This paper reports an evaluation of an innovative university-school partnership in which teacher practitioners work as university lecturers in a regional Australian pre-service teacher education programme. The philosophy of this programme encompasses authentic partnerships between universities, schools and other industry employers. The study was…

This descriptive study investigated the benefits and costs of using electronic portfolios (EPs) in preservice teacher education. Grounded within change theory, the study examined the perspectives of faculty in six programs in which EPs have been used on a large scale for two or more years. Benefits identified include increased opportunities for…

This paper provides a program evaluation of the K-12 social science program in the Des Moines (Iowa) public schools. The program attempts to provide a balance between American and World Studies, History and Current Issues. It emphasizes multicultural and non-sexist learnings and includes the knowledge, skills and attitudes necessary to survive in…

A study was conducted to determine the most salient elements to be incorporated into a curriculum studies course for students in one of the three 2-year teacher training colleges in Swaziland. The course was developed to acquaint prospective teachers with curriculum objectives, methods, and evaluation devices, and to help them to critique some…

The Study of School Turnaround examines the improvement process in a purposive sample of 35 case study schools receiving federal funds through the School Improvement Grants (SIG) program over a three-year period (2010-11 to 2012-13 school years). This evaluation brief focuses on 11 of these SIG schools with high proportions of English Language…

This Speaker's Task Force on Arts Education report indicates that arts programs in California schools are on the decline. A drop in student enrollment in the arts and school expenditures for the arts is exacerbated by budget crises that result in cuts to existing art programs. Although a general lack of comprehensive and integrated arts education…

School reform efforts in North Carolina strive to reflect the understanding that changes in the ways young children and their families are served must be systemic and sustained. Intended to help schools evaluate their current programs and set goals for continued improvement, this guide presents program standards and quality indicators based upon…

Literacy has become much more than just the ability to read: recent literature related to literacy instruction suggests that an essential goal is to develop in students the ability to think deeply about what they read and to express themselves accurately and expressively in all contexts. There is a growing acceptance of the importance of lifelong…

While it is clear that reading is critical to children's success throughout schooling and reading instruction research has dramatically increased over the past 2 decades, few early childhood providers have the necessary knowledge, skills and/or confidence to effectively implement evidence-based, emergent literacy strategies in their settings. This…

In 1992, the U.S. Department of Defense and U.S. Department of Education jointly developed the Junior Reserve Officers Training Corps (JROTC) Career Academy model, which provides a framework for implementation of an innovative vocational education program designed to keep dropout-prone students in school. The program, which combines military…

This brief draws upon the five-year evaluation study of the San Diego Urban Systemic Project (USP) that Inverness Research Associates conducted from 2001 to 2006. The intended audiences for this brief are those interested in investing in, supporting, or designing initiatives that aim to improve math and science education in large urban districts.…

The National High School Center released methods for improving low-performing high schools based on some of the most rigorous research currently available in the school reform arena. This research brief identifies lessons learned as well as key practices used to strengthen high schools and is based on evaluations of four widely used high school…

The purpose of the brief is to help educators, service providers, and local evaluators in schools, intermediary and community-based organizations, and social service agencies become more effective by highlighting the best program and evaluation practices of family-strengthening intervention programs. At a time when evidence-based practice matters,…

Establishing and sustaining quality teaching is equally dependent on the capacity of organizations and networks at regional, district and school levels to productively engage in improvement efforts that are realized in the classroom. The "teacher workforce" evokes military and industrial images, huge numbers of workers who must be trained,…

Beginning in September, 2001 when the Portland Public Schools received funding from the National Science Foundation (NSF) through the Urban Systemic Program (USP) initiative, the district focused, accelerated and strengthened its efforts to improve mathematics and science education K-12. Since its inception the authors at Inverness Research…