There are lines of demarcation between the political left and right, and also within the left, as regards central matters of education policy and how the purpose and value of education may be understood. This article details and distinguishes what is at stake, in particular between a revolutionary Marxist left and other currents, as regards a…

To be recognized and adopted, the promise and potential of national standards must validate the instructional role of the school librarian and build formative knowledge through authentic process and products. Inquiry is a direct link to those dimensions. Standards that are rigorous and relevant optimize the developing brain's affinity for building…

There is no one-size-fits-all way to keep pace with the changes affecting students and those who educate them. That's why Joan Lazarus has gathered here the insights of hundreds of theater teachers and teaching artists on how they have responded to the shifting demands of theater education in today's schools. She paints a portrait of active,…

The term "college and career ready" has become widely used as a result of the proposed Elementary and Secondary Education Act (ESEA) reauthorization and Common Core State Standards movement. As schools move toward what may be considered a moral and economic imperative for the nation's students, it is essential that they first identify the gaps of…

For the first time in the nation's history 46 States and the District of Columbia have agreed that all K-12 students will be educated along a common continuum of high academic expectations known as the Common Core State Standards (CCSS). Having clear, consistent standards in English language arts/literacy and mathematics will help ensure that all…

This "Fifth-Year Report" from the Evaluation of the Comprehensive School Reform Program Implementation and Outcomes (ECSRIO) is the final report on the outcomes of the federally funded Comprehensive School Reform (CSR) program. It presents findings about the relationship between participation in the U.S. Department of Education's…

Roger Seckington is chairman of RiCE, The Right to Comprehensive Education. He writes on his experiences over the last 20 years of the comprehensive movement. (Part of a theme issue on comprehensive education in Britain.) (Editor/SJL)

The Comprehensive School Reform (CSR) Program was established as a demonstration program in 1998 and authorized as a full program in 2002 as part of the No Child Left Behind Act (NCLB). It is one approach to help low-performing K-12 public schools meet state performance standards. CSR emphasizes two major concepts: mandating that school reform…

This report presents the results of a 5-year study conducted by governors and other state and local policymakers on education reform. It is intended for a general audience and offers advice on what it takes to implement comprehensive school reforms. The document elaborates on five lessons learned in implementing comprehensive school reform: (1)…

This guidebook provides a framework for planning schoolwide improvements. It is intended to help educators redesign schools, move beyond piecemeal reforms, and reconfigure entire academic programs to help every student meet challenging standards. The guidebook describes the context of comprehensive school reform and offers a process for conducting…

This handbook was designed to support Colorado schools as they make the transition from a traditional school structure to that of a comprehensive schoolwide program. It contains practical information, activities, and suggestions to assist with the development of the individual components that comprise the schoolwide planning process. The guide…

This article focuses on the school district's role in implementing Comprehensive School Reform (CSR). Research shows that effective district support for CSR varies from district to district. This is due, in part, to the fact that many prior models bypassed the district, operating under the belief that reform would be more effective if it targeted…

Comprehensive school reform involves changes in every aspect of school operations, from classroom instruction to school governance. Some schools develop their own reform approach from within. Others seek assistance from without, particularly from organizations that have developed coherent, research-based approaches, or school-reform models. For…

This paper provides data on the Comprehensive School Reform Demonstration (CSRD) program in the mid-continent region. Started in 1998 and part of the Mid-Continent Research for Education and Learning and Model Developers Plan, the CSRD program aims to increase student achievement by assisting schools across the country to implement successful,…

This catalog describes 44 school-reform models. It was prepared for the U.S. Department of Education in direct response to the Comprehensive School Reform Demonstration program. The catalog's purpose is to aid schools, school districts, and states as they investigate external models that can be incorporated into comprehensive school-reform…