Guided by the onion model theory of language policy, this study aims to investigate the multi-level implementation of the English Curriculum Standards for Compulsory Education (2022 Edition) in China. Data were collected from both macro and micro-level policy texts, along with interviews with English teachers in five middle schools. One school was…

This study examines implementation of college-and-career-ready (CCR) education standards across five school districts in Ohio, Texas, California, Pennsylvania, and Massachusetts. Drawing on the policy attributes theory, we found that the specificity of districts' approaches to two long-recognized policy levers, curriculum and professional…

This study takes the policy idea of the standards-based curriculum as a point of departure. Drawing on discursive institutionalism and pragmatic institutionalism, the study's purpose is to critically examine school principals empirically as translators, enacting Sweden's standards-based curriculum into local schools' practices. The data were…

This paper analyses the current situation of English as a foreign language (EFL) writing in basic education in mainland China with a focus on the English curriculum standards, instruction and assessment. The National English Curriculum Standards launched by China's Ministry of Education ratified a general framework for EFL writing instruction and…

In Australia, pervasive deficit representations and positioning of Aboriginal peoples continue to impact on teachers' capacity to meaningfully embed Aboriginal curriculum and pedagogies into their teaching. This sits within a policy context driven by standardization, competition and market forces focused on closing the gap between Aboriginal and…

This group of portraits paints a picture of how educational policies across different regions of the United States afford varying experiences using arts disciplines pedagogically for SEL instruction. Each policy-supported portrait interfaces with SEL to teach competencies and report enhancement in personal emotional growth, social awareness,…

Purpose: Using the social ecological model as a guiding framework, the purpose of this study was to examine the status of physical education in Colorado. Method: A sequential explanatory mixed-method approach was employed to acquire a snapshot of the status of physical education. Participants completed an initial survey followed by semistructured…

This article is a summary of the 2019-2020 "Mapping the Terrain" research of the Advancing Education in Muslim Societies (AEMS) initiative, an annual study that started in 2018. During the 2019-2020 academic year, data on values and competencies was collected in fifteen communities of interest, namely Muslim-majority societies with focus…

As an early Common Core booster, Michael Petrilli had hoped that by now--10 years after most states adopted the standards--the nation's schools would have logged tangible improvements in teaching and learning that resulted in higher student achievement. In this article, Petrilli reviews what Common Core is and discusses the work ahead that is…

British Columbia (BC) has experienced a significant teacher shortage for years. While every region of the province is impacted, rural and remote communities have experienced a worsening shortage especially during the pandemic. Additionally, there is a critical shortage of specialist teachers across the province. This Education Brief outlines five…

Education standards do not flop spectacularly. Their failure gives rise to nothing like the black-and-white films of early aeronautical experiments: no missiles exploding on launch pads or planes tumbling from the sky. But 10 years after 46 of the 50 states adopted the Common Core standards, the lack of evidence that they have improved student…

The 10th anniversary of Common Core's launch offers the opportunity to take stock of the impact these nearly national standards have had on student learning, as well as their future prospects. In this article, Morgan Polikoff shares his view that the standards movement in general, and Common Core in particular, have achieved all they are going to…

A teacher shares his experience implementing the "Next Generation Science Standards," from struggle to success.

"A Framework for K-12 Science Education and Next Generation Science Standards" (NGSS) describe a new vision for science learning and teaching that is catalyzing improvements in science classrooms across the United States. Achieving this new vision will require time, resources, and ongoing commitment from state, district, and school…

Over the last decade and a half, physical education curricula in New Zealand and Australia have had a strong socio-cultural-critical orientation, providing in depth opportunities for critical inquiry. This article suggests that trying to achieve a criticality maybe impeded and or constrained by present graduating teacher standards. In the…