Schools are faced with increasing pressures from declining test scores and outcry from the public to improve the educational system. Efforts to reform the system have varied widely and produced inconsistent results. One school took a different approach by embracing the reform efforts through a systematic change process, led by a transformational…

The author reports on the largest-ever federal investment in fixing low-achieving schools that is now flowing to states, raising the pressure on district leaders to make tough--and quick--decisions about firing principals, replacing teachers, or shutting down schools entirely. Since March, the U.S. Department of Education has been sending states…

Over the past two decades, community organizing has emerged as an effective force for school improvement. In the context of shrinking education funding, stubborn opportunity and achievement gaps between low-income and wealthy children and between children of color and White children, and polarizing debate on school reform, community organizing…

Surveyed and interviewed Title I elementary teachers regarding their assessment practices in the first and fourth years of restructuring efforts. Schools in their fourth year of restructuring had significantly higher mean ratings on alternative assessment items than did schools in their first year. Differences were significant for portfolios and…

To gain information on how schools in the Southwestern region are implementing a new program, the staff of the Comprehensive School Reform Demonstration (CSRD) project undertook the development of a survey instrument. Based on the research on school change, the survey provides information to schools, districts, and state departments about the…

Provides detailed examples of the components of Title I as recently revised and suggests alternative ways that the program's new flexibility can be used to enhance school reform. Revised Title I audit procedures are also designed to promote improved program performance and increased understanding of the law. (SLD)

This study explored the social world of one school, looked at the web of relationships, and documented the social interactions that occurred in the context of a mandated reform. The study was designed to describe and understand the relationships of teachers in one school as they planned and developed a school-wide strategy for change as required…

The No Child Left Behind Act of 2001 (NCLB) focused national attention on improving schools so that all students reach academic proficiency by 2014. In the 2006-2007 school year, about 4,500 of the 54,000 Title I schools failed to make adequate yearly progress (AYP) for 4 or more years. Schools that miss AYP for 4 years are identified for…

This paper provides information about strategies that high poverty urban elementary schools have used to initiate major reforms in their processes and structures and to share the process used to elicit information from these schools. A research study analyzed the experiences of six high poverty urban elementary schools in Massachusetts, New York,…

This paper presents data from the first year of a study that seeks to reveal the effective practices and structures that address the match between the philosophy of Title I and beliefs and practices at the school site. A national study has been designed to investigate the compliance and effectiveness of urban schoolwide Title I programs. As part…

In October 1994 the President signed into law the "Improving America's Schools Act." Title I, the largest primary and secondary federal education program was reauthorized by this legislation, which, among other things rewrote the Elementary and Secondary Education Act. The reauthorized law provides parents, advocates, and school…

Based on the proceedings of a national conference titled "Implementation of the Title I Program: Implications for Improving Schools' Capacity for Achieving Success," this publication is intended to bring critical attention to the issues that will improve the learning of economically disadvantaged students in urban and rural schools.…

Comprehensive school reform focuses on making coherent schoolwide improvements that affect virtually all aspects of a school's operation, rather than using a piecemeal, fragmented approach to reform. The Comprehensive School Reform Demonstration (CSRD) program aims to raise student achievement by helping public schools across the country implement…

The Austin Independent School District (AISD) adopted the middle school concept in 1987-88. Generally, the middle school setting serves students between the ages of 11 and 14 and includes grades 6 through 8. In 1995-96, five middle schools met the criteria for funding under Title I. To make middle schools more responsive to the special needs of…

This report outlines key issues and provides a baseline for an examination of the progress of states, districts, and schools toward realizing the objectives of the restructured Title I program. The fundamental goal of the new Title I is to help children who are at risk of school failure improve their academic achievement. The National Assessment…