With regard to testing, technology has already played significant roles in the form of scoring technology, analytical practices, and development strategies. Two common functions of technology and testing are currently at work. First is the use of technology to meet existing goals more efficiently, and second is the use of technology to expand the…

This paper describes the Milken Family Foundation's Teacher Advancement Program (TAP), which was designed to address many of the problems in today's education. TAP uses a systemic approach that builds on five key principles: providing teachers with multiple career paths and opportunities to advance in the profession without having to leave the…

A method for measuring the contribution an individual makes to group work is described, and its use is supported through a study of 57 university students aged from 20 to 46 years working in 8 groups of 4 to 10 members each. The method recognizes that the most valid sources of information on the contribution of each individual to the group work…

This book is premised on the conviction that being a successful principal is more than being a good manager. Becoming an effective school leader means understanding the culture as well as acquiring the technical skills. The book discusses the personalities and value systems that school leaders need to succeed. It is designed for first-year…

This paper examines accountability outcomes of Tennessee school districts, comparing rural versus urban districts and litigant versus nonlitigant districts from a 1993 fiscal equity lawsuit. School districts were assigned a measure of rurality using the Cleland Rurality Index, and comparisons were made among the 29 low-rurality districts, 66…

This paper describes the District of Columbia Public School System (DCPS); articulates challenges it faced prior to standards based reform; presents strategies for reforming large urban systems' health and physical education (HPE) programs; and notes strategies for incorporating a standards-based performance-driven model. DCPS reading and math…

This booklet provides basic information and guidelines to rural New York school districts competing for grants or other competitive funding. Section 1 examines new realities in the education landscape: the demand for higher academic standards, requirements for increased accountability, the call for systemic change, the need to integrate and align…

This policy paper examines the products, services, and innovations that a fully competitive marketplace could generate if the government loosened its grip on education, noting that the failure of government-run schools to prepare students for the rigors of the modern economy is a pressing policy problem as well as an opportunity for the private…

This report analyzes information from 12 Educational Flexibility Partnership Demonstration (EFD) program state reports submitted to the U.S. Department of Education in spring 2000. The EFD program helps schools and districts implement educational reforms and raise student achievement by providing increased flexibility in implementing federal…

The educational advantages conferred by rurality and smallness have their greatest impact at the school and classroom level, but this same rurality creates district or system-level problems that have often been solved by consolidation. Consolidation efforts have been waning because they are politically unpopular, good economic times allow states…

This collection of papers presents three approaches to urban educational reform. After "Introduction--Urban Education Reform: Competing Approaches" (James G. Cibulka and William Lowe Byrd), Part 1, "Systems Reforms of Urban School Systems," includes (1) "Accountability at the Improv: Brief Sketches of School Reform in Los…

Following the proposal of the Chancellor of the California Community to shift from attendance-based funding to performance-based funding, Palomar College (California) has articulated its intention to judge its quality and formulate its policies primarily on learning outcomes. Out of this imperative, the Assessment of Learning Project (ALP) was…

In 1996, the Pew Charitable Trusts gave 4-year grants to seven urban school districts to help implement standards-based systemic reform. Several times each year, researchers conducted interviews to track progress in their reform efforts. This report synthesizes findings across all 4 years of the Pew Network. Overall, Network sites worked hard to…

This paper describes Louisville, Kentucky's Community Accountability Team (CAT), which promoted parent and citizen involvement in school reform. It was unique to the Jefferson County Public Schools (JCPS), a large, urban district, and represented a strategy in a rapidly building national movement to make education more transparent and accountable…

This reference guide contains clear and concise explanations of concepts related to educational testing and standards. The book may be read straight through as a primer on educational assessment or may be used as a reference for particular topics. The sections are: (1) Accountability (Consumers, Taxpayers, and Citizens); (2) Authenticity in…