This case study focuses on a 2008 incident where Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) vans appeared near a K-5 elementary school. It was the first time school personnel experienced the impact of federal immigration agents policing illegality in their school community, and the event set off a chain of decision-making choices as to how…

Drawing on institutional theory, this study describes how cognitive, normative, and regulative mechanisms shape bilingual teachers' language policy implementation in both English-only and bilingual contexts. Aligned with prior educational language policy research, findings indicate the important role that teachers' beliefs play in the policy…

The premise of the white paper is that education policy results are better for students when policies are informed and shaped by highly effective educators who know firsthand what it takes to deliver excellent teaching and learning. Policymakers and educators should share a sense of urgency to work together to provide every child in our country…

This dissertation studies the creation and implementation of service learning policy and the implications of these programs for democratic citizenship and political participation. The project focuses on service learning centers at three universities in the Los Angeles area, framing the creation and implementation of these campus-wide centers as an…

In an effort to reverse the reading crisis purported to plague public education, schools and districts are mandating prescriptive reading programs and teacher-centered instructional practices in hopes of improving the academic achievement of minority students, including English learners (ELs). The wide-spread implementation of these programs in…

"Policy and Performance in American Higher Education" presents a new approach to understanding how public policy influences institutional performance, with practical insight for those charged with crafting and implementing higher education policy. Public institutions of higher learning are called upon by state governments to provide…

In an interview, Professor David Cohen discusses the lack of political accountability of nonpublic institutions which influence education, such as the testing industry. Strategies for increasing citizen participation in educational policy formulation are also illustrated. (MH)

State-sponsored teacher networks in Vermont and California are compared, using interviews with teachers, network staff, and policymakers. It is concluded that state-sponsored networks can improve teachers' knowledge and motivation while empowering them. Recommendations are made for loosely coupled and capacity-building strategies to support…

This legislatively mandated study is an outgrowth of California's new special education finance law that changed the basis of special education funding to a census system based on the total number of students enrolled in a school district. The study interviewed program directors, school administrators, and policy advisors on whether the state…

This monograph examines benefits, challenges, and methods of expanding access to adult literacy with online distance education (ODE). The following are among the topics discussed: (1) reasons for considering ODE (new technologies and delivery systems in education; ODE in higher education, business training, and adult basic education; state-level…