This document presents five case studies of Ohio schools in order to discuss ongoing systemic reform in Ohio. Papers include: (1) "Steele Middle School: 'The Best Education for the Best Is the Best Education for All'" (Jane Butler Kahle, Kathryn Scantlebury, Arta Damnjanovic, and Mary Kay Kelly); (2) "Urban Middle School: 'How Much…

Surveyed and interviewed Title I elementary teachers regarding their assessment practices in the first and fourth years of restructuring efforts. Schools in their fourth year of restructuring had significantly higher mean ratings on alternative assessment items than did schools in their first year. Differences were significant for portfolios and…

After investigating alternatives, a Missouri high school adopted the eight-block flexible scheduling model. Instead of meeting 45-60 minutes every day, classes now meet 94 minutes every other day. Staff and students are enthusiastic. Longer instructional periods allow teachers to develop key concepts and use diverse learning activities and permit…

Unlike the effective teaching research, which attempted to identify generic teaching skills, current research focuses on relationships between teaching and learning in specific subjects. Attempts to change school structure have rarely led to reliable changes in either teaching practice or student learning. When geared to students' conceptual…

Eight high schools in three California school districts are on multitrack year-round schedules. Interviews with personnel from these schools and from two districts considering a year-round schedule highlight the effect of year-round schedules on student learning, management issues, extracurricular activities, and school culture. (MLF)

Delaware's early experience with the RE:Learning project affirms the necessity of simultaneous top-down and bottom-up reform efforts. Other critical ingredients include awareness of the critical need for change and strong incentives for bucking the status quo. Resistant teacher and administrator mindsets must also be transformed. (MLH)

The agendas of active learning, technology, and restructuring--each a powerful vehicle for changing learning and teaching in schools--must be pursued concurrently to be maximally effective. Creating new technology schools and initiating technology projects in restructuring districts are two approaches that can transform schooling's image and…

The Panasonic Partnership Program's framework for school success includes (1) vision of equity and learning for all; (2) centrality of school; (3) clear role delineation; (4) integrated assessment practices; (5) results-based accountability; (6) well-managed data; (7) effective communication; (8) involvement of teacher unions; and (9) community…

Discusses connections between the critical theory of John Dewey and the agenda of the middle school movement, noting that both attempt to infuse a traditional, authoritative institution with innovation, democracy, and unity. Considers Dewey as a catalyst for ideas that brought about middle school reform, and the need to synthesize past and present…

Reviews educational reforms being made in an era of economic restructuring, including those driven by competitiveness, those made in response to reduced public funding for education, and those made to improve education's role in social mobility and equalization. Suggests an alternative model based on newly industrialized Asian countries. (SK)

Studied the effects on engagement of school reform initiatives that are consistent with educational theories. Also studied patterns in student engagement in a sample of 3,669 students from restructuring elementary, middle, and high schools. Hierarchical linear analysis suggests that reform initiatives substantially influence engagement in a…

When teachers at Thomas Gardner Elementary School voted in fall 2003 to join Boston's network of "pilot" schools, they had no inkling of the political firestorm that lay ahead. A few months after they moved to become part of the city's nationally watched experiment with small, autonomous public schools, the president of the Boston Teachers Union…

This study addressed applicant reactions to teaching positions announced in recruitment media. The independent variables were school classification based on standardized student achievement tests (in need of assistance, progressing, meets goal), signing bonus (10% initial signing bonus, no bonus), and teaching experience (experienced,…

This paper uses a sociocultural theoretical lens, incorporating mediated agency [Wertsch et al. (1993). A sociocultural approach to agency. In A. Forman, N. Minick, & A. Stone (Eds.), "Contexts for learning sociocultural dynamics in children's development" (pp. 336-357). New York: Oxford University Press] to examine the dynamic…

This meta-analysis reviews research on the achievement effects of comprehensive school reform (CSR) and summarizes the specific effects of 29 widely implemented models. There are limitations on the overall quantity and quality of the research base, but the overall effects of CSR appear promising. The combined quantity, quality, and statistical…