After receiving the results of a school culture study in the spring of 2017, staff at a rural high school in a Midwestern state wanted to change the negative perception of the school's culture into a more positive one while also creating more student success. The school decided to implement 4 changes: Care and Connect, a house structure, a…

Public high schools today are faced with the challenge of preparing a diverse student population for both post-secondary education and entering the work force. However, they are doing so under the constraints of an educational structure that was developed years ago and one that has failed to adapt to the many changes in society. Schools are…

This dissertation explores unexamined assumptions linking the context of small learning communities to the outcome of quality civic education. Civic education scholars and advocates for small learning communities espouse similar visions of education based on democratic ideals; the purpose of this study was to explore whether and in what ways small…

This dissertation examines how eight urban high schools responded to mandates to raise graduation requirements in mathematics. The change process was complicated by challenges such as the conditions of poverty, lack of adequate financial support for schools, and large numbers of students who come to high school with inadequate preparation in…

This "Informed Educator" examines the use of small learning communities to address the disadvantages of large, comprehensive schools in a cost effective manner. The different types of small learning communities are described, and the research on both small schools and small learning communities is discussed. Lastly, issues that should be addressed…

This article tracks recent developments in the debate about secondary school size. It looks at the growth of the small schools movement in the United States and at initiatives currently underway in the United Kingdom. The article explores various strategies for reconfiguring secondary schools into smaller learning communities or "schools…

Background/Context: There is general agreement that most public high schools should be smaller than they are. Although the small-schools movement attracts considerable support, there is a general reluctance or inability to close large schools and to build many new small schools. A more cost-effective approach is to divide larger high schools into…

This case tells the story of James Madison High School, which became the epicenter of a debate over the future reorganization and control of large secondary schools in the Los Angeles Unified School District (LAUSD). The LAUSD, recently taken over by the newly elected mayor, was fighting for control of this 3,000-student high school with a charter…

The primary objective of this study was to examine revenue generation and resource allocation and deployment practices associated with the implementation of three smaller learning communities (SLC) project high schools in a single school district. The study used a variation of Levin and McEwan's (2001) ingredients approach. District- and…

De-departmentalizing the high school into smaller integrated quads would make possible the necessary frequent review and revision of the curriculum and facilitate change with greater ease. Inflexibility could give way to creativity and provide a humanistic environment to meet the needs of adolescents. (Author)

To capture some of the benefits of small-scale schooling, educators are looking for ways to downsize, including dividing large schools into subunits or "schools within a school." This approach establishes within the school a smaller educational unit with a separate educational program and its own staff, students, and budget. This digest…

At their annual meeting, the American Federation of Teachers (AFT) proposed that school reform begin with schools within schools. The arrangement would involve groups of teachers who plan and set up experimental schools within existing schools. (MLF)

This fastback document explores ways to develop alternative high-school programs to help at-risk students. It focuses on the "school within a school" model where the emphasis is on a caring school climate and smaller class sizes. The booklet offers a step-by-step guide for developing an alternative school, which begins with determining the need…

Five years into an eight-year study of its high school improvement efforts, the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation is shifting its strategy for evaluating the $1.3 billion grant program. The foundation's initiative, which is underwriting change efforts in more than 1,800 schools, is the nation's largest privately funded attempt to improve high…

For its sixth national conference, a national collaboration in support of school reform sharpened its focus by asking Houston Independent School District (HISD) to host the conference and serve as a "case study." HISD was an ideal subject because of a long history of addressing statewide standards-based reform and engaging in multiple…