Kappan's editor talks with political scientist Sara Dahill-Brown about the new realities of educational decision making under the Every Student Succeeds Act, which follows nearly two decades of strong federal influence over K-12 policies at the state and district levels. Rather than promoting one-size-fits-all approaches to school improvement,…

This article is the second in a series of three articles about academic fraud. The first, "Diploma Mills and Counterfeit Operations, Part 1" by Allen Ezell College and University v94 n3 Sum 2019 described the history and growth of diploma mills and counterfeit operations. This article provides an in-depth look at the operations of the…

Over the last 2 decades, policymakers' standards-based accountability reforms in the United States, such as the No Child Left Behind Act, have fundamentally changed public schooling in general and kindergarten specifically. As this has occurred, little is known about how families make sense of these changes in schooling. By sharing findings from a…

This study explored how district leaders in three Michigan school districts reacted to a state-induced policy calling for district-implemented performance-pay for teachers in response to Race to the Top (RttT) in 2010. The study is positioned at the intersection of reform efforts and policy implementation in practice. Using a multi-site…

Despite numerous education reform efforts, disparities between more privileged students and students from marginalized and minoritized groups still persist in U.S. education. The Every Student Succeeds Act (ESSA) passed in 2015 indicates greater commitment of the federal government to advancing equity in education and gives state educational…

Paraprofessional training is essential for high quality special education services. Yet, educators may struggle to select appropriate materials for paraprofessional training. A review was conducted of 26 paraprofessional training materials using a rubric designed to evaluate the alignment with federal legislation and professional standards, and…

Special education has been the subject of many rulings in federal courts. These rulings have greatly affected the practice of special education. The most important of these cases have come from the U.S. Supreme Court, which thus far has heard 12 cases directly affecting special education. This article examines the most important of these special…

Bullying is a label or word often considered a subset of aggressive behavior distinguished from other forms of aggression because it occurs repeatedly and involves individuals of unequal power (Frey et al., 2005; Olweus, 1993a). Despite researchers' efforts at establishing a uniform definition, others continue to attribute other meanings to the…

This queer phenomenological study examined institutional statements released in support of undocumented individuals after the Trump administration's decision to end the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) program. We discerned the "template" used when crafting public messages of support for undocumented communities. We suggest…

This brief article addresses the question of whether the Individuals with Disabilities Act or Section 504 and its sister statute, the Americans with Disabilities Act, provides for the liability of special educators and other public school personnel for money damages. The analysis synthesizes the applicable case law under these federal disability…

The "Every Student Succeeds Act" requires that student's test scores be disaggregated by racial characteristics. Nevertheless, the author's recent study suggests that K-12 school principals may not intentionally think about race when they collect, interpret, analyze, and make decisions about data. By not disaggregating data by race,…

Over its 100-year plus history the community college has struggled to make clear its mission. As a comprehensive community college its mission has bounced around to focus on liberal arts, developmental, workforce, community, and general education. In today's increasingly competitive society with shifting values and changes in power it is likely…

One of the stated purposes of this Special Issue is to "discuss when and why intelligence has disappeared" in education. In this paper, I argue that intelligence is still heavily involved in public education in the United States due to the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act. Moreover, due to several factors, including…

Reviews of published research indicate only a 33% median success rate of complex systems change initiatives. This lack of uptake is becoming known as implementation failure. Social emotional interventions with infants and young children and their caregivers also have a history of high attrition rates, putting efforts focused on this area at high…

Eleven states have worked with CIID, over the past three years, to integrate their IDEA data and to implement Generate, a software application that improves data quality and automates reporting through standardization. These eleven states have realized notable data quality improvements that will be shared in this brief to help states across the…