This issue of "Assessment Update" presents the following articles: (1) University of North Carolina at Charlotte: Using the EIA [Excellence in Assessment] Application as a Catalyst for Intentional Improvement (Christine Robinson and associates); (2) Editor's Notes (Stephen P. Hundley); (3) Northern Arizona University's Journey to…

Independent schools--and their teachers and administrators--are, as the name suggests, fiercely independent. So when the Common Core State Standards hit the national stage in March 2010 and became the center of the national conversation on education, it was no surprise that the majority of independent schools dismissed the standards as another…

(1) Background: Programmatic assessment optimizes the coaching, learning, and decision-making functions of assessment. It utilizes multiple data points, fit for purpose, which on their own guide learning, but taken together form the basis of holistic decision making. While they are agreed on principles, implementation varies according to context.…

This article explores the application of Whitaker, King, and Vogel's (2004) best practices for the implementation of partnerships regarding school leadership preparation programs in 3 school district-university collaboratives located in urban settings with large minority student populations. The 3 partnerships studied include the Nashville…

On September 22, 2012, NSF announced its decision to fund a three-year project, "Models for Information Assurance Education and Outreach" (MIAEO). In the first year of grant operation, MIAEO has invited 18 high school students, two K-12 teachers, and two CSUB student assistants to conduct research explorations in the fields of…

The surge of high-stakes testing and accountability has been felt in Texas and all across the country. Every state is demanding to some degree or another that administrators and teachers increase their workload, alter their teaching, rearrange the curriculum, adjust professional development, and implement improvement programs in order to raise…

Implementation of the curriculum-centered, standards-based federally mandated reform, No Child Left Behind, has placed pressure on teachers, particularly those working in schools comprised of highly diverse and impoverished students, to have their students attain predetermined levels on high stakes, standardized tests. When schools have not met…

Regardless of where you are in your school improvement process, here's a book that helps you make sure you have all the right elements working for you in the right way. The authors take you through the core processes that are essential for all school improvement efforts--from establishing your mission to differentiating your supervision based on…

The purpose of this "Handbook" is to bolster the effective implementation of the intervention models and strategies outlined in the "2010 School Improvement Grant" (SIG) program--section 1003(g) of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act (ESEA)--in order to achieve the program's clear goal--rapid improvement of persistently…

Two schools in Idaho received ARRA SIG (American Recovery and Reinvestment Act School Improvement Grants) funds to enable them to implement improvement efforts. This paper describes the outcomes of these two ARRA SIG recipient schools: (1) Jefferson Middle School; and (2) Lakeside Elementary School. The experiences of this non-recipient school is…

Teaching institutions with middle grades-specific teacher preparation programs remain a cornerstone for improving the condition of the nation's middle schools. Yet such programs scarcely exist as the heartbeat of excellence for middle grades schools or for preservice teachers seeking middle grades licensure (Jackson & Davis, 2000). Moreover,…

This article describes the process of replacing a modest Master's level school leader preparation program with an innovative Ed.D. program at the University of Illinois at Chicago (UIC). The new doctoral program is intensive, highly selective, intellectually rigorous, and field-based. The authors provide side-by-side comparisons of the difference…

This paper reports on two comprehensive multi-institutional collaborative efforts for school improvement. The two studies demonstrate that collaborative efforts involving multiple agencies and multiple agendas can be successful even when separated by considerable geographical distance. The school systems were concerned with implementing a locally…

This final report discusses the administration, staffing, planning, implementation and evaluation of the SPEAC (Student Parent Educator Administrator Children) for Nutrition Program. The principle objective of the program is to provide nutrition education and increased understanding of the role of the Child Care Food Program through increased…

A unique training program in high tech obstetrical, neonatal, and pediatric nursing care areas was designed to be offered on site at Orlando (Florida) Regional Medical/Arnold Palmer Hospital for Children and Women. The training program offered 16 different courses to 355 employees over the 18-month period of the project. A needs assessment was…