This article offers a theoretically based solution to faculty hesitation to engage in difficult dialogs on a campus in crisis. Using the constructs of Ratcliffe's language of rhetorical listening through the lens of Freire's interactive educational framework from the stance of second-wave whiteness studies, this paper argues that instructors can…

This article explores the nature of a federal intervention into teacher education through state policy making and problem framing. The authors examined the 16 comprehensive educator equity plans that were approved by the U.S. Department of Education in 2015 and surface four inadequacies the reports communicate about teacher education: (a) an…

Foster youth have attended schools for decades, but with the development of the local control funding formula (LCFF) and Local Control and Accountability Plan (LCAP), they are now a group of students receiving the publicity and acknowledgment needed to improve their academic and social success. This study brings to light the importance of…

"When you need to innovate, you need collaboration" (Racher, 2017, web-blog). In an ever-changing time in education, when critics are in full force, when there continue to be teacher shortages and competition for teacher candidates, the time comes for both school districts and universities to decide to be intentionally innovative and…

The 2018-19 year continued the important work of refining and improving the new accreditation system. Significant progress was made by the Commission, the Committee on Accreditation (COA), and the Commission staff with respect to implementation of the revised accreditation system. The accreditation system is the primary means by which the…

Current research into data use suggests that the intersection of assessment, reform, and public accountability and their impact on teacher practice are under-conceptualized and not well researched, especially when the data are derived from assessments that are locally produced by teachers. This qualitative case study investigates the development…

The Voluntary Framework of Accountability (VFA) is designed as a set of appropriate measures to determine how well community colleges are serving students. Lack of commonly accepted, appropriate performance measures has often led to misperceptions and frequently an underestimation of community college effectiveness and contributions. It has also…

The purpose of this report is to investigate the feasibility of constructing a school-level measure of students' academic growth from kindergarten to grade 3, and to assess the validity and precision of that measure. The study measured schoolwide student growth for reading and math using student growth percentiles based on Maryland's 2014/15…

"Good Practice Notes" offer practical advice and examples of good practice to guide operations in regard to specific, higher education issues. The best practice guides are intended to support and promote the quality assurance approaches of providers. This "Good Practice Note" is intended to complement the Tertiary Education…

This applied research study seeks to improve principal capacity as instructional leaders. The need for principals to increase their instructional leadership capacity became evident with the ever-changing requirements of state accountability and student achievement. Using four elements in this study, cohort-based professional development for…

Since both colleges and students have very different resources and starting points, good policy should strengthen the ability of campuses and students to succeed and not punish them for taking important chances despite limited resources and greater challenges. Policymakers are interested in using student loan repayment rates as an accountability…

As Congress considers reauthorizing the Higher Education Act (HEA), there is an opportunity to implement a holistic accountability system that invests in equity, holds campuses responsible, and protects students and families. Recent efforts to increase access to higher education have narrowed gaps in enrollment for students from low-income…

The cohort default rate (CDR) has worked to reduce students' risk of default, but decades of experience have also revealed weaknesses that policymakers must tackle. "Driving Down Default" outlines key priorities for strengthening the CDR to further reduce student loan default, including specific recommendations to protect against…

As the cost of college has increased 12-fold over the past 30 years, state disinvestment in higher education has deepened. Today, learners are forced to make a tough choice: either forgo college at a time when getting a postsecondary credential matters more than ever, or join the ranks of 45 million Americans with student loan debt, who today…

This is the executive summary for the report, "Reporting from the Test Kitchen: Blended Learning at New Leaders." Blended learning, which combines independent online work with in-person group sessions, is an appealing option to help address these challenges: it promises time-savings, flexibility, learner autonomy, and ease of use -- all…