Linked Learning is an educational approach that combines college-focused academics, rigorous technical education, work-based learning, and personalized student supports in small, career-themed high school academies contained in multiple schools (i.e., small schools within larger comprehensive schools) in the same district. A leading architect of…

Although high school graduation rates are rising--the national rate was 82 percent during the 2013/14 school year (U.S. Department of Education, 2015)--dropping out remains a persistent problem in the Midwest and nationally. Many schools now use early warning systems to identify students who are at risk of not graduating, with the goal of…

REL Appalachia conducted a systematic review of the research evidence on the effects of increased learning time. After screening more than 7,000 studies, REL Appalachia identified 30 that met the most rigorous standards for research. A review of those 30 studies found that increased learning time does not always produce positive results. However,…

Chronically disruptive students are often funneled into "watered-down" alternative schools that warehouse rather than educate them. The Atlantic County (New Jersey) Alternative High School is a successful college-based program that expects referred students to fulfill normal academic requirements while taking tuition-free college…

An evaluation was conducted to determine how the PLATO Pathways program was used in three high schools in Volusia County, Florida: Deland, New Smyrna Beach, and Atlantic. Of the many PLATO sites in Volusia, these three were selected for study because of the representative patterns of low, medium, and high PLATO use. PLATO is a computer learning…

Rigorous research provides information that will allow other schools and districts to select interventions that have a scientifically based track record of effectiveness. All Striving Reader grants include the mandate to evaluate literacy intervention(s) targeted to adolescents who are reading significantly below grade level. Although all studies…