Every year, State of the State addresses offer time for new and incumbent governors to outline policy priorities and celebrate state accomplishments. Since 2005, we've tracked, analyzed and identified education policy trends in governors' State of the State addresses to help you understand trending education issues across states. This year's…

In this study, the perceptions of educational leaders of incentive pay programs, including Missouri's Career Ladder Program were examined. A mixed-methods design provided a process by which student achievement, professional development, and the retention of high quality and effective teachers were viewed through the lens of Marzano's (2003)…

In the face of dwindling financial resources, educational leaders are looking to refine resource allocation while maintaining a focus on improved student outcomes. This article presents initial findings from a professional development state initiative called Effective Behavioral and Instructional Support Systems (EBISS). The EBISS initiative aims…

Various approaches to the professional development school (PDS)--each designed for its respective audience, mission, and purpose for engagement--have shaped the professional development school effort during the past 25 years. Central to these approaches is improving teacher quality in the service of student learning. This provides direction for…

"Collaboration" is a ubiquitously championed concept and widely recognized across the public and private sectors as the foundation on which the capacity for addressing complex issues is predicated. For those invested in organizational improvement, high-quality collaboration has become no less than an imperative. However, evaluators and program…

In 2003, the Mathematics and Science Unit of the South Carolina Department of Education developed the Mathematics and Science Coaching Initiative. The model--one coach, one school, one content area--requires participating schools to commit to a three-year partnership. The three-year commitment ensures sufficient time for coaching to become an…

The effectiveness of Tennessee EdTech Launch (TnETL), a statewide technology program designed to meet the No Child Left Behind (NCLB) mandate, was investigated in this matched treatment-control quasi-experimental study. The goal of the program was to provide full-time, on-site technology coaches to prepare teachers to create lessons that engage…

Adolescent literacy achievement across the United States is in crisis. More than eight million students in grades 4 to 12 are identified as struggling readers. These students, who perform below grade level in reading and writing, are at high risk for failure in all content subjects and ultimately for dropping out of school. Professionals in the…

In this study, the authors explore the implementation of a statewide class-size reduction program in nine high-poverty schools. Through qualitative methods, they examined how schools used class-size reduction to change staffing patterns and instructional programs. Requiring changes in space allocation, class-size reduction was accomplished through…

Introduces the description of a performance-based pay plan developed and implemented in Brevard County, Florida, in response to recent Florida legislation. The voluntary plan includes options for teachers and an approval process that uses input from School Advisory Councils in each building. (SLD)

Describes the pay for performance program of the Brevard County, Florida, public schools, focusing on the issues involved in negotiating new pay plans, the development of Brevard county's compensation plan, and future directions for negotiating teacher compensation. The Brevard County plan contains options for teachers (professional development…

This report card contains information on the status of public education in Alaska. Data are organized around the four key elements of the Alaska Quality Schools Initiative: (1) high standards and assessments; (2) quality professional standards; (3) family, school, business, and community networks; and (4) school excellence standards. A statewide…

This publication reports on the status of public education in Alaska and provides policymakers with information for decision making. Under state law, each school district is required to report to its community information about the school district's plans and performance. This publication is a summary of those reports. Data are organized around…

The Maryland Middle Grades School Policy Initiative addresses the polices and practices that support improved school and student performance. To document changes in policies and practices, this series of publications entitled "Milestones" was developed. Each publication traces the development, implementation, evaluation, and refinement…

This document consists of articles 1 through 39 published in the electronic journal "Education Policy Analysis Archives" for the year 2003. (SLD)