This study presents an analysis of a Czech pilot project in implementing the Eco-School program in kindergartens. The evaluation applied a mixed design that included pre/post testing of children using picture-based questionnaires, and interviews with the teachers responsible for conducting the program. The findings revealed a significant increase…

The conventional approach to scaling up educational reforms considers the development and testing phases to be distinct from the work of implementing at scale. Decades of research suggest that this approach yields inconsistent and often disappointing improvements for schools most in need. More recent scholarship on scaling school improvement…

The conventional approach to school implementation involves different sets of schools in designing, developing, and testing an innovation and yet another set of schools involved in implementation at scale. Decades of research suggest that this approach has yielded inconsistent and often disappointing improvements for schools most in need. More…

In their article, "The Common Core is a Change for the Better," Gardner and Powell (2013) make an argument in support of implementing the Common Core to improve teaching and student learning. They opine the Common Core will enable students to become more college and career ready and state the Common Core standards will provide…

In the Innovative Professional Development (iPD) Challenge, the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation has invested in helping school districts and networks redesign their instructional support systems to better support educators in increasing student success. This Issue Focus, the second in a series, presents early reflections from MDRC's evaluation…

Current political polarization and competing priorities complicate development of sound education policy. Particularly troubling is the disconnect between research and policy, as decision makers rely more on the work of think tanks and advocacy groups than the knowledge base of the profession. The mismatch between higher education and policy…

The start of the college experience is often hectic as students discover their new surroundings on campus. Students must carry out several high-tech tasks on their laptops and mobile devices in order to be successful participants in the digital culture that permeates their institution of higher learning. This paper describes the implementation of…

A full-scale oral communication assessment was conducted by the Virginia Community College System (VCCS) during the academic year 2013-14. Key components of this assessment included faculty involvement at all stages of assessment and collaboration with assessment coordinators and lead staff personnel. The VCCS Office of Institutional Research and…

Evidence-based prevention and wellbeing programs offer a great deal of promise to support the health and wellbeing of North Carolina children, youth, families, and communities. In fact, many funders and service providers in North Carolina are shifting towards models that have demonstrated positive impact through rigorous evaluations. However,…

The work described in this report is the first phase of a project to provide easy-to-use tools for authoring and rendering secondary-school algebra-level math expressions in synthesized speech that is useful for students with blindness or low vision. This report describes the initial development, software implementation, and evaluation of the…

Youth-adult relationships exist on a continuum from adult-led to youth-led collaborations. However, research suggests that quality youth-adult partnerships, which fall in the middle of this continuum, directly contribute to positive youth development. Given this, the current study evaluated the impact of a 4-H Youth Development program, using…

This Annual Plan presents the major initiatives and priorities the U.S. Department of Education (Department) Office of Inspector General (OIG) intends to undertake to assist the Department in fulfilling its responsibilities to America's taxpayers and students. The Department continues to face significant challenges in FY 2020 that impact its…

Treatment integrity, in its broadest sense, is the extent to which an intervention is implemented as intended. Over the past 3 decades, understanding of treatment integrity has greatly evolved. This book summarizes the current state of our knowledge of treatment integrity on such topics as: (1) how it fits into the larger contexts of…

Improving school climate takes time and commitment from a variety of people in a variety of roles. This document outlines key action steps that school leaders--including principals, assistant/vice principals, and building leaders--can take to support school climate improvements. Key action steps are provided for the following strategies: (1)…

To succeed in today's economy, students need both proficiency in the "three Rs" (reading, writing and arithmetic) and strong applied skills. Communication skills, team work, and critical thinking have long been at the top of employers' lists of applied skills they seek in employees. States are responding to employers' needs by putting in…