Identification of the problem: Coaching programs (CPs) in schools often focus on student and teacher wellness, leadership development for teachers and administrators, nutrition and physical activity, and academic achievement. However, there is limited use of CPs for the development and implementation of Local School Wellness Policy (LSWP). The…

Family engagement has long been recognized as crucial to a child's overall academic achievement. The National Center for Families Learning (NCFL) recognizes that evolving from traditional parental involvement to effective partnerships between families and family-facing practitioners improves learning outcomes for students as a critical practice…

A state department of education (SDE) served by the Southeast Comprehensive Center (SECC) at SEDL requested information on state-run virtual education programs, specifically: (1) What are states doing to support districts through state-run virtual education (VE) programs? (2) What policies and procedures are necessary to support a successful…

Since the passage of the No Child Left Behind Act of 2001 (2002), there has been increased interest in using student achievement data (through standardized tests) to evaluate teacher effectiveness. Two U.S. Department of Education secretaries, Secretary Spellings and Secretary Duncan, have expressed interest in growth models and the need to…

As Internet technology encroached on the public school classroom about a decade ago, Kim Ross, superintendent of the Houston School District in Houston, Minnesota, saw an opportunity. At first, he and his administrative team simply wanted to offer students in the district of 1,300 access to more classes via the web than what a district that size…

The Texas alternative certification program combines school district-provided training with some college coursework, emphasizing work with at-risk students and internship under a mentor. Many midcareer professionals and minorities have chose this route. (SK)

Response to intervention (RTI) is a framework for providing interventions and services at increasing levels of intensity until students succeed. The framework helps teachers and schools provide instruction and interventions matched to student needs, monitor progress frequently to guide decisions about changes in instruction or goals, and apply…

Investigates the effects of including an income factor in a power equalization aid formula. Some evidence indicates that a power equalization formula with recapture and with an income adjustment may substantially achieve the objective of making education expenditures independent of the wealth of the local district. (Author/IRT)

The article presents a conceptual model to be utilized in conducting the necessary needs assessment activities to implement a successful gifted program at the school district or state agency level. (Author/DLS)

A second-year interim report on a three-year cooperative study involving a regional sampling of 41 Kentucky school districts is presented. The ultimate goal of the project is to develop methods of sampling and annually assessing the extent of learners' needs and to stimulate educational programming based on the reduction of learners' needs. Major…

This brief makes the case for thoughtful district- or school-driven assessment systems that complement and go beyond what statewide testing systems are able to accomplish. It describes important attributes of model local assessment programs and presents the necessary steps for building a local assessment program that will elicit information that…

A project is described to develop a model system by which local education agencies (LEAs) can form successful working relationships with other human service providers to better serve special education students. The models (both process and content) designate LEAs as the central access point to the service continuum. The project's efforts to devise…

A study was conducted to investigate empirically the nature of program development, testing Everett Rogers' model of collective adoption of an innovation against the data, and distinguishing between the developmental patterns of high and low quality programs. Subjects were 34 school districts representing a 10 percent sample of 340 districts…

THIS PAPER INVESTIGATES VARIOUS ASPECTS OF THE SYSTEMS APPROACH FOR SOLVING EDUCATIONAL PROBLEMS--(1) THE SYSTEMS CONCEPT, (2) THE RELIABILITY OF THE ASSUMPTIONS ON WHICH THE SYSTEMS APPROACH IS BASED, (3) THE LIMITATIONS INHERENT IN THE SYSTEMS APPROACH, (4) THE HUMAN ELEMENT AND ITS RELATIONSHIP WITH THE SYSTEMS APPROACH, (5) THE WAYS THE…

An analytic framework is presented for examining the properties and objectives of assessments and scoring systems piloted in a number of state and district testing programs. The article explores the application of this framework, which considers the cognitive components of competence described in studies of expertise, to the analysis of science…