Purpose: This paper presents a qualitative systematic review of Swedish research on vocational education and training (VET) at the upper secondary school level over the past 20 years. The review is based on a theoretical model on curriculum making as social practice that may serve as model for comparative studies between countries. By introducing…

Despite decades of critiques and scores of innovations designed to abolish or weaken it, the school district remains a central institution of the American educational system. Yet, although the district remains the primary agent of local democratic control and serves as the main unit for educational decisions, relatively little attention has been…

The purpose of this report is to provide information to Tennessee EEs that may help them make decisions about whether to work with their assigned school to align curriculum and instruction with state standards or choose another strategy for helping the school to improve student academic performance. The report includes a description of the topics…

The purpose of this paper is to define a rationale for use in the refinements of daily curriculum operations in a school district, and establish a general understanding about policy and non-policy matters in curriculum. It is concluded that the area of curriculum should be guided by written policies which demonstrate that appropriate attention has…

The four 2004 Total Cost of Ownership (TCO) case studies were developed by the Consortium for School Networking, thanks to a grant from the U.S. Department of Education and the cooperation of the case study school districts. These case studies are presented in the same format as the 2003 studies, but also have a focus on additional technologies…

Participatory curriculum evaluation can be a powerful force for curriculum improvement in local school districts. The evaluation process contains nine steps: (1) the curriculum area needing evaluation is identified; (2) the local board of education organizes an evaluation committee reflecting school communities or neighborhoods, organizational…

Characteristics and practices identified by research associated with improvement in student performance are synthesized. Findings are organized in three sections: the classroom; the school building; and the district. The research base upon which this synthesis is drawn focused upon: (1) school effects research: the whole school studied to identify…

This precis provides a model for alliance-building for reading and mathematics and outlines the sequential steps necessary for successfully negotiating articulation between school districts and universities as a single "urban" ecosystem. The term "urban" is referenced in this precis. The definition by Stone (1998) is applied in this regard as…

The purpose of this article is to describe how two partnering organizations, the College of Education at the University of Missouri-Columbia and the Independence School District, experienced a successful partnership leading to simultaneous renewal. A demonstration of this successful partnership is described not by student achievement outcomes or…

The future of academic content reforms relies on the relationship between policies and the decisions of teachers. Because the agreement of teachers with district policies is congruent with teacher autonomy, the dichotomy of district control and teacher autonomy is invalid. Districts execute instructional leadership by providing teacher autonomy or…

To explore the relationship between time and school learning, this paper defines the three kinds of learning time identified by researchers--allocated time, time-on-task, and academic learning time--and relates them to curriculum development. The author cites evidence that time-on-task is related to student achievement and describes two…

There is a strong relationship between students' socioeconomic status and their levels of academic achievement. Although educators should be held accountable for improving the performance of all students, including those living in poverty, schools alone can't eliminate the negative factors associated with poverty that lead to a large achievement…

School districts strongly influence the strategic choices that schools make to improve teaching and learning. Districts act as gatekeepers for federal and state policy by translating, interpreting, supporting, or blocking actions on their schools' behalf. The efforts of districts to build the capacity of students, teachers, and schools are often…

This document summarizes research on curriculum renewal efforts in small rural schools in the Northwest. The Northwest region includes Alaska, Idaho, Montana, Oregon, and Washington. Curriculum renewal involves activities aimed at meeting state reform standards and educational improvement initiatives. An examination of accreditation standards…

This collection of short articles, devoted to educational reform at the local level, addresses the issues of improving curricula, expanding educational resources, addressing dropout and discipline problems, and handling increased court involvement in school reform. "The Sceptre, the Rod and the Schoolhouse Gate," by Lawrence Friedman, traces the…