The "2014 Comprehensive Biennial Report on Texas Public Schools" describes the status of Texas public education, as required by §39.332 of the Texas Education Code. The report contains 15 chapters on the following topics: (1) state progress on academic performance indicators; (2) student performance on state assessments; (3) performance…

Answering the question of how a Romney administration would tackle education requires us to keep three things in mind. First, education is a minor issue in this election and would be a secondary concern for a Republican President focused on economic growth, the deficit, tax cuts, and reversing the Affordable Care Act. Second, there are few stark…

The current study explores some of the factors associated with children's mental health difficulties in primary school. Multilevel modeling with data from 628 children from 36 schools was used to determine how much variation in mental health difficulties exists between and within schools, and to identify characteristics at the school and…

In a provocative and influential paper, Jesse Rothstein (2010) finds that standard value added models (VAMs) suggest implausible future teacher effects on past student achievement, a finding that obviously cannot be viewed as causal. This is the basis of a falsification test (the Rothstein falsification test) that appears to indicate bias in VAM…

This study uses entrance lotteries to explore heterogeneity in the achievement effects of charter schools across demographic groups and between urban and non-urban areas in Massachusetts. The authors develop a framework for interpreting this heterogeneity using both student- and school-level explanatory variables. (Contains 4 tables.)

Among Canadian teacher unions, discussions of class size are increasingly being informed by the importance of considering the diversity of student needs within the classroom (often referred to as class composition). For teachers, both class size and diversity matter. Teachers consistently adapt their teaching to address the individual needs of the…

In 1999, California was among the first schools in the nation to initiate an accountability model for public education using a method for system measurement of academic improvement constructed on the bedrock of standards-based education. The State also included a new twist...sanctions. Schools that failed to make expected progress, as measured…

To remain competitive in a global economy, institutions of higher learning must commit to excellence and establish as a priority organizational and human resource development (McCabe, 2001). While mission statements from community colleges throughout the country may include similar foci, it is of paramount importance that these institutions of…

How well are our nation's high schools preparing students for college and career? Recent analyses by ACT show low rates of college and career readiness among United States high school graduates. Data from postsecondary institutions reveal high remediation rates and low second-year retention rates among first-year college students. Employers lament…

Assessing school principal performance is both necessary and challenging. During the past five years, many states have begun using validated measures in summative assessments of novice principal competency as a basis for certification decisions. Although standardized tests are used for certification purposes, other types of assessments are being…

This paper examines the complex constellation of conditions that turn many young people into "exiles" from schooling. From the vantage point of young people, the paper traces out a profile of the conditions that need to be brought into existence for these young people to find a way back into learning. The paper argues that current…

This article explores the reasons why transformation of the school system is urgently needed. It is suggested that the system will implode as a result of a growing dislocation between what schools need to achieve and the inadequate, if not damaging, practices forcefully promoted by increasing numbers of school leaders and politicians.…

This article examines the connections between No Child Left Behind (NCLB) and the Effective Schools Research Movement. Using historical methodology, the authors argue that although both were premised on building capacity, over time the reform that became NCLB evolved to focus on accountability. This shift disconnected the reform from its research…

The purpose of this study is to describe an alternative means of estimating school effectiveness, referred to as an "absolute year" of schooling and demonstrate its usefulness as a measure of school effectiveness in the middle grades. More specifically, the study investigated (a) whether the absolute schooling effect in math and reading outcomes…

Leadership, as it is practiced today in community colleges, has taken three brilliant ideas to excess and made them into guiding ideologies. The first is "growth," a means for gauging organizational legitimacy and success that has eclipsed other means. The second is "complexity," which has gained acceptance as a structural necessity for managing…