"Getting Prepared 2021" examines Minnesota public high school graduates from the classes of 2013-2020 who enrolled in postsecondary education and those enrolled in developmental education. This report provides insight into the academic readiness of Minnesota public high school graduates. Developmental education courses add to the overall…

The study presented here examines the efforts of one principal and the team she relied upon to create a more inclusive and high-performing school in a large urban school district. The goals, actions, and responsibilities of the team are described, as well as the daily challenges associated with school administration and special education. In doing…

Across the globe, students with disabilities have been increasing in prevalence in higher education settings. Thus, it has become more urgent for college faculty to have a broad awareness of disability and inclusive teaching practices based on the tenets of Universal Design. In this study, we examined faculty attitudes toward disability-related…

This study investigates the relationship between school-level accountability practices and science achievement of 15-year-olds, across four counties: Australia, Korea, Portugal, and the United States. We used PISA 2006 data, since 2006 is the only administration that has focused on science. School-level accountability practices are here defined as…

Inclusion of the universal design for learning (UDL) model as a guiding set of principles for online curriculum development in higher education is discussed. Fundamentally, UDL provides the student with multiple means of accessing the course based on three overarching principles: presentation; action and expression; and engagement and interaction.…

Background: Local control has historically been a prominent principle in education policymaking and governance. Culminating with the passage of No Child Left Behind (NCLB), however, the politics of education have been nationalized to an unprecedented degree, and local control has all but disappeared as a principle framing education policymaking.…

This paper considers why the International Baccalaureate--a prestigious international education program--is currently being incorporated into magnet schools in the United States. Since the mid-1980s, when school choice policy took root the number of magnet schools climbed and a growing number of them incorporated the International Baccalaureate…

Examining education policy, specifically policy related to standards, testing and accountability, from a critical perspective reveals the dominance of neoliberal perspectives. Trends of individual motivators in the educational system limit the democratic curriculum development process. "Feel good" moments for policy makers lead to…

The Common Core State Standards were implemented in the state of Georgia in the 2012/2013 school year replacing NCLB. Previous studies indicated that teachers and administrators viewed NCLB negatively, and the purpose of this study was to gauge teachers' perceptions of the new standards after they had been in effect for one and a half years.…

States and districts have the flexibility to creatively use Title II, Part A funds to address teacher quality issues. Currently, three strategies predominate--class size reduction, professional development, and recruitment, induction, and retention of highly qualified teachers. Each strategy is implemented with the intention of improving teaching…

The U.S. national high school graduation rate recently reached a record high with 81 percent of the Class of 2013 graduating within four years. While this accomplishment is laudable, it should not obscure the fact that more than 1,200 high schools, serving more than 1.1 million students, still fail to graduate one-third or more of their students…

This spring, Congress is considering the reauthorization of the No Child Left Behind Act. In the 14 years since the law was passed, AEI Education has devoted extensive analysis to how it worked in practice. AEI has distilled their work into a series of brief chapters to provide a one-stop shop for understanding why the law was passed, what went…

Having a disability or ongoing ill health (including mental health conditions) can significantly disrupt an individual's educational attainment and employment prospects, potentially creating lifelong social and economic disadvantage. These students may need additional support to help them successfully complete their studies. In addition, education…

Since the onset of NCLB legislation and federal funding for schools tied to summative assessment performance, educational leaders have sought to identify factors that are most influential on student learning outcomes. Research continues to link the use of formative data practices and teacher efficacy to improved student performance. The intent of…

It has been three years since Race to the Top grant-winning states piloted new teacher evaluation systems and many of them have made considerable progress, yet according to media coverage and a Government Accountability Office (GAO) report published in April 2015, struggles remain and most grantees have asked to extend the timetables for…