This document is from a featured presentation at the 2018 annual conference of the Science Teachers Association of Texas (STAT). The public schools are a fundamental element of our democratic society, and they have been the pathway to opportunity and a better life for generations of Americans. But at present, the American public school system is…

Some families, parents and children included, may not be fully prepared or aware as they enter into the commitment of a dual-immersion language elementary education experience. One factor crucial for a dual-immersion program to meet its objectives, parents and students must commit to a minimum of five to six years of their elementary education to…

This article is an analysis of the educational implications of the Supreme Court (USSC) decision in "Horne v. Flores" (2009). The USSC remanded the Arizona case to the lower court, requiring a rehearing of petitioners' request for relief from the court's oversight of AZ's "structured English immersion" (SEI) program mandated…

This study examines the CAB [Cooperativeness, Accountability, and Boundlessness] model of high performing schools by developing case studies of two Portland, Oregon area schools. In pursuing this purpose, this study answers the following three research questions: 1) To what extent is the common correlate cooperativeness demonstrated or absent in…

The purpose of this study was to examine the leadership style of Mr. Stanley Blackmon, former principal of Lanier High School and to compare his leadership style to an existing educational theory. To obtain this information, an interview was conducted with Mr. Blackmon in December of 2009. Research was also done in order to find an educational…

This paper synthesizes four research projects the authors completed between 2006-2011. The first research study was a case study of leadership in five highly-effective elementary schools in Alberta. Second, we thoroughly reviewed literature in the area of "Student Engagement." Our third research project included 50+ interviews compiling…

Prior research indicates that using democratic modeling in a classroom can increase students' class participation, self-esteem, senses of belonging, and senses of responsibility toward the school, but that the effect can be short-termed if other classrooms are not so organized. However, little research examines the impact of flexible scheduling.…

What happens when a district aligns its graduation requirements to four-year college entrance requirements? This case looks at teachers' reactions to such a policy and explores differing beliefs and attitudes about rigor and the role of high school education. New leadership and a changing district culture create the context for the case, which…

A fundamental ideal of our democratic republic is that every person has some way through which she/he can participate in decisions which directly affect her/him. To some extent, most teachers are able to recognize this ideal in their private lives. It seems logical that this realization would also carry over and prevail in an individual's working…

The Education Policy Institute (EPI) conducted an analysis of recent academic data collected from 24 KIPP (Knowledge is Power Program) schools on behalf of the KIPP Foundation. The purpose of this study was to evaluate these data to determine whether KIPP schools have had a positive impact on the student learning of 5th-grade students as…