The use of teacher leadership in PK-12 education has experienced a resurgence since the late 1990s as school leadership models have evolved to include the engagement of diverse stakeholders in school and district leadership processes aimed at improvement efforts. Despite this resurgence, there remain several barriers to understanding the nature of…

Charter schools in urban environments have been scrutinized for their effectiveness. This study attempted to determine whether students attending Midwestern urban charter schools outperformed students in traditional schools on the state's accountability system over a 5-year time period. Using a quasi-experimental research design, data were…

Much of the existing literature on urban school reform focuses on how the relatively small number of our nation's largest urban districts are approaching school reform with these objectives in mind. However, does smaller district size have any bearing, direct or indirect, on the nature of superintendent leadership? The authors' exploratory…

This article examines campaign finance activity in two large school districts: San Francisco, California and Hillsborough County, Florida. Using datasets containing contributions to school board candidates, it explores from whom candidates raise campaign funds. The findings indicate that entities with material interests in school board decisions,…

This article examines the salary trajectory of teachers as they move up the career ladder into leadership positions. The issue of compensation is set in the context of a principal shortage that has been widely reported and discussed in the literature. Urban schools are shown to experience the principal shortage differently from rural schools.…

Introduces the other articles in this special issue on the size of schools districts, schools, and classrooms. Provides concise summaries of each. (BJV)

Argues against the notion that all school districts should be the same size. Research on fiscal efficiency and school effectiveness does not express a consensus regarding the long-term effects or organizational implications of district size, and the country still has a range of district types. There should be more research on community identity.…

Reviews the controversial questions of the relationship between school/district size and cost, and size and quality. Discusses the relevance of instruction and scheduling as variables to be used in determining school size. (BJV)

Reviews the articles in this special issue. The following conclusions emerged: (1) smaller districts, schools, and classes seem to be better; (2) the need for smaller class size is inversely proportional to student's socioeconomic status; and (3) instruction must be matched to the instructional needs of the students, rather than the organizational…

The smaller the school district, the higher the achievement, when the socioeconomic status and per student expenditure are taken into account. Administrative and parental involvement should be determined by the size of the school district regardless of the socioeconomic level of the community. (BJV)

Discusses data on the following topics: (1) average school district size; (2) proportion of students in very large districts; (3) average school size; (4) minority enrollments and measurements of size; (5) enrollment sizes and college entrance exams, high school graduation rates, and educational costs; and (6) measurements of size and private…