Schools are learning organisations. They continuously strive to do better for the children and young people in their charge. In doing so, they try new things, seek to learn from those experiences, and work to adopt and embed the practices that work best. Implementation is a key aspect of what schools do to improve, and yet it is a domain of school…

When the bell rings at the end of a school day, millions of children are left to their own devices while they wait for their families to return home at the end of the work day. Findings from a study conducted by the Afterschool Alliance, "America After 3PM," show that 15.1 million children are unsupervised when the school day ends. The…

Teacher evaluation has emerged as a major focus for reform at the highest levels of education policymaking, and for good reason. Most evaluations are based on scant evidence of actual effectiveness, produce inflated ratings, and provide teachers with little useful feedback. This paper offers policymakers and practitioners important "lessons…

In today's rapidly changing global economy, "21st century skills" means much more than proficiency in basic academic subjects. One of the most important noncognitive competencies for student success is conscientiousness, which encompasses traits such as perseverance, self-regulation, resilience, and responsibility. Researchers have found…

Several tools exist that school districts can use to help solve current or potential problems in compensatory programs. The school district should begin by conducting (1) a study to determine the extent to which students are served by multiple compensatory programs, (2) on-site observations of the programs, and (3) a review of the curriculum and…

The credibility of universities is at stake over the issue of athletics; college and university officers must exercise control. Ten guides to action are presented including: accept responsibility, establish campus rules, reject justification for shoddy practices, and know what is going on. (MLW)

The design and implementation of the Food Stamp Program's Simplified Application Demonstration Project are analyzed. The project was developed to test strategies which could reduce administrative costs and errors in the Food Stamp Program. This evaluation report presents data in the following categories: (1) administrative cost savings; (2)…

In an effort to address child welfare service problems, the state of Kansas shifted responsibility to private contractors in 1996. Despite a considerable investment of new resources and significant improvements, serious problems remain. This report explores what is needed to "level the playing field" for the roughly 6,700 children in…

This guide presents practical applications from a research study about the processes that schools use to initiate and sustain reforms. It examines the history of 10 elementary schools in high-poverty settings, including details of behavioral and attitudinal changes. Ten capacities were associated with the stages of successful reform. The…

This report identifies what are thought to be smart ways to redesign career paths and compensation for California teachers. It is known which changes are most likely to improve both teaching quality and student achievement, because these changes address what really matters in schools and what motivates teachers. These are not the traditional and…

In 1998, California voters approved Proposition 10, the Children and Families First Act, which placed an additional tax on cigarette sales; monies generated will be used to improve early childhood development for birth to five. In terms of early childhood development, the starting point is not birth but long before; care of women of reproductive…

As part of a series of reports designed to support the implementation of Proposition 10: The California Children and Families Act and to provide comprehensive and authoritative information on critical issues concerning young children and families in California, this report provides county-level commissioners and their staff with information about…

This report is the second of a series exploring implementation of best practices in programs serving young children and families, and focuses on the uses and benefits of developing and using a logic model in programs serving young children and families. A logic model is described as providing a way to clearly articulate the program's theory of…

States, school districts, and schools across the country are increasingly implementing multi-tier systems of support (MTSS) to improve outcomes for all students. Kansas is no exception. The Kansas MTSS is designed to improve outcomes for all students by instituting system-level change across the classroom, school, district, and state. Such…

Educational policies designed to promote literacy achievement in U.S. schools over the past decade have failed to deliver the anticipated outcomes. These disappointing outcomes can be attributed to the implementation of evidence-free policies. In particular, policymakers have ignored the fact that underachievement is concentrated in schools…