The current context of standards-based reform has positioned regional service centers (RSCs), intermediary governmental agencies that support state policy implementation in local districts, as a critical source of professional development (PD). In this article, we ask how a governing body that districts often interact with during challenging…

The current context of standards-based reform has positioned regional service centers (RSCs), intermediary governmental agencies that support state policy implementation in local districts, as a critical source of professional development (PD). In this article, we ask how a governing body that districts often interact with during challenging…

This article examines how elementary public school teachers in South Texas are implementing a balanced literacy approach in light of the expectations of accountability for student performance. For more than three decades, Texas schools have felt, and continue to feel, the pressure of accountability. Therefore, it becomes essential to investigate…

The Center on Standards, Alignment, Instruction, and Learning (C-SAIL) examines how college- and career-ready standards are implemented, if they improve student learning, and what instructional tools measure and support their implementation. The Center studies elementary and high school math and English Language Arts (ELA) standards, and has a…

"Ripe for Change: Garden-Based Learning in Schools" takes a big-picture view of the school garden movement and the state of garden-based learning in public K--8 education. The book frames the garden movement for educators and shows how school gardens have the potential to be a significant resource for teaching and learning. In this…

Considerable research suggests that standardizing curricular materials can undermine teachers' ability to facilitate learning. Nonetheless, U.S. school districts' curriculum guides have become increasingly standardized, with teachers being required to follow predetermined pacing calendars indicating which standards to teach during specific months,…

The Texas Education Agency's (TEA) approved instrument for evaluating teachers, the Professional Development and Appraisal System (PDAS), was the primary instrument used by 86 percent of local education agencies (LEAs) in the state and has been in place since 1997. In acknowledging the vital roles teachers play in student achievement, and based on…

Gaining Early Awareness and Readiness for Undergraduate Programs, or GEAR UP, is a federally-funded system of grants that focuses on preparing low-income students to enter and succeed in postsecondary educational programs. GEAR UP grants extend across 6 school years and require that funded districts begin providing grant services to students no…

This report presents findings from the Year 3 evaluation of Texas' state-level Gaining Early Awareness and Readiness for Undergraduate Programs, or GEAR UP, grant. GEAR UP grant requirements include an evaluation component designed to assess program effectiveness and to measure progress toward project goals. To this end, the evaluation considers…

The federal Gaining Early Awareness and Readiness for Undergraduate Programs, or GEAR UP, project strives to equalize low-income students' access to higher education by increasing their participation in rigorous coursework, providing expanded opportunities for low-income students and parents to learn about postsecondary educational opportunities…

Accountability and assessment are critical components to the success of schools today. As leaders of school districts, superintendents in Texas and across the nation are faced daily with meeting this challenge. While doing so, they must remember that their priority commitment is not to testing programs, but to helping children achieve.…

A study examined the competencies needed for articulation among and between postsecondary vocational food technology programs in Texas. A two-round Delphi survey was used to collect data from the instructors and coordinators of food service programs in Texas postsecondary institutions during the 1984-85 school year. Thirty-five of the 71 persons…

A study examined postsecondary occupational programs in clothing and textiles technology in Texas in order to (1) identify common essential competencies taught in postsecondary clothing/textiles technology programs, (2) develop and distribute student competency profiles of essential common competencies shared by the eight areas of study within…