This paper profiles the student subgroup achievement and gap trends in Tennessee for 2010. In grade 8 (the only grade in which subgroup trends were analyzed by achievement level), Tennessee showed across-the-board gains--improvements in reading and math at the proficient-and-above, and advanced levels for all racial/ethnic subgroups, low-income…

This paper profiles the student subgroup achievement and gap trends in South Dakota for 2010. South Dakota's demographic profile is such that, with the exception of Native American students, there are fewer than 500 students in the racial/ethnic subgroups at the various grade levels, and therefore these groups are too small to count for this…

This paper profiles the student subgroup achievement and gap trends in South Carolina for 2010. South Carolina introduced new tests in grades 3-8, so trend data that include 2009 are not available. Progress in narrowing achievement gaps at grade 10 was mixed. Comparable data were available for 2004-2009 at grade 10. (Contains 9 tables.) [For the…

This paper profiles the student subgroup achievement and gap trends in Texas for 2010. In grade 8 (the only grade in which subgroup trends were analyzed by achievement level), Texas showed across-the-board gains--improvements in reading and math at the basic, proficient, and advanced levels for all racial/ethnic subgroups, low-income students, and…

Reading First has been implemented in Nebraska since the 2004-5 academic year. In two rounds of funding and participation, schools have transformed the way they trained their teachers, measured student progress, and taught. This transformation is one of the hardest tasks in education and it has taken the considerable dedication of school personnel…

This study explores the effects of school-level characteristics on North Carolina students' reading and math achievement from fourth through eighth grade, focusing on the relationships between achievement and the racial and poverty composition of schools. After creating race-by-poverty cohorts of schools, I use multilevel models to examine math…

In 2004, the U.S. Department of Education's Institute of Education Sciences contracted with Mathematica Policy Research to conduct a large-scale evaluation of comprehensive teacher induction. The purpose of the study was to determine whether augmenting the set of services districts usually provide to support beginning teachers with a more…

This report describes the derivation and evaluation of a method for comparing the performance standards for public school students set by different states. It is based on an approach proposed by McLaughlin and associates, which constituted an innovative attempt to resolve the confusion and concern that occurs when very different proportions of…

This book contains a collection of formal and informal reading assessments for use with students in Grades K-12. These assessments assist the teacher in targeting areas of strength and weakness, in monitoring student reading development, and in planning appropriate instruction. Unlike large-scale achievement tests, the majority of these…

"Straight A's: Public Education Policy and Progress" is a biweekly newsletter that focuses on education news and events both in Washington, DC and around the country. The following articles are included in this issue: (1) "Great Expectations": Parents Expect Children to Pursue Postsecondary Education but Don't Think Schools…

This document provides an executive summary of "Reading First Impact Study. Final Report. NCEE 2009-4038." The final report presents findings from the third and final year of the Reading First Impact Study (RFIS), a congressionally mandated evaluation of the federal government's initiative to help all children read at or above grade…

Using an experimental research design, this project investigated the effects of teacher read-alouds when students did, and did not, have access to companion texts. Based on Connectionist theory, the researchers hypothesized that students in the Companion Text group would outperform students in the Listen Only group on the three examined variables:…

This study examined the effects of the Visual Thinking Strategies (VTS) curriculum on reading achievement of students with various motivational levels. A 2X2 factorial design was used. The sample population consisted of 104 fourth grade students from an upper middle class school system in Connecticut. All students were administered a…

This paper examines the long-term effect of enrollment in center- or school-based care programs on the academic performance of language minority students in the USA. The study applies a longitudinal multilevel analysis to a nationally representative database, the Early Childhood Longitudinal Study (ECLS-K). Of particular interest are the…

This study measures the effectiveness of Collaborative Learning Assessment through Dialogue (CLAD) on reading achievement in inclusive classrooms in the USA. The CLAD process involved students collaboratively completing multiple-choice quizzes, using dialogue and critical thinking to reach consensus and receiving immediate feedback on their…