In February 2009, newly elected President Barack Obama and First Lady Michelle Obama visited Capital City Public Charter School in northwest Washington, D.C. This was the First Family's first official public-school visit, just a few short weeks after President Obama was sworn into office. Obama's enthusiastic support for charter schools was one of…

What does an effective classroom look and sound like? What does it mean to have students engaged in learning? What is high-quality instruction? To answer these questions, the Greece Central School District in New York created a common language around teaching and learning as a way to support student achievement. The district developed a five-year…

Policy Studies Associates (PSA) is conducting a five-year evaluation of the implementation and impact of the national demonstration of a model for expanded learning time developed by "The After-School Corporation" (TASC). This model, called "ExpandED Schools," aims to transform the educational experiences of students in ways…

This publication focuses on professional development, a key element of school reform. In order to improve instruction and learning, schools need to increase the capacity of teachers to promote academic excellence in their classrooms. As part of their school and district plans, educators need to include professional development for teachers that is…

This publication focuses on curriculum integration. Integrative curriculum focuses on a theme or themes upon which two or more disciplines is organized. Curriculum integration has been proposed as a way of organizing the life skills, or "common learnings," considered essential for citizens in a democracy. The curriculum is organized…

Monitoring and evaluating whether a charter school is in compliance with statutory and regulatory requirements and performing financially, organizationally, and academically requires the authorizer to examine a host of information about an individual school. Some of this information is reported by the school itself; vehicles such as self-reports,…

Abate Elementary School represents Niagara Falls', New York, first attempt to make a go of the open classroom concept. (Author)

During the 1972-73 academic year, a research team working out of Teachers College, Columbia University, conducted case studies in districts where comprehensive and effective desegregation processes had been implemented. Greenburgh Central No. Seven, Greenburgh, New York, was selected as a site which had provided evidence of practices and policies…

A state-of-the-art study was developed to describe the present status of the job placement procedures for educable mentally retarded (EMR) students who have received high school occupational education in New York State. Fifty-four local school superintendents were contacted to participate in the study. Forty-four board of cooperative education…

The purpose of this publication is to focus attention upon a rapidly growing development in public school administration--the increasing interest in personnel administration as a process which can be identified through a description of certain formal functions which every school district must perform. The existence of adequate personnel policies…