In 1988, U.S. Secretary of Education William Bennett proclaimed Chicago's public schools to be the worst in the nation. Since that time, Chicago has been at the forefront of urban school reform. Beginning with a dramatic move in 1990 to shift power away from the central office, through CEO Paul Vallas's use of standardized testing to hold schools…

This compendium of narrative and statistical information is an overview of the Oregon University System (OUS) and is produced every two years. The introduction includes a mission and vision statement, OUS Governance Change Proposal, a listing of OUS campuses and centers, a roster of the members of the State Board of Higher Education, and Access…

There has been a wealth of research conducted on the national epidemic of high school dropouts spanning several decades. It is estimated that the class of 2009 cost the nation $335 billion in lost wages, taxes and productivity over their lifetimes (Alliance for Excellent Education, 2009). The citizenry of the country suffers not only because of…

This annual report provides a review of Colorado Children's Campaign's accomplishments in 2010. The report is comprised of the following sections: (1) Letter from President and CEO; (2) About Us: 2010 in Review; (3) Child Health; (4) Early Childhood Development; (5) K-12 Education; (6) Fiscal Policy and Budget Analysis; (7) 2010 Legislative…

For educational philosopher and activist Paulo Freire, cultural circles are a way to generate critical conversations among "teacher-students" and "student-teachers" and can provide the motivation for critical consciousness and political action (1970). Both teachers and students learn from one another as their democratic…

The Lao People's Democratic Republic Inclusive Education Project started in 1993 and during a 16-year period, ending in May 2009, it aimed to support the participation of all children in school, with a particular focus on disabled students. The main strategy to enable this involved working to change the education system through the introduction of…

In January 2010, the General Assembly passed the Complete College Tennessee Act (CCTA), a comprehensive reform agenda that seeks to transform public higher education through changes in academic, fiscal and administrative policies at the state and institutional level. While the higher education landscape has been shaped by the CCTA, higher…

This study attempted to observe if there was a statistical significant relationship between perceptions of educational change and student achievement. The independent variables that represented perceptions of educational change included: community pressure for change, faculty anxiety to change, faculty openness to change, principal anxiety to…

The Hispanic population in the United States is the fastest growing ethnic group. It is also one of the least-educated and poorest groups and one of the least researched nationally. The purpose of the study was to identify the variables that affect the persistence of Hispanic college students who begin their postsecondary educations at community…

This paper provides information about North Carolina End-of-Course Exams. The North Carolina End-of-Course Assessments were developed for two purposes: (1) To provide accurate measurement of individual student knowledge and skills specified in the North Carolina Standard Course of Study; and (2) To provide accurate measurement of the knowledge and…

Montana's definition of a basic system of quality public elementary and secondary schools includes educational programs for at-risk students (20-9-309, MCA). State statute defines an at-risk student as a "student who is affected by environmental conditions that negatively impact the student's educational performance or threaten a student's…

In 2007 Ghana celebrated 50 years of independence from British colonial rule. The golden jubilee offered an opportunity to take stock of how the country had progressed in expanding education and the challenges for the future. This paper offers a critique of the journey, highlighting the challenges and progress. What reforms in education has taught…

The annual event dropout rate describes the proportion of students who leave school each year without completing a high school program. The event dropout rates for the school year 2008-2009 of 2.04% for grades 7 through 12th and 2.89% for grades 9 through 12th are consistent with the dropout rates for the past four years. The event completion rate…

Greater numbers of Latinas are participating in postsecondary education, however these gains have not resulted in increased graduation rates. This study examines the lived experiences of 36 Latina baccalaureate graduates to gain a deeper understanding of how they achieved this important educational goal. The primary conclusion of this…

In 2002, the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation started the Early College High School Initiative (ECHSI). Through this initiative, more than 200 Early College Schools (ECSs) opened by fall 2009. All of the schools aim to provide underserved students access to college classes while in high school. This article will provide an overview of the first 6…