As part of a standards revision project for the state of Nebraska, the Region 11 Comprehensive Center in partnership with the American Institutes of Research, conducted a scan of publicly available state information and existing research on revision processes. From that, we've created this guide sharing 10 key elements states should consider when…

The new federal education law, the Every Student Succeeds Act (ESSA), envisions a powerful role for states in managing the evidence base behind school improvement efforts. Not only must they certify that interventions meet the "evidence-based" requirements spelled out in the law, they also must monitor and evaluate federally funded…

To learn more about states' experiences with implementing school improvement grants (SIGs) funded through the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (ARRA), the Center on Education Policy (CEP) administered a survey to state Title I directors. (Title I of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act provides federal funds to schools in low-income…

The nation is in an era of policy reform aimed at improving the productivity and effectiveness of higher education. Major philanthropies and policy groups have converged around variations of the ambitious college completion goals announced by President Obama at the beginning of his administration. But at the same time, many state governments,…

The federal government has had a long-standing commitment to ensuring access of English Learner (EL) students to a meaningful education. As early as 1968, the "Elementary and Secondary Education Act" ("ESEA") contained provisions for supporting the education of EL students and in its 1974 landmark decision, "Lau v.…

Response to Intervention (RTI) is a school-wide, integrative approach to instruction and intervention that provides a continuum of services to all students, both within general and special education. Further, RTI focuses on the frequent monitoring of student progress using formative and summative assessments, and providing students with…

In 1986 the Center for Policy Research in Education began a five-year study of state educational reform implementations and effects in six states (California, Arizona, Texas, Minnesota, Florida, and Georgia) chosen for their diverse approaches. Most efforts (not all successful) concentrated on increased academics, teacher professionalism, and…

Examines the school district's role in implementing and maintaining the essential elements of a nine-year statewide improvement project called SPUR (Louisiana's Special Plan Upgrading Reading) five years after the termination of state funding and external support. Onsite visits and survey results indicate that SPUR represents a feasible…

This paper summarizes activities associated with school-improvement projects in 12 Louisiana School Effectiveness and Assistance Pilot Study (SEAP) Cohort One schools during school year 1997-98 and plans for future improvement activities in 1998-99. Faculty and administrators at each school were asked to revise their current school-improvement…

To implement shared governance, 24 Georgia schools joined with the University of Georgia's Program for School Improvement (PSI) to form the League of Professional Schools. This article explains how staff at participating schools overcame the complexities of the new system by communicating openly and breaking issues down into small parts. (MLH)

This report describes ongoing efforts of the Maine Department of Education to encourage high school improvement through state-level actions. Three intertwined strategies have added value to the individual schools' improvement efforts, including: (1) the drafting of a statewide reform framework called Promising Futures; (2) the creation of a new…

In the course of developing and passing the South Carolina Education Improvement Act of 1984, those behind the legislative effort observed that several factors affect successful educational reform. First, reform must be comprehensive. The 1984 act has provisions relating to academic standards, basic skills, instructional improvement,…

This guide is designed to help South Carolina's school administrators implement the school improvement process mandated by the state legislature. The first chapter introduces the educational philosophy produced by the research on effective schools. Six indicators of effective schools (positive school climate, instructional leadership of the…

Profiles three exemplary school districts that reformed and enriched education through technology. Township High School District 214 (Arlington Heights, Illinois), Washington County Schools (Plymouth, North Carolina), and Clarksville-Montgomery County Schools (Clarksville, Tennessee) demonstrated commitment to student learning and staff…

This report describes and evaluates the initial effects of the 1984 Texas Education Reform Bill (House Bill 72), in which the Texas legislature enacted a massive attempt to enhance both equity and effectiveness in the State's system of elementary and secondary education. Chapter 1 describes the Bill's various financing components and focuses on…