Ten years ago, Sunnydale High School leaders worked with teachers and community members to create an international baccalaureate (IB)-for-all model to prevent racially and socioeconomically identifiable class levels. For nearly a decade, the program has been successful with stakeholders largely supporting the model. Following pandemic-related…

When projects are the spine of a course, they are systematically sequenced one after the other, and they do the heavy lifting of the course. They teach its core content and skills. The author has been testing this model of course design for several years, aiming for experiential learning that is tied to deep rather than superficial learning of…

A study of human geography begins with the human population. In fact, demographic topics frequently relate to other units in the AP Human Geography course. The three main concepts elaborated upon in this article are (1) the demographic transition model, (2) Malthusian theory and its critics, and (3) pronatalist and antinatalist policies that might…

This article provides an overview of selected current concerns in cultural geography and the way it is taught. It includes coverage of cultural convergence and divergence, race and gender as culturally defined topics, and best teaching practices, including those related to analyzing controversial issues. Two important geographical models are laid…

Early college high school models are designed to encourage and assist traditionally underrepresented groups of students- low income, Latino, and African-American- to persist in and graduate from high school while earning college credit. Some of the models target high school dropouts, with the aim of helping them acquire the education and training…

"Perspectives on Urban Geography" constitutes a major part of the AP Human Geography course outline. In this article, urban core revitalization and rising suburban poverty are considered as two challenges facing cities in developed countries; and industrialization and the growth of megacities as two challenges facing cities in developing…

The first step in teaching-to-understand economics is not teaching "the rules," but working with fundamental economic models from the outset. Many of the concepts in economics are illustrated through models. Students must: (1) be able to draw these models; (2) understand the assumptions of the models; and (3) use the models for analysis.…

The University of North Texas's Texas Academy of Mathematics and Science began admitting students to its 2-year early college entrance science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) program in the fall of 1988. This program provided accelerated entry for top students in Texas in the areas of mathematics and science. Approximately 200…

The cornerstone of evidence-centered assessment design (ECD) is an evidentiary argument that requires that each target of measurement (e.g., learning goal) for an assessment be expressed as a "claim" to be made about an examinee that is relevant to the specific purpose and audience(s) for the assessment. The "observable evidence" required to…

This article describes a partnership involving a college and its surrounding public high schools in order to offer a model for transforming professional development initiatives into collaborative, reciprocal community engagement opportunities. This ongoing partnership addresses the shared goal of improving the mathematical college readiness of…

This article reviews history, models, and benefits of credit-based transition programs between high schools and institutions of higher education. The goal of these programs is to enable high school students to take college courses and earn college credit while still in high school, thereby easing the transition to college through a variety of…

Scaling Effective Programs is a category of giving that is quite unique. Philanthropists have many different interests that guide their giving, but Scaling Effective Programs offers an approach that can produce lasting transformation. This guide speaks to funders who: (1) view their giving as venture capital that stimulates other giving; (2) want…

As Internet technology encroached on the public school classroom about a decade ago, Kim Ross, superintendent of the Houston School District in Houston, Minnesota, saw an opportunity. At first, he and his administrative team simply wanted to offer students in the district of 1,300 access to more classes via the web than what a district that size…

Despite the national, state, and local emphasis on academic progress and standards, the curricular needs of the 3 million highly talented and gifted youth in the U.S. generally have not been embraced as a priority. In many high schools, academically precocious students are expected to progress on their own. The Individuals with Disabilities…

This paper focuses on the attempt by the Singapore government to introduce a new education paradigm to prepare students for success in a knowledge economy. The paper highlights the policy statements and changes for a new paradigm known as an Ability Driven Education (ADE) in Singapore. The ADE, launched as part of the Thinking Schools, Learning…