This article first makes a case for the need to establish evaluation reporting standards, support for which is rooted in the growing demand for professionalization, in the growing meta evaluation literature, and in growing efforts to develop reporting standards for inquiry efforts. Then, a case is made for a particular set of such standards…

This article extends the ongoing critique of neoliberalism's encroachment upon public education by highlighting how neoliberal ideas such individualism, accountability, governmentality, and the marketization of public life are recasting teachers today primarily as competitive economic beings. I contend that teachers are increasingly compelled to…

School counselors participated in a study examining their program evaluation interest and skills. Findings suggest that school counselors understand the importance of program evaluation, yet they may lack the skills and confidence to successfully engage in program evaluation activities. Professional development training may be an important method…

A central issue in system improvement is the propagation of a common sense of purpose where individual institutions can simultaneously bond with the wider system while exercising autonomy in context--hence the centrality of networks and collaboration (Hopkins 2007). The Maltese state education system responded to this concomitant move towards…

Understanding the policy directed education environment in which health education as a subject sits in "The New Zealand Curriculum" (NZC) is akin to attempting a complex jigsaw puzzle without a picture to show how the pieces fit together. This article will provide an overview of the multiple education policies, presented as a…

This document synthesizes the findings from the evaluations of four statewide programs designed to provide support for underperforming schools and districts in California as part of the state accountability system: (1) Immediate Intervention/Underperforming Schools Program (II/USP); (2) High Priority Schools Grant (HPSG) Program; (3) School…

As 21st century school systems continue to emerge, low-income parents will continue to regard public charter schools as the means through which their children have equal access to quality education. This report is a response to the National Education Association's (NEA's) policy statement on charter schools. In the statement, the NEA calls for a…

Across the South, many states and school districts provide basic training for evaluators. But this basic training does not assure that evaluators will be prepared to provide teachers with classroom observations that are rigorous, reliable and personally relevant. High-quality evaluator training leads to improved instructional practice, both…

This playbook shares the findings of three researchers who set off to discover what K-12 schools can learn from the best-run organizations in America. They looked systematically at the structures and processes that high-performing managers put in place to create their dynamic cultures. They found that the best managers had many things in common…

This document offers a brief guide to understanding Virginia's system for holding schools accountable for raising student achievement. Virginia's accountability system supports teaching and learning by setting rigorous academic standards--known as the Standards of Learning (SOL)--and through annual statewide assessments of student achievement.…

In this chapter, I attempt to theorize and historize the current global education reform movement which the Finnish education policy analyst Pasi Sahlberg (Finnish lessons: What can the world learn from educational change in Finland. Teachers College Press, New York, 2011) has coined the GERM (Global Education Reform Movement), the "virus…

The purpose of this interpretative phenomenological analysis study was to explore how undergraduate student government participants at a state university in California engage in decision-making in their official roles. This study focused on an auxiliary student government organization called Associated Students located at one of the twenty-three…

Improving the quality of charter school authorizing is critical for improving the quality of charter schools and the outcomes experienced by students and communities. As every charter school has an authorizer, improvement in authorizing has the power to be among the most significant catalysts in creating many more high-quality schools and closing…

This document records testimony from a hearing held to examine strengthening accreditation to better protect students and taxpayers. Member statements were presented by: (1) Honorable Virginia Foxx, Chairwoman, Committee on Education and the Workforce; and (2) Honorable Robert C. Scott, Ranking Member, Committee on Education and the Workforce.…

The challenge established by the persistence of student achievement gaps across ethnicity groups, socioeconomic strata, parental education, and English language learner status is the collective responsibility of federal, state, and local education agencies both public and nonpublic. This study aims to evaluate the extent to which the practices of…