individual career development with career preparation accomplished through academic, vocational, and technical education programs. A third-party evaluation was conducted to determine to what extent the operational model has been designed, developed, and disseminated throughout the state and to what extent this model is viable. Survey instruments were administered to the following populations: (1) a randomly drawn sample of 60 of the 525 local school districts in the state; (2) a selected sample of 98 school districts now active in career education; (3) all 49 career education planning districts; and (4) a majority of the 8 colleges and universities in the career education consortium. The third-party evaluator found that the general conceptual model was comprehensive in scope and extremely ambitious in the degree of change it envisioned in educational programs throughout the state. A substantial set of products was developed to put the conceptual model in operational form. An administrative network was also developed to disseminate the model, but the data indicate that the dissemination process is still in its early stages. Finally, the viability of the model rests on the degree to which personnel in the educational system change their roles and work together to make the model operational. (BM)

Presented is an analysis of nine agreements focused on three areas of common concern to dissemination specialists involved in the 1977 National Dissemination Forum: resources, linkage, research, evaluation and quality control. FORUM participants represented the Education Resources Information Center (ERIC of the National Institute of Education (NIE), the National Diffusion Network (NDN) of the U.S. Office of Education, the Research and Development Exchange (RDX) of NIE, the Research and Development Utilization Program (RDU) of NIE, and the State Education Agencies-National Dissemination Leadership Project (SEA/NDLP) of NIE. An appendix to the document contains the report of the Resources group.

The report presents a narrative containing over 20 generalizations about the effectiveness of economic education in senior high schools. Policy Studies in Education, a department of the Educational Research Council of America, conducted a 14-step review of research in order to develop the generalizations. The process involved collection and review of existing research, development of 27 working propositions and a working bibliography, review of the working papers by specialists and generalists, and revision of the working papers to accommodate additional citations by reviewers. The resulting generalizations represent the best understanding of what the research literature says. Among the generalizations are statements that senior high students learn little economics without formal courses; with economics courses students acquire economic knowledge and become more conservative; student learning increases in proportion to the amount of teacher training; and superior teaching methods include those that make the content relevant to students' lives. The pamphlet of working propositions covers areas of student characteristics, course types, and teacher training. The working bibliography contains over 600 titles of evaluation and research studies dealing with economic education from the elementary through postsecondary levels of schooling. (Author/AV)

This report presents the findings from a study to describe how Americans in transition study for college credit and to establish the extent of degree versus nondegree study. Introductory materials discuss why and how the study was made and the annual rate of adult credit study. Part I describes the demographic characteristics of the 1,000 adults interviewed who had taken a course or an entire program for college credit at any time in the previous two years. A discussion of each characteristic makes observations and offers interpretations. A graph illustrating the findings follows each discussion. Part II begins with descriptions of the type and nature of degree study among adults and then continues with descriptions of patterns of adult study among both degree and nondegree students combined. The same format as in part I is followed: observations, interpretations, and a bar graph. Part III concludes the report with descriptions of differences among adult students with respect to demographic characteristics and patterns of study. (YLB)