The purpose of this mixed methods study was to explore how perceptions of team strengths and weaknesses present in school district leadership teams, as conceptualized by Patrick Lencioni: a team's ability to 1) trust, 2) commit, 3) handle conflict, 4) be accountable, and 5) be attentive to results. Additionally, this study sought to identify…

The purpose of this research project was to conduct an exploratory analysis of the 2016 Mississippi Statewide Accountability System (MSAS), which is the model by which all public schools in Mississippi are assessed, rated, and ranked, in an attempt to assess whether or not the system is an effective policy tool, especially in relation to the goals…

States have turned to effective induction programs in response to rising teacher attrition rates and a widening student achievement gap. Comprehensive induction programs that develop highly efficacious teachers report a decline in teacher attrition, an increase in job satisfaction, and a rise in student achievement. The intent of this research was…

This article explores how candidates' experiences in multiple initial certification programs within a single School of Education evolved over the first three semesters of New York's implementation of edTPA as a requirement for initial licensure. The data reviewed included primarily surveys and interviews of teaching candidates, framed by critical…

Primary objective: Teacher evaluation is being revamped by policy-makers. The marginalized status of physical education has protected this subject area from reform for many decades, but in our current era of system-wide, data-based decision-making, physical education is no longer immune. Standardized and local testing, together with structured…

School improvement is a central focus for school leaders. Whilst measures such as high-stakes testing and other government accountability agendas have at times marred the discourse of school improvement, how schools develop their capacity to ultimately improve the core business of student learning remains important. As an extensive area of…

Teachers are actively encouraged to plan their lessons such that there is maximum classroom talk, namely accountability talk. However, many lessons do not display sufficient accountability talk. This study attempted to better understand the level and quality of accountability talk in six science lessons. The study aimed to provide teachers with…

More than 6,000 charter schools exist in the United States, and of these 120 are Montessori charter schools. When studying charter school practices, researchers often examine issues such as performance accountability measures and effectiveness of charter school curricula. In doing so, the outcomes often overlook the challenges for teachers as they…

This paper analyzes the relationship between teacher evaluation policies in Chile and Uruguay, teacher professional development, and teacher performance effectiveness. The analysis tries to understand the extent to which the existing processes for teacher evaluation stimulate an improvement in the quality of teaching. The comparison of two…

Drawing upon data from twenty-five interviews, this paper examines how the Maryland State Department of Education's Cross-functional Team navigates its changing role from compliance monitor to breakthrough partner in terms of discourse, time, and flexibility, as it carries out the work of the Breakthrough Center. It also examines how the role of…

This is a mixed methods study of K-12 school administrators with dual language immersion school leadership expertise. The paramount research focus was to identify equity and access issues in dual language immersion programs serving grades K-12, as identified by school administrators who have led such programs. A total pool of 498 were invited to…

This study explored stakeholders' views on preventive measures towards increasing teachers' malpractices in schools in Tanzania. Specifically, the study sought to identify prevalent forms of teachers' malpractices; explore factors for their occurrence; and explore views on how to forestall the problem. It draws on qualitative and quantitative data…

As widespread as Science, Technology, Engineering, and Math (STEM) initiatives and reforms are today in education, a rudimentary problem with these endeavors is being overlooked. In general, education programs and school districts are failing to ensure that elementary teachers who provide children's early academic experiences have the appropriate…

Drawing on theoretical and empirical research concerning the relationship between academic work and student learning, this article explores the following questions: What skills are required to execute the academic tasks teachers assign on a daily basis? How do teachers and administrators interpret the task demands represented in instructional…

Indiana English learners (ELs) constitute a rapidly growing portion of the state's school-aged population, and those classified as limited English proficient are low performers on the state test. The purpose of this embedded mixed methods study was to understand how school personnel respond to accountability mandates, interpret test scores, and…