Recently there have been greater calls for accountability within higher education, with a particular emphasis on retention and completion. More frequently than not, this accountability manifests itself through state funding formulas in which a percentage of state funds are directed towards performance. This article examines the history and trends…

The global educational landscape continues to change in response to three forces: a new paradigm of curriculum approaches that has shifted from teaching to learning; public demand for evidence of this learning; and decentralization of public schools (Sahlberg in "Journal of Educational Change," 12(2):173-185, 2011). These changes have…

The higher education industry faces many challenges. Despite the recognition that a college degree is essential to developing skilled employees, informed citizens, and flourishing people, there is a shortage of skilled workers, college costs (and student debt) are rising, and the attainment gap for minorities and underrepresented populations…

Since 1958, the New York State Education Department has officially promoted the policy of consolidating small, rural schools. This policy is delineated in the Master Plan for School Reorganization, and while the centralization of most one-room rural schools has been successful, the state has been less successful in the consolidation of smaller,…

This article develops a conceptual framework for exploring the role and consequences of evaluation at the local level of school governance. It also provides a frame of reference for the articles in this special issue on the role of evaluation in local school governance in Sweden. It consists of key concepts, three models of decentralised…

School level leadership is second only to effective instruction as essential to high student achievement (Leithwood, Louis, Anderson & Wahlstrom, 2004). Although factors such as socioeconomic levels and parental involvement contribute to the academic success of students, school leadership outweighs the impact of those factors. In the era of…

A strong level of funding is important for Australia's school system. The Government has further committed to a new, simpler and fairer funding model that distributes this funding on the basis of need. However, while funding is important, evidence shows that what you do with that funding matters more. Despite significant funding growth in the past…

Schools and other educational institutions are established, maintained and sustained essentially to achieve certain assured objectives. The goals of such establishment cannot be easily achieved without putting in place certain mechanisms towards ensuring the success of implementation of its policies and programmes. In the education system, one of…

The focus of this qualitative case study is on an attitudinal change of teachers towards teacher evaluation with the implementation of a new evaluation system. The goal of this qualitative case study was to gain an understanding of how the implementation of the new New Jersey teacher evaluation system relates to teachers' attitudes toward…

State laws and charter authorizing standards have not kept up with the explosive growth of charter schools in the last two decades. Annenberg Institute for School Reform's (AISR's) 2014 report "Public Accountability for Charter Schools: Standards and Policy Recommendations for Effective Oversight," offers seven standards, each with a set…

This comprehensive review is part of a three-part report, Follow the "Money: A Detailed Analysis of the Funding Mechanisms of Voucher Programs in Six Cases"; this review contains the cross-case analysis and findings of the funding mechanisms of voucher programs across five states (Arizona, Indiana, Louisiana, Ohio, and Wisconsin) and the…

A performance-appraisal system is often fraught with tensions between the dual purposes of accountability and development. In practice, the nominated appraiser is responsible for evaluating the performance of a colleague and at the same time building a relationship that fosters development. Appraisal systems in New Zealand schools have been…

The status of Black males in schools and society continues to be concerning, as Black males appear to fall behind other groups in almost every arena, particularly educationally, socially, and professionally. Yet despite their social standing, Black male administrators are often placed in, and have taken on, the charge to serve in high need schools…

This article reports a comparative study on the reasons for pre-service student teachers becoming teachers in Hong Kong and Macau. The study adopted a mixed methods research design, with 459 and 137 student teachers completing a questionnaire on teaching motivation and 35 and 15 student teachers joining a follow-up interview in Hong Kong and…

School leaders in Queensland, Australia, are working in a rapidly shifting policy landscape, expected to work towards system-defined improvement measures involving increasingly higher external accountabilities. This article analyses a group of long-term case studies of the effects of school improvement expectations on principals since the…