This handbook has been prepared to assist Albertans in understanding the provincial charter school concept, to assist charter organizers with their planning and preparation for the establishment of charter schools in Alberta, and to assist those responsible for processing charter school applications. Bill 19, The School Amendment Act, which…

This paper examines the implementation of California's 1987 policy promoting the untracking of middle schools, a reform endorsed by the state in both "Caught in the Middle" (1987) and the "English-Language Arts Framework (1987)." Specifically, the paper looks at changes in eighth-grade English tracking policies for a sample of…

Representatives of Saskatchewan school boards have formed the Small Schools Network, which met three times in 1995 to share ideas regarding small schools. This first report from the Small Schools Network articulates significant concerns and questions related to education in small schools. Unclear definitions of the small school present a barrier…

State-level policymakers, local-level administrators, and teachers alike are interested in how standards actually apply to classroom learning. This paper presents answers to questions that policymakers and educators should consider before implementing standards-based education at the local level. The following questions help sort through the…

As sponsoring agents for Arizona charter schools, individual school boards in Arizona are committed to ensuring that all applicants have a fair and equal opportunity to submit a proper charter proposal. This handbook provides information and materials to help charter-school applicants in Arizona prepare a proposal for establishing a charter…

By March 1994, eight states had adopted charter-school legislation. This report defines the charter-school concept and describes its advantages and disadvantages. Proponents argue that charter schools offer flexibility, decentralized decision making, a performance accountability, and school choice, and increased pressure for change. Opponents…

As of October 1995, 17 states had adopted charter-school legislation. The strength and scope of charter-school laws vary greatly among states. This report describes those state statutes, including the 1995 law passed by the Texas State Legislature. It describes specific provisions of the Texas law, including the home-rule district charter, campus…

Within the educational reform debate, there is general agreement that the development of high academic standards is an important first step toward improving academic outcomes. This report highlights the standards initiatives being implemented in Colorado, Delaware, Minnesota, and South Carolina. All four states have made substantial progress in…

Discussion of inequity in funding of Pennsylvania schools has tended to focus on differences between wealthy and poor school districts. In Pennsylvania, 180 school districts have filed a lawsuit challenging the constitutionality of the existing public school funding scheme. A study of the state's 500 school districts, grouped by market value of…

This guide to residential state academies for academically gifted high school students discusses the history of this movement, student characteristics, curricula, faculty, outreach programs, and evaluation. The establishment of the nine existing state institutions is traced from the prototype, the North Carolina School for Science and Mathematics,…

Recently South Dakota initiated a statewide report card system, which publicizes school data such as teacher-student ratios and student scores on the Stanford Achievement Test. A survey of South Dakota superintendents on their opinions about the new system was returned by 178 superintendents (74 percent of total), of whom 57 administered small…

With the state facing lawsuits over school funding, the Joint Interim Subcommittee on School Funding of the Montana Legislature recommended establishing guaranteed tax base aid to schools. The subcommittee made the recommendations in November 1992 to the 53rd Legislature. The legislation, LC 36, would equalize funding for school district facility…

Based on an April 1998 conference, this EdSource report focuses on what several prominent education experts and school district superintendents perceive as the primary challenges and opportunities faced by California's school accountability movement. Gerald Hayward, a policy analyst, believes that any proposed accountability system should be based…

School restructuring requires the critical assessment of all aspects of the educational system, including the goals of schooling; organization and management at the local, district, and state levels, curriculum; instruction; roles and responsibilities of educational personnel, students, and parents; school finance; and education regulation and…

State-endorsed education service agency (ESA) type organizations are found in 26 state school systems, 23 of which have a complete statewide network serving all local districts. These organizations promote collaboration among local school districts in substate regions or serve as a conduit for implementation of state initiatives. This report…