As part of No Child Left Behind (NCLB) legislation, many states are using confidence intervals to determine a range of scores for evaluating a school system. More specifically, the states are employing confidence intervals to help minimize measurement error in determining a school system's performance. The methodology and techniques employed in…

The No Child Left Behind Act of 2001 (NCLB) requires that schools make "adequate yearly progress" (AYP) towards the goal of having 100 percent of their students become proficient by year 2013-14. Through simulation analyses of Maine and Kentucky school performance data collected during the 1990s, this study investigates how feasible…

What is Critical Race Theory (CRT) and what does it offer educational researchers and practitioners outside the US? This paper addresses these questions by examining the recent history of anti-racist research and policy in the UK. In particular, the paper argues that conventional forms of anti-racism have proven unable to keep pace with the…

This study was conducted to assess and improve an introductory multicultural-designated course in an urban teacher preparation program. The course aimed to promote candidates' positive response to multiculturalism, especially White/Caucasian candidates. Results suggest that this approach effectively laid the foundation for almost all candidates'…

The authors present the results of a multiyear collaborative research project that involved a counselor educator, graduate-level school counseling students, and school personnel in defining a new role for counselors in education reform. This collaborative effort was based on an innovative conceptual framework that informs school counselors about…

This case study of three high achieving urban fringe high schools was an investigation into the attitudes; structural components and leadership qualities that characterize the three target high schools. Each of the three high schools chosen for the investigation was noted for high achievement of a wide range of students from diverse socio-economic…

What does it look like when a school uses data wisely? "Data Wise in Action", a new companion and sequel to the bestselling "Data Wise", tells the stories of eight very different schools following the Data Wise process of using assessment results to improve teaching and learning. "Data Wise in Action" highlights the…

Research on school effectiveness continues to indicate that those aspects of schooling that are closest to the student, namely teaching, instruction, and curriculum, have the greatest impact on student learning (see Gamoran, Nystrand, Berends, & LePore, (1995). Furthermore, the available evidence suggests that schools that cultivate particular…

This article reports on the results of a mixed method case study investigating the relationship between professional learning community (PLC) activities and teacher improvement in a first-year middle school. Data were collected from core academic sixth, seventh, and eighth grade teachers using a professional development survey, teacher interviews,…

Purpose: No Child Left Behind (NCLB) brought attention to the need for states to upgrade the criteria used to certify teachers for entry into the profession. This study focuses on collective teacher qualifications mandated by NCLB and the role they play in explaining differences in school achievement and growth rates. Research Methods: The study…

The Black College and University Act defined an historically black college and university (HBCU) as one that existed before 1964 with a historic and contemporary mission of educating blacks while being open to all. An HBCU must either have earned accreditation from a nationally recognized accrediting agency or association or be making reasonable…

At this moment, in school districts throughout the United States, initiatives are being launched to extend the school day, increase homework, integrate technology, and require more high-stakes testing. The assumption underlying these initiatives is that more and more--more time in school, more homework, more technology, and more high-stakes…

As the high-profile Knowledge Is Power Program (KIPP) network of schools continues to expand, KIPP leaders are taking a close look at student attrition amid arguments from critics that the loss of students at some of those public schools of choice is alarmingly high. Attrition rates at a few KIPP schools in the San Francisco Bay Area, in…

In April 1993, the Assistant Director-General of the quality-assurance review program in New South Wales, Australia, established guidelines, called "best practices descriptors," to provide schools with collaboratively developed statements that reflect the characteristics of an effective school or classroom. The statements will provide a…

This paper describes a project undertaken for the Swiss National Science Foundation to investigate the efficiency of the Swiss education systems. The project entailed a literature review of current international trends in school-effectiveness and school-improvement research; a survey of 57 researchers in 10 countries; a survey of researchers in…