This study investigated how novice teachers in urban schools manage the transition from preparation to practice. Through the lens of teacher efficacy, the research presented herein was built around two groups of guiding questions: (1) Do novice teachers in at-risk urban schools feel adequately prepared to effectively perform the task of teaching?…

A need for greater understanding of teachers' (N = 530) perceptions of the leadership behaviors of principals in Title I middle schools (n = 13) is prevalent exists. The researcher used the "Audit of Principal Effectiveness" survey to collect data. The researcher also used Hierarchical Linear Modeling as the quantitative analysis.…

For the first time, researchers, policymakers and practitioners across the world will have access to a comprehensive mapping of research evidence and policy strategies about education and poverty in affluent countries. Although there is widespread agreement that poverty and poor educational outcomes are related, there are competing explanations as…

Government policies designed to redress social inequality are often evaluated by qualitative methods, which prevents the establishment of a causal relationship between policy objectives and outcomes. Social programmes to broaden participation in higher education have been a feature of government policy in Europe, the US and Australia during the…

"Poor white trash" is likely the most enduring and degrading in a long line of "stigmatypes"--"stigmatizing boundary terms that simultaneously denote and enact cultural and cognitive divides between in-groups and out-groups"--such as "redneck," "cracker," and "hillbilly." Some people…

Effective performance-based instruction is making a sustained and noticeable impact on township schools in the Eastern Cape of South Africa. We document the performance improvement effort made over the past 7 years by Partnerships for Educational Excellence and Research International (P.E.E.R), a team of educators, instructional system designers,…

The purpose of this study was to examine principal leadership styles and their influence on school performance as measured by adequate yearly progress at selected Title I schools in South Carolina. The main focus of the research study was to complete descriptive statistics on principal leadership styles in schools that met or did not meet adequate…

Across the nation, early college schools are creating a path to college success for young people underrepresented in higher education. For a decade, these innovative public schools blending high school and college have proven that, with the right support, all high school students can tackle college work. Now, a Texas school district near the…

It has been well established that the high schools students attend contribute significantly to how well they do in college, and even if they choose to attend college at all (Lee & Frank, 1990). Low performing high schools tend to under-prepare their students for post-secondary education and contribute to the very high percentages of students…

Effective teachers have an enormous impact on the lives of their students. Great teachers can help students who are behind academically catch up to grade-level expectations. By accelerating student performance, they can help close the opportunity and achievement gaps that cut short the college and career dreams of so many low-income students and…

This article presents a case study of one very small school in a remote location of Western Australia. The study is part of a larger programme, International Study of Principal Preparation, investigating the challenges facing novice principals in the first 3 years of appointment and the extent to which they felt they were adequately prepared to…

Professional development is now recognized as a key driver in enhancing teacher expertise and improving student achievement. A multifaceted, collaborative professional-development intervention designed to equip teachers with a range of strategies, tools, and methodologies and raise literacy standards was implemented over two years (grades 1-2) in…

Analyzing long-term demographic data from the Schools and Staffing Survey, Ingersoll and Merrill found a number of intriguing trends in the teaching force that they say "appear to have been little noticed by researchers, policymakers, and the public." The number of teachers, they write, is growing at a rate that far outpaces increases in student…

Background: Exposure to community violence compromises teacher effectiveness, student learning, and socioemotional well-being. This study examined the challenges, strategies, and support needs of teachers in urban schools affected by high levels of community violence. Methods: Twenty teachers from 3 urban middle schools with predominantly…

Policymakers are increasingly adopting "pay-for-performance" policies in which teachers are compensated based on their performance as measured by classroom evaluations and/or student achievement test results. Prior research has produced largely inconclusive findings concerning support among teachers for these policies and their effects…