School leadership in communicating to parents and students from diverse backgrounds is a problem in education that must be addressed. As the population of the United States is becoming more and more diverse, school administrators must develop new ways to reach their stakeholders. All families must be involved in their children's academic progress…

Partnerships among schools, families, and community organizations can reconnect urban schools to their communities and improve results for young people and their families. This report provides an overview of Casey's investment philosophy and strategies, and its approach to defining and documenting grantmaking results. The report highlights the…

Now as Congress and the Bush administration consider the five-year reauthorization of the law, they have the opportunity to address some of NCLB's important problems of commission and omission. The goal of closing the huge achievement gap is laudable and must be addressed effectively. The NCLB seeks to develop and implement a new federal and state…

What is the place of the arts in our schools? In a world of high-stakes testing and accountability, can schools "afford" to teach the arts? This "Informed Educator" explores why many who have studied this issue consider the arts to have an important role in the curriculum. Examples of the ways some leaders effectively communicate the benefits of…

To what extent does eliminating remedial education impede or facilitate the opportunity to earn bachelor's degrees for underprepared students? Educating underprepared students is often viewed as one of the most challenging and complex issues facing higher education today. Recent policy decisions to end remedial education, however, signify a much…

This report examines levels of debt incurred by students and families for undergraduate education, and explores the implications significant debt levels may have on access to higher education. Included in the analysis are undergraduate debt levels at California public and private institutions and comparisons of California student debt with student…

State and district school leaders across the U.S. have long sought ways to create success for children attending schools where too many have failed for far too long. A new approach to solving this old problem is called "starting fresh." By beginning anew with the freedom to do things vastly different, a real opportunity is created to…

Holding public schools accountable for students' academic achievement is the centerpiece of educational reform policies in the United States (U.S.). Two dominant accountability frameworks are standards-driven and market-driven. A significant challenge associated with these 2 frameworks is how to include children with disabilities. We assert that…

This article explores shame issues for Latino children who have been sexually abused and their families. Latino cultural concerns around shame that are associated with sexual abuse include: attributions for the abuse, fatalism, virginity, sexual taboos, predictions of a shameful future, revictimization, machismo, and fears of homosexuality for boy…

In most districts, the evaluation of superintendents by the members of the board of education takes place in executive session of the board behind closed doors. Few board members or superintendents question the status quo. Most evaluation forms are merely collections of subjective checklists that catalog approved personality traits, attributes,…

There are some speculations why students of all age groups and achievement levels cheat. One line of speculation is that dishonesty in school merely reflects the broader erosion of ethical behavior which has become commonplace in societies that tend to support self-centeredness over concern for others. Another is that concern about high-stakes…

Research in the neurobiological, behavioral, and social sciences has dramatically increased our capacity to provide effective intervention for economically disadvantaged children. According to Neuman, however, U.S. policymakers have made little use of this body of research to improve the prospects of children at risk. This article discusses seven…

The regulatory environment in which long daycare centres are required to operate plays a key role in determining what early childhood professionals do and how they go about doing it. This paper reports findings from a state-wide survey undertaken in New South Wales, Australia, which shows how early childhood professionals position themselves on…

In the light of some of the aspirations for education expressed in the Plowden Report, this short piece considers the experiences of teachers in a "progressive" English independent school. There is a particular focus on what might loosely be termed job satisfaction. It is suggested that, whilst these teachers enjoy their work, they have…

One of the ultimate goals of policy makers is to enable citizens to take advantage of a globalised world economy. This is leading them to focus on the improvement of education policies, ensuring the quality of service provision, a more equitable distribution of learning opportunities and stronger incentives for greater efficiency in schooling.…