The COVID-19 pandemic required adaptation to a new learning environment creating challenges for students and instructors. A reduction in student-teacher contact and the lack of supervision should have led to a decline in students' academic performance. Nonetheless, studies report increases in grades during the pandemic. Yet, limited information is…

This paper summarizes the research on the relationship between teacher unionization and educational outcomes at the state, district, school, and individual (student) levels. Although teachers are the largest organized professionals in the United States, much of educational policy literature has ignored unionization as a subject of study. An…

In this paper, we explore whether there is a relationship between average grades earned in a course and the national average salaries of graduates of the major associated with the course. Using student-level data from a selective private liberal arts college, we find an inverse relationship. The result suggests that students face a trade-off…

This paper presents the results of a model that simulates the effects of varying preferential admissions policies on the academic profile of a set of 35 small liberal arts colleges. An underlying assumption is that all schools in the set use the same ratio of preferential to non-preferential admissions. The model predicts that even drastic changes…

The 2021 edition of the Annual Condition of Education Report (COE) marks the 32nd edition of the report. For over 30 years, the Department has published the COE in order to provide education stakeholders critical data about the status of Iowa's education system. The 2021 COE covers a wide variety of content including information about Iowa's…

For over 30 years, the Department has published the Annual Condition of Education (COE) report in order to provide education stakeholders quality information about the status of Iowa's education system. The 2020 COE covers a wide variety of content from information about Iowa's students, schools, educators, administrators, performance and school…

Data and information are critical tools of school improvement. They are the foundation for making informed education decisions for our schools, districts and the state. The 2019 edition of the Annual Condition of Education Report (COE) marks the 30th edition of the Iowa Department of Education report. Much has changed in the past 30 years since…

"Exploring Arizona's Private Education Sector" is the seventh installment in our "School Survey Series." EdChoice Director of State Research and Policy Analysis Andrew Catt surveyed Arizona private school leaders about the state's educational choice programs, especially its Empowerment Scholarship Accounts, as well as their…

Data and information are important components of school improvement. They show how schools are changing and how students are progressing. Providing and interpreting data is one of the critical functions of the Iowa Department of Education. The annual Condition of Education report provides valuable data about students, educators and school…

This 27th edition of the "Annual Condition of Education Report" includes a rich set of information to evaluate the current status of the education system in Iowa. Data in the report provide important information about Iowa's students, teachers and schools from multiple perspectives. It includes information such as demographic…

Data and information are important components of school improvement. They show how schools are changing and how students are progressing. Providing and interpreting data is one of the critical functions of the Iowa Department of Education. The annual Condition of Education report provides valuable data about students, educators and school…

The 2015 edition of the "Annual Condition of Education Report" includes a rich set of information about the status of Iowa's K-12 education system. The report provides valuable feedback about Iowa's students, educators and school districts across a number of statewide measures. They include changes in student populations and…

The 2014 edition of the "Annual Condition of Education Report" marks the 25th anniversary of the report. Much has changed in the passing quarter century since the 1st edition was released in 1990. Most importantly, the "Condition of Education Report" allows the citizens of Iowa to explore trend data and determine what has…

Presented at the national conference for AERA (American Educational Research Association) in April 2009. The large variability of SAT taker population across states makes state-by-state comparisons of the SAT scores challenging. Using a mixture modeling approach, therefore, the current study presents a method of identifying subpopulations in terms…

This brief describes an evaluation of academic intervention supports available to high school students in Montgomery County Public Schools (MCPS) during the 2012-2013 school year. A website review identified information about academic supports available to students or parents within each high school's web pages. A survey of school staff gathered…