Improving student learning in our country's highest need schools is and endeavor that is challenging, complicated, and imperative. The major school reform efforts of the last few decades have largely failed to influence student achievement or to impact the ever-widening achievement or opportunity gap. These disappointing results have led…

These are the appendixes for the report "Children's Knowledge and Skills at Kindergarten Entry in Illinois: Results from the First Statewide Administration of the Kindergarten Individual Development Survey." At least half of states administer or are developing kindergarten entry assessments. In fall 2017 the Illinois State Board of…

In recent decades, magnet schools have become a way for districts to provide school choice. Magnet schools are one of the many options provided to parents so that they can select a school to meet their children's educational needs and interests. After a short gap in federal grants for magnet school implementation, Congress established the current…

The Illinois Board of Higher Education (IBHE) sought to identify those institutions helping students overcome barriers to college completion and achieve a livable wage. This analysis of Illinois 4-year postsecondary institutions highlights those institutions which fostered degree completion and job success with less debt for underrepresented…

The Illinois Board of Higher Education (IBHE) sought to identify those institutions helping students overcome barriers to college completion and achieve a livable wage. This analysis of Illinois 4-year postsecondary institutions highlights those institutions which fostered degree completion and job success with less debt for underrepresented…

One objective of the U.S. Department of Education's (ED) School Improvement Grants (SIG) and Race to the Top (RTT) program is to help states enhance their capacity to support the turnaround of low-performing schools. This capacity may be important, given how difficult it is to produce substantial and sustained achievement gains in low-performing…

This three-volume report describes the "SAM (School Administration Manager) process," an approach that about 700 schools around the nation are using to direct more of principals' time and effort to improve teaching and learning in classrooms. Research has shown that a principal's instructional leadership is second only to teaching among…

This report sheds light on what happens to federal financial aid applicants after they submit the Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA). Using 2007-08 financial aid data from 13 California community colleges, the Institute found that one in three likely Pell-eligible applicants did not receive a Pell Grant. Also, while few students'…

"The MetLife Survey of the American Teacher: Challenges for School Leadership" (2012) was conducted by Harris Interactive and is the twenty-ninth in a series sponsored annually by MetLife since 1984 to give voice to those closest to the classroom. This report examines the views of teachers and principals on the responsibilities and challenges…

In the 2007-2008 school year, the New York City Department of Education and the United Federation of Teachers jointly implemented the Schoolwide Performance Bonus Program in a random sample of the city's high-needs public schools. The program lasted for three school years, and its broad objective was to improve student performance through…

This report measures trends in performance among urban schools receiving federal School Improvement Grant (SIG) awards as part of the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 (ARRA). The Council of the Great City Schools aims to document how member districts of the Council of the Great City Schools implemented SIG and specifically what…

Almost 40 percent of all public school students in the District of Columbia (D.C. or District) were enrolled in charter schools in the 2010-11 school year. The D.C. School Reform Act established the Public Charter School Board (PCSB) for the purpose of authorizing and overseeing charter schools. Congress required GAO (US Government Accountability…

Long and frequent deployments, with short dwell times in between, have placed stresses on Army children and families already challenged by frequent moves and parental absences. RAND Arroyo Center was asked by the Army to examine the effects of parental deployments on children's academic performance as well as their emotional and behavioral…

To what extent do local governments use vocational education and training as a staff retention strategy? Human resources personnel from a selection of councils around Australia believed that a lack of career development or training opportunities might cause an employee to leave their organisation. They had some reservations about the quality and…

This interim progress report provides a look at Turnaround Arts schools in their first year, including: (1) a summary of the evaluation design and research questions; (2) a preliminary description of strategies used to introduce the arts in Turnaround Arts schools; and (3) a summary of school reform indicators and student achievement data at…