All students deserve an education that prepares them for postsecondary success and a lifetime of unlimited opportunity, and Louisiana educators are leading the nation in raising the expectations for what all students can learn and achieve through designing and delivering standards-aligned instruction. Despite this overall progress, the performance…

International librarianship stems from a desire to bring about political change, transcultural understanding, collaboration, and mutual respect. Historically, librarians have been deeply involved with challenging issues of information sharing, equity in information access, and bridging the digital divide between different socioeconomic…

The primary purpose of this publication is to provide those involved in special education teacher preparation and professional development with a set of high-leverage practices (HLPs) that were identified through consensus among special educators. These HLPs may be used to design a cohesive set of practice based opportunities to support teacher…

State report cards should help families, educators, policymakers, and other critical stakeholders in various states understand and act on education information for schools, school districts, and states as a whole. While each state finds itself in a different place regarding its own progress in building state report cards with such an impact,…

The definition of "retirement" is changing with the boomers, just like everything else that generation has done. Call it a new version of outsourcing. For an early career business administrator or an understaffed business office, there are jobs--often projects--that simply do not get done. The projects require time and expertise that…

Current philosophy and practice urge, even require for funding, that programs be empirically based and grounded in empirically proven emerging, promising, or best practices. In most of the human services, including youth programs, services, and practices, this requirement is a goal as well as an ideal. Empirical research and evaluation can be used…

The uses and methodology of factor analysis are widely debated and discussed, especially the issues of rotational use, methods of confirmatory factor analysis, and adequate sample size. The variety of perspectives and often conflicting opinions can lead to confusion among researchers about best practices for using factor analysis. The focus of the…

Today's school social workers are facing unique challenges in the workplace. The results of the 2009 New Mexico School Social Work Survey reinforced the idea that school social workers must be able to prove their effectiveness. Building on the school social work literature on practice outcomes evaluation, a more extensive statewide survey of…

Most experienced educators recognize that many students will not complete optional assignments, and often those students who need additional help do not seek assistance. Current research demonstrates that students in underrepresented populations (see definition below) are less likely to seek support than others because they see needing help as a…

Internationally educated professionals (IEPs) encounter significant barriers to entry to their professions upon immigrating. Obtaining education in the new country is an effective means of improving their positions. While universities emphasize the need to attract and serve adult learners and a more diverse clientele, the specific needs of…

Purpose: The purpose of this qualitative phenomenological study was to identify and describe effective instructional strategies for English language arts and mathematics perceived by expert fourth and fifth grade elementary teachers in southern California to reduce the achievement gap in high poverty and high English language learner (ELL)…

Programs that prepare elementary teachers have a daunting responsibility -- they are readying the people who will teach children reading and numeracy, build a foundation in STEM and social studies subjects, all while providing many children's first introduction to formal schooling. By rising to this challenge, programs may also help a more diverse…

Recent momentum to develop a trauma-informed education system provides an important opportunity for Pennsylvania schools. About two out of every three school-age children are likely to experience at least one traumatic event, such as abuse, neglect, or exposure to violence, by age 17. The effects of traumatic stress can include negative impacts on…

The OECD Programme for International Student Assessment (PISA) assesses the extent to which 15-year-old students near the end of their compulsory education have acquired the knowledge and skills essential for full participation in modern societies. The assessment does not just ascertain whether students can reproduce knowledge; it also examines…

This paper argues for a radical restructuring of education for grades 11-14--by erasing the arbitrary dividing line between high school and college--to open opportunities for the learners the current systems leave behind. The authors make the case for an entirely new type of institution--neither high school nor college--designed specifically to…