California's K-12 enrollment is projected to decline for the next two decades, driven by falling birth rates, reduced immigration, and out-of-state migration. With fewer students, districts receive fewer state dollars and may be forced to make tough decisions, including reductions to programs, staff, and/or schools. However, budget realignment…

This document is written primarily for policy makers and state department of education staff who are considering through-year assessments, as well as consultants and contractors state departments rely on. The document identifies essential things to consider when designing or evaluating a through-year assessment program. The paper is organized into…

The instructional programs educators design to help English Learner (EL) students work toward English proficiency look different in schools across the United States. This is due in part to the variety of approaches K-12 educators take to important questions such as: Should the program foster bilingualism or focus solely on English? Should ELs…

In 2011, the Arizona State Legislature adopted a law creating the first education savings account (ESA) in the United States. Following Arizona's lead, several other states, including Florida Tennessee,Mississippi and Nevada, have implemented ESA policies. Typical eligibility requirements include conditions such as a pupil's diagnosed disability,…

Describes a recent study of principals' evaluations and perceptions concerning the quality of inservice learning experiences based on five alternative models. Findings disclosed participants' preferences for short-term institutes sponsored by a professional association and informal networking. More work is needed to design effective inservice…

This report provides an overview of southeastern state efforts to assist low-performance schools in building capacity to improve students' academic achievement. High poverty, poor economic resources, and a high turnover rate of both students and practitioners are factors that impede school improvement. High-poverty schools that do improve commonly…

Basic policy questions are offered to help guide efforts to formulate policy for art education in the schools. A view of art education that is responsive to these questions and examples of policy recommendations that have not addressed basic policy considerations are discussed. The central purpose and place of the arts in education is reiterated.…

Ten guidelines formulated to assist policy decision makers in developing system-wide approaches to creating strong and effective language programs are discussed in this article. (DF)

Numerous business issues arise when organizing a school recycling program. Important questions include the appropriate program organization, deciding what materials to recycle, the selection of appropriate business partners, and various financial issues. Offers suggestions for achieving a successful recycling program. (MLF)

In 1985 the Arizona Legislature established a 5-year Career Ladder Program for teachers. The purpose of the pilot is to determine if student academic achievement is enhanced through recognizing and developing high levels of teacher performance and through a "promotion system based on comptence". The overall research and evaluation…

In many developing countries, the translation of political objectives to action projects is made difficult by the lack of training of staff of the ministry of education planning and managing units. This booklet deals with the implementation of these projects within the framework of the planning process. After defining projects, chapter 1 shows the…

A unique aspect of the Arizona career ladder project is the fact that each district was allowed to develop its own program design at the local level; to be evaluated on its own merits; and to initiate improvements cyclicly throughout the duration of the pilot-test. This document depicts outline descriptions for each of the 15 pilot-test districts.…

This paper focuses on public school program development to correct the effects of segregation. It suggests concrete measures and plans for the Cleveland Leadership Academy, which is designed to enhance instruction and access. Cleveland City School District's Remedial Order is a court-approved blueprint for desegregation that mandated management…

The success of school/business partnerships depends on the initiative of school boards and superintendents in nurturing long-term relationships with the business community. Examples are provided of systematic, well-planned, and financially realistic partnerships. (TE)

Educational reform is becoming synonymous with accountability. However, designing an effective accountability system poses serious challenges for states as is clear from the progress and pitfalls experienced by states such as Texas, Kentucky, and California. For example, many states tend to overload their new accountability programs, resulting in…