The purpose of this quantitative research was to explore how secondary career and technical education (CTE) teachers' retention is affected by self-efficacy as it relates to the type of licensure they possess: traditional Professional Education License (PEL) or industry experience Educator License with Stipulations (ELS-CTE). In order to achieve…

Thousands of schools across the United States, and worldwide, implement School-Wide Positive Behavioral Interventions and Supports (SWPBIS). SWPBIS provides a framework whereby teams of educators engage in data-based decision making to select, implement, and monitor a continuum of behavioral supports and build sustainable systems to promote…

When it comes to having a traveling outreach activity for a museum, a craft can seem like the perfect solution. It can seemingly be all things at once--educational, quick and fun. But, if poorly constructed, crafts can also have serious fallbacks. Using the Chicago History Museum and the Millennium Park Family Fun Festival as a case study, this…

The purpose of the CASEL State Scan is to support the development of high-quality standards for social and emotional learning (SEL), preschool through high school, across the country (Dusenbury, Zadrazil, Weiss-berg & Mart, 2011). This brief summarizes recent findings from CASEL's State Scan (Dusenbury, Newman, Weissberg, Goren, Domitrovich…

Students' ability to succeed academically in the school setting depends heavily on factors that students face outside of the school walls. One such contributor is the presence of a safe environment for students to travel to and from school. Unfortunately, for many students in urban and economically depressed environments, the daily commute to and…

Environmentally preferable products, sustainability, "green," reducing environmental footprint--have all become part of the everyday lexicon as schools, businesses, households, and the public sector have increasingly focused on strategies and tactics designed to reduce their impact on the environment and human health. State governments…

A commonly held belief is that children whose families are struggling with poverty--and the housing, health, safety, and other concerns that often go with it--cannot focus on learning unless their nonacademic needs are met. This belief is supported by research showing that the children of poor parents who receive income supplements and other…

The Schools to Watch: School Transformation Network Project is a whole school reform model designed to improve the educational practices, experiences, and outcomes of low-performing middle-grades schools. Developed by the National Forum to Accelerate Middle-Grades Reform, the four-year project was funded in 2010 by a U.S. Department of Education…

The existing literature on learning organizations emphasize that leadership and strong organizational culture are central to their successful development. Whereas schools continue to face government control, accountability, and financial restraints, they are also working diligently to engage in ongoing school improvement practices to provide…

For the first time, researchers, policymakers and practitioners across the world will have access to a comprehensive mapping of research evidence and policy strategies about education and poverty in affluent countries. Although there is widespread agreement that poverty and poor educational outcomes are related, there are competing explanations as…

In Chicago's public school system, LGBT students were three times more likely than straight peers to miss school because of threats to their safety, according to 2003 districtwide survey; and students who face regular harassment were more like to drop out. In this article, the author shares her thoughts on the move of Chicago school officials to…

In 1988, the Chicago public school system decentralized, granting parents and communities significant resources and authority to reform their schools in dramatic ways. To track the effects of this bold experiment, the authors of "Organizing Schools for Improvement" collected a wealth of data on elementary schools in Chicago. Over a…

Institutional leaders, educators, and policymakers are challenged to improve educational outcomes for all students, including Latinos. "Excelencia" in Education responds to this challenge by linking research, policy, and practice that supports higher educational achievement for Latino students. Premier in this effort is Examples of…

Background: The school setting is frequently used both to educate youth about risks involved in tobacco use and to implement tobacco prevention and cessation programs. Given that school-based programs have resulted in limited success, it is necessary to identify other setting-level intervention strategies. School tobacco policies represent a type…

This dissertation is an empirical investigation of educational policies, practices and organizational settings that shape the schooling experiences of Chicago Public School (CPS) students. The first chapter, "Educational Choice and Student Participation: The Case of the Supplemental Educational Services Provision in Chicago Public…