Theory and empirical work suggest that teachers' social capital influences school improvement efforts. Social ties are prerequisite for social capital, yet little causal evidence exists on how malleable factors, such as instructional management approaches, affect teachers' ties. In this cluster-randomized trial, we apply a decision-making…

Current plans to use National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP) results to compare and rank states may lead to a perception of NAEP as a national achievement test representing a national curriculum. NAEP procedures should be reformulated to enhance curriculum coherence, instruction, and participation by local and state educators. (TJH)

Grade-retention policies of 100 California school districts were rated according to the amount of effort required to implement retention policies and the extent to which objective criteria govern retention decisions. Results support use of this framework for comparing retention policies and rates when district size is taken into account. (SLD)

The claim that public school choice encourages more than standardized education is examined using data for 66 schools from the National Education Longitudinal Study of 1988. Little support is found for the argument that choice is currently an inventive way to alter the academic lives of students and teachers. (SLD)