To better understand the views of teachers and school-based administrators on student engagement and motivation, the Education Week Research Center invited users of edweek.org--"Education Week"'s flagship website--to participate in an online survey in April 2014. Surveys were received from 606 respondents, with 504 being deemed qualified…

Researchers, educators, and policymakers are focusing more on student engagement as the key to addressing low achievement, student boredom and alienation, and high dropout rates (Fredricks, Blumenfeld, and Paris 2004). As schools and districts seek to increase engagement, it is important for them to understand how it has been defined and to assess…

This study seeks to provide outcomes-based information on Oklahoma's proposal to give tax credits for contributing to organizations that provide scholarships to K-12 private schools. The study constructs a model to determine the fiscal impact of tax-credit scholarships on the state and on local school districts. The author estimates the impact…

During SY 2011-2012, the Bureau of Indian Education (BIE) continued their efforts to improve the validity and reliability of data reporting. BIE data collections are dependent on school level entry (self-reporting) into the Native American Student Information System (NASIS) or into the BIE's Annual Report from the schools. In addition, data…

The Bureau of Indian Education (BIE) funds schools located on 63 reservations in 23 states across the nation. Of the 183 schools, 59 are Bureau operated and 124 are tribally controlled. One-hundred and sixteen schools provide instructional programs, 55 provide instructional as well as boarding services and 12 peripheral dormitories provide only…

Uses simulated data to assess the adequacy of two econometric and linear-programming techniques (data-envelopment analysis and corrected ordinary least squares) for measuring performance-based school reform. In complex data sets (simulated to contain measurement error and endogeneity), these methods are inadequate efficiency measures. (Contains 40…

The six tables presented in this paper were prepared in the belief that more educators would use the Harris-Jacobson Readability Formulas if the operations employed in those formulas to determine the estimated readability level of materials could be completed more quickly and with fewer calculations. Instructions for using the tables are included.…

Corrects for potential bias and inconsistency in the estimated coefficient on market competition (among schools) by constructing a system of equations with endogenous expressions of student achievement and market competition. Policy makers seeking to improve student achievement should encourage market competition among schools. (Contains 13…

This report measures the inequities in school taxes on New York State residential property that result from assessment nonuniformity. The index of nonuniformity is a measure of the average percentage difference in school tax bills paid by owners of like residential properties in the same school district but in separate assessing units. Using this…

This report suggests ways to improve the school staffing information gathered through the Schools and Staffing Surveys (SASS) currently administered by the National Center for Education Statistics (NCES). Obtaining better information on school staff can provide insights into the patterns of resource allocation in schools and the access of children…

Recent within-twin estimates of schooling returns are considerably higher than existing estimates. This paper shows that small ability differences among twins can yield more upward omitted-ability bias (and more upward bias overall) in the instrumental variables estimate correcting for measurement error than in the standard within-twin estimate.…

Applies comparative techniques originated by K. Wolpin and G. Psacharopulos to discriminate between the "weak" and "strong" screening hypotheses, employed to determine whether societal investment in upgrading or expanding education is justified. Controlling for sample selection, this study finds evidence for weak screening in…

Uses Texas data to explore using an indirect measure of local wealth as the basis for calculating indexes of wealth neutrality. The proposed measure, the percentage of school district revenues derived from local sources, can easily be calculated from data contained within the U.S. Department of Education's Common Core of Data. The measure…

This book shows the advantages of Rasch measurement (G. Rasch) for school district testing programs. The results of Rasch methods are contrasted with conventional statistics for assessing student responses to basic skills testing. Chapter 1 shows how the Rasch probability-based method produces measures that are more useful for students, parents,…

This article describes work on a new tool to help educators increase parental involvement in their schools using the Educational Resources Information Center (ERIC). When the authors set out on their goal in rural Hart County, Kentucky, they discovered that no instrument existed to measure changes in the level of parental involvement. Using…