Improving the educational outcomes of economically disadvantaged children is a policy priority in the United States, and yet relatively little progress has been made in recent decades. Education reforms that aim to help economically disadvantaged students often focus on improving the quality with which grade-level material is taught, or the…

Knowledge brokering is a promising practice for addressing the challenge of using research evidence, including evaluation findings, in policy implementation. For public policy practitioners, it means playing the role of an intermediary who steers the flow of knowledge between producers (researchers) and users (decision makers). It requires a set…

Gender inequality is a persistent issue in secondary and postsecondary career and technical education programs in the United States. According to section 113(b)(2)(A)(III)(vi) of the Carl D. Perkins act, schools receiving federal funds in support of career and technical education are required to report "student participation in, and…

Networked improvement communities (NICs) aim to build capacity for school-based educators to work collaboratively as active agents of problem solving and change. Yet, the benefits accrued to educators from participating in improvement networks have been sparsely researched. Using survey responses from the members of 34 improvement networks, we…

This chapter addresses strengths and difficulties encountered in implementing transfer learning community models and how efficacy is supported through transfer learning community programming. Transfer programming best practices and recommendations for program improvements are presented.

An evaluation system that is designed to support and improve teacher practice--rather than simply to assess and manage teacher performance--would have as its foundation effective and reliable processes to observe classroom practice and give teachers useful feedback. Such an improvement-focused evaluation system should be aligned with and…

This Annual Plan presents the major initiatives and priorities the U.S. Department of Education (Department) Office of Inspector General (OIG) intends to undertake to assist the Department in fulfilling its responsibilities to America's taxpayers and students. The Department will face several challenges in FY 2021; perhaps most significant among…

The quest to improve teaching on a wide scale is an enduring challenge globally. Yet demonstrable improvement in teaching quality is both elusive and slow. In this essay, I explore some of the complexities that contribute to the slow pace of change, including: the slippage between teachers and teaching as the object of improvement; the poorly…

This study investigated how and to what extent colleges and universities are integrating self-efficacy components within their Quality Enhancement Plans. Higher education institutions that are accredited by the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools Commission on Colleges (SACS), the regional accrediting body for 11 southern states, are…

At many higher education institutions, admissions decisions often rely on standardized test scores and high school grades; yet, they are less reliable predictors for applicants falling slightly below cutoff points, what we call borderline applicants. Since borderline applicants are often from underrepresented backgrounds and diverted to 2-year…

This chapter summarizes the information shared in the sourcebook and provides a sense of how study abroad staff might further develop and improve the programs offered to their students.

Building on an expanded concept of mutual adaptation, this chapter explores a distinctive and successful aspect of International Baccalaureate's effort to scale up, as they moved to expand their programs and support services in Title I schools. Based on a three-year, mixed-methods study, it offers a case where we see not only local adaptations…

There is increasing concern in the United States about the academic challenges that middle grade students face. Middle schools are not meeting accountability standards, and as a result students are not being adequately prepared for high school. In response to these concerns, a state in the southeastern United States adopted a comprehensive school…

School improvement plans (SIPs) are increasingly used to structure the process of setting and monitoring goals. As SIPs are designed to identify and address local problems of practice, there is the possibility that these tools help school leaders initiate and carry out ambitious school improvement. Yet, practical challenges abound in the…

This study examines the efficacy of the Japanese version of the Program for the Education and Enrichment of Relational Skills (PEERS), which focuses on improving social functioning through making friends and maintaining good relationships for adolescents with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) without intellectual disabilities. Originally developed in…