This mixed-method study examines Michigan's Partnership policy for school turnaround, which positions the district and superintendents as key policy implementation actors. We first interviewed 21 of 35 Partnership superintendents/leaders across Michigan and surveyed teachers to understand the initial response to the turnaround policy and the…

Despite a growing body of research on the outcomes of holistic admissions and eliminating standardized test score requirements throughout education, few have documented how organizations transition to holistic review. Implementation, however, may help explain variation in impacts of holistic admissions. This article draws upon theories of…

The recent Every Student Succeeds Act (ESSA) requires states to identify and turn around their lowest performing schools, but it breaks somewhat from prior policies by granting states significant autonomy over how they identify and turn around these schools. This mixed-methods study, which draws on administrative, qualitative, and survey data,…

The higher education policy implementation landscape has substantially shaped postsecondary education opportunities for undocumented youth, who are already negatively affected by discriminatory public policies, and institutional agents, who are often unprepared to address their needs. Guided by Bressers's contextual interaction theory that…

As state and federal policymakers continue to adopt more centralized policies, it is increasingly important to understand how policies, particularly those designed to enhance education for underserved students, are implemented locally. We employ a mixed-methods sequential explanatory design to investigate the implementation of one policy, that…

Although multiple-measure teacher evaluation systems have gained popularity in the United States, few studies have examined their implementation or how they are shaped by organizational context. New Orleans provides a strategic case to examine the enactment of a state teacher evaluation policy in a highly decentralized setting with variation in…

One critical factor in policy implementation is how teachers interpret policy. Previous research largely overlooks how the broader culture shapes teachers' interpretations. In the current research, we explore how teachers' interpretations of instructional reforms are associated with the logics of broad societal institutions. Our longitudinal…

We studied how six high-performing, high-poverty schools in one large Massachusetts city implemented the state's new teacher evaluation policy. The sample includes traditional, turnaround, restart, and charter schools, each of which had received the state's highest accountability rating. We sought to learn how these successful schools approached…

Despite major changes to teacher evaluation since 2009, scant research examines how principals enact these policies. Drawing on qualitative interviews with 44 principals in 13 Connecticut districts, we use structure-agency theory to characterize how principals improvised when implementing the state evaluation model. We find that principals' use of…

In this article, we perform cost-effectiveness analysis on interventions that improve the rate of high school completion. Using the What Works Clearinghouse to select effective interventions, we calculate cost-effectiveness ratios for five youth interventions. We document wide variation in cost-effectiveness ratios between programs and between…

Discusses a framework for integrating the macroworld of the policymakers with the microworld of the individuals who implement those policies. Analyzes policy directed change. (RB)

It is argued that school administrators at the state, district, or building level should review and evaluate policy in addition to their more traditional roles in implementation. This exercise of leadership should provide a more comprehensive response to policy initiatives. (SLD)

Important past research on the state role, particularly that of state education agencies, in making and implementing educational policy is reviewed and assessed. Gaps in research and current issues are identified, and suggestions are offered for the future. (RL)

Presents the concept of instructional program coherence and explains why school improvement frameworks that incorporate instructional program coherence are more likely to advance student achievement than multiple unrelated efforts. Presents some evidence that Chicago, Illinois, elementary schools with stronger instructional program coherence make…

Longitudinal research demonstrates that: (1) initial consensual goals are formalized incrementally over time; (2) directions of these changes are influenced by constituencies participating in policy formation as well as broader social movements; and (3) evidence for longitudinal implementation studies needs to be garnered from a confluence of…