This quantitative study aimed to examine the relationships between third grade reading instructional strategies in high-performing Title-One schools compared to low-performing Title-One schools in four school districts in South Carolina. The study was framed through the lens of Marzano's Theoretical Framework which outlined specific instructional…

The resegregation of public schools in the United States continues to place African American students at an academic disadvantage with--oftentimes--limited educational resources and fewer qualified teachers. Providing African American students with skills and strategies to succeed has never been more urgent. Metacognition, often defined simply as…

In the United States, federal funding under Title 1 is provided to schools to improve academic achievement for disadvantaged students. Many students attending schools eligible for Title 1 funding are from families in poverty and at risk for negative outcomes. Identifying instructional factors that mitigate this risk must be a priority for teachers…

This report is meant as an imperative wake-up call for expanding the prevailing focus of school improvement policy and practice. The report provides analyses of responses from state departments of education, school districts, and leadership organizations about how they are pursuing the opportunity the "Every Student Succeeds Act"…

The articles included in this volume of "Education and Urban Society" inform the special issue theme that poses the question "Are We There Yet?" An examination of educational equity in the era of school reform and accountability. Despite two decades of dramatic shifts in educational reform and policy among states and local…

Race to the Top's success ultimately must be measured by its long-term impact on student learning. Because simultaneous change in multiple systems takes time, it is too early to make that determination of success now. However, it is not too early to learn from the positive achievements of and challenges faced by Race to the Top states. This report…

Race to the Top's success ultimately must be measured by its long-term impact on student learning. Because simultaneous change in multiple systems takes time, it is too early to make that determination of success now. However, it is not too early to learn from the positive achievements of and challenges faced by Race to the Top states. This…

How do proficiency-based accountability systems affect inequality in academic achievement? This article reconciles mixed findings in the literature by demonstrating that three factors jointly determine accountability's impact. First, by analyzing student-level data from a large urban school district, we find that when educators face accountability…

This report by the Center on Education Policy (CEP), an independent nonprofit organization, examines trends in the achievement of high school students on the state reading/English language arts (ELA) and mathematics tests used for accountability under the No Child Left Behind Act (NCLB). This study confirms that there is reason for concern about…

Improving teacher effectiveness is a key strategy to ensure student readiness for college and careers and to address achievement gaps and persistent low performance. In response to the new Common Core State Standards for English Language Arts (CCSS-ELA) the National Writing Project (NWP) created a professional development (PD) program to support…

In 2008, educational leaders from the Arizona Department of Education (ADE) assigned a group of turnaround specialists to work in four failing public schools in a large, urban school district in Phoenix, Arizona in hopes of improving those schools. The utilization of turnaround specialists in failing schools was Arizona's method of enacting…

The purpose of this article is to discuss the misalignment between public school assessment policies and teaching practices in accordance with the No Child Left Behind Act of 2001 (NCLB), and the human capital, curricula, and soft-skill needs of the global economy. The authors suggest that changes regarding the nature of learning, how it is…

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…

Closing the achievement gap between low- and high-achieving public school students is an important goal of public education. This article explores background information and research and discusses examples of best practices to close the achievement gap. Several plans have been proposed as ways to enhance the achievement of under-represented…

Recently, Argyle Middle School in Montgomery County, Maryland faced the prospect of corrective action for failure to make adequate yearly progress (AYP) under the No Child Left Behind Act. The county's Office of School Performance designed the Strategic Monitoring/Intervention Process to help schools identify students' academic progress both…