For many students, project-based learning (PBL) can be more engaging than more traditional instructional approaches. Over the past 15 years, Anna Saavedra and Amie Rapaport studied seven inquiry-based approaches. Their research shows that PBL has a positive effect on students' achievement and development of important soft skills. Schools can…

The Response to Intervention initiative is in danger of failing and being thrown on the ash heaps of countless education reform initiatives, but not because it is poorly structured, rather on account of poor implementation. Among the implementation mistakes are seven that can be watched for and avoided. (Contains 3 tables.)

Scholars from the American Institutes for Research analyzed findings from over 1,300 studies that potentially address the effect of professional development on student learning outcomes. The project was sponsored by the Regional Education Laboratory-Southwest (RELSW) and funded by the Institute of Education Sciences of the U.S. Department of…

Discusses implementation and evaluation in moral education pilot projects in Canadian elementary and secondary schools, emphasizing the role and impact of the teacher in teaching of values. (DW)

Taking students seriously is the key to the student evaluator model. Aided by an experienced evaluation facilitator, students design and carry out evaluations of specific programs in which they are involved. For a project to succeed, those in charge must place their trust in the students and help create a climate of acceptance for the project. Two…

Argues that only if revenue sharing is genuinely responsive to citizen needs and in fact, secures self-initiated involvement of citizens in program execution will it be ultimately successful in developing self-supporting individuals and communities. (JF)

The former director of the national Teacher Center Project outlines nine of the most widely recognized problems in the development of teacher centers across the U.S. He concludes that the centers have given teachers a sense of greater control over their inservice education. (Author/WD)

Looks at past evaluation of compensatory education, suggests new approaches to evaluation, and makes recommendations about program implementation. (IRT)

Peggy Farber's stories (in the March 1998 "Kappan") about a few individuals at Boston Renaissance Charter School have a place in evaluating the program. However, the real story cannot be drawn from a few isolated, highly selective anecdotes. A balanced evaluation would have framed the discussion around the schools' progress with…

The newly appointed director of the National Institute of Education responds to questions about the institute's objectives. (JN)

A candid appraisal of the difficulties faced in establishing a research and education division at John Adams High School. (Author)

FOCUS, a program aimed at student valuing, self-image, and interpersonal relations, was found by a national Title III validation team to have improved student attitude toward school, increased attendance, and raised academic achievement. (DW)

Attempts to analyze what happened to the high hopes for ESEA Title III and how its original direction can be modified to achieve its original goal of promoting beneficial change in American education while lessening the time between development of new teaching practices and their adoption in the classroom. Considers the specific impact of ESEA…

Outlines California's major educational reform legislation during 1980's and describes a Policy Analysis for California Education (PACE) study of policy implementations. Results show that nearly all schools correctly implemented key provisions of S.B. 813, that state level reform can be effective when accompanied by cohesive local strategizing,…

To prepare for life in the real world, an "American Problems" course sends students into the community for practical, involved, experience learning in community agencies and activities. (DW)