The authors, pioneers in detracking and in shrinking achievement gaps, pose a question: Is it possible to have all students in a large high school successfully complete a challenging curriculum that gives them practice in the habits and skills necessary for success in college? The answer, they say, "is a resounding yes." This article…

Background: Embedding the concept of "international mindedness" in teaching across a range of subject matter is seen as increasingly important in today's education. Understanding the situated challenges that teachers may encounter in doing this is critical to the development of effective professional development in different…

This paper focuses on the Center for Global Geography Education teaching workshop held in Bangalore, India, in March 2012 which served as a collaborative forum linking geography teachers in secondary and higher education in the USA and India. It considers the inclusion of the Advanced Placement Human Geography teachers from the USA and the…

In this paper, I argue for the deparochialising of the International Baccalaureate Diploma Programme (IBDP) English A1 curriculum where teachers as curriculum-makers would critically assess text choice and where students have the opportunities to make critical readings and engage in conversations about issues raised by the text. Through the case…

This study examined an International Baccalaureate school that has been able to perform at a high level on state accountability measures while integrating 21st Century skills into the curriculum through a clearly defined organizational model. This study was designed to examine the manner and extent to which an International Baccalaureate School…

Adaptation, interactions between species and their environments, and change over time are fundamental principles in biology. They represent aspects of two of the big ideas in science: evolution and natural selection. To help students understand these ideas, the authors developed the "Guppy Game." In this article, they describe the game and how…

This article demonstrates how textbooks differ in their description of the term "experimental unit". Advanced Placement Statistics teachers and students are often limited in their statistical knowledge by the information presented in their classroom textbook. Definitions and descriptions differ among textbooks as well as among different…

This study examined Advanced Placement Calculus students' mathematical understanding of rate of change, after studying four years of college preparatory (integrated or single-subject) mathematics. Students completed the Precalculus Concept Assessment (PCA) and two open-ended tasks with questions about rates of change. After adjusting for prior…

Sometimes called "exam schools," academically selective institutions have long been a part of the American secondary-education landscape. The schools are diverse in origin and purpose. No single catalyst describes why or how they began as or morphed into academically selective institutions. A number of them were products of the country's efforts…

Each year, Austin Independent School District Department of Research and Evaluation (DRE) staff develop a plan of work to describe the scope of work for the coming year. The plans that make up this document identify programs to be evaluated and services to be provided by DRE staff and provide the blueprints for evaluation that staff will follow…

Within the framework of social cognitive theory, we examined the motivation of students (14-16 years old) to learn science in their introductory science courses. The students responded to a questionnaire about their intrinsic motivation, self-efficacy, and self-determination. The students also wrote essays about their motivation, and individual…

This article reports on an alumni study of middle school participants in a university-based science camp; at the time of the study the youth were completing their junior or senior year of high school. The science- and technology-intensive program was set in an intentionally designed positive youth development context. The camp was free to youth…

As part of the Advanced Placement (AP) Program's commitment to continually enhance alignment with current best practices in college-level learning, the AP Program is currently evaluating and redesigning courses and exams, one of which launched during the 2013-2014 academic school year: AP chemistry. The history of the AP chemistry course and…

Enriched high school curricula like the Advanced Placement and International Baccalaureate Diploma programs are endorsed as "pathway programs" for postsecondary-bound students. Program participation is perceived to have benefits that appeal to a broad stakeholder group of universities, administrators, teachers, students, and parents. In…

In the past decade, developmental education has come under increased examination by stakeholders. Founded as an avenue for learners with academic deficits to meet educational goals, developmental education has helped many students. However, many more learners fail to succeed due to institutionalized difficulties, chief of which is a no-credit…