Like other public schools, California charter schools are judged primarily by one measure: student test scores. Though necessary, the Academic Performance Index and Average Yearly Progress scores can't assess charter schools' broad dimensions of student learning, program effectiveness and school operations. The state's accountability system…

"Childhood Programs and Practices in the First Decade of Life" presents research findings on the effects of early childhood programs and practices in the first decade of life and their implications for policy development and reform. Leading scholars in the multidisciplinary field of human development and in early childhood learning…

Is the United States getting it wrong when it comes to educating tomorrow's innovators in critical fields? It has been known for years that the only way to compete globally in information technology, engineering, nanotechnology, robotics and other fields is to give students the best educational opportunities possible. But do individuals have a…

In U.S. K-12 public education, incentive pay for educators remains firmly fixed as a high-interest policy topic and has recently become a popular reform initiative in many school systems. The Teacher Incentive Fund (TIF), created in 2006 by the U.S. Department of Education, is at the forefront of this policy movement and has provided hundreds of…

What does the future hold for educators and facilities professionals when it comes to planning, building, funding, and operating school facilities? No one can absolutely know beforehand. However, there are many, many indicators of where public education in the United States may well be destined. These indicators take the form of already occurring…

The No Child Left Behind (NCLB) Act of 2001 requires states to ensure that all students make adequate yearly progress in achieving proficiency in English language arts and math. This study examines how six diverse schools have responded to the challenge of educating their students in math, particularly students with disabilities and other…

This report from the Washington State Department of Early Learning (DEL) describes some of the Department's work since it's creation in July 2006. Among other achievements, the Department has laid a strong foundation for raising the quality of child care and the state's preschool program, strengthened both the safety in and the reach of early…

The Scholarly Publishing and Academic Resources Coalition (SPARC), a strategic initiative founded by the Association of Research Libraries, is a catalyst for promoting a scholarly communication environment that is more open, financially tenable, and supportive of the current research and information needs of academe. Established in response to…

The "State ESEA ['Elementary and Secondary Education Act'] Title I Participation Summary Report for 2003-04" summarizes the participation data for the Title I, Part A (Title I), Grants to Local Education Agencies (LEAs) program. This program provides federal funds to assist eligible school districts and schools in supporting…

This report examines a little noticed group of Californians: young immigrants not in school and who receive few if any educational services. The authors also observe the federal Migrant Education Program (MEP), charged with helping this group. Using MEP and census data, the authors find that many out-of-school youth work, left school while quite…

The turnaround recommendations and framework in "The Turnaround Challenge" grew out of both new research and synthesis of extensive existing research, as carried out by Mass Insight Education & Research Institute and its partners since September 2005. If the main report is the tip of the proverbial iceberg, this supplement represents…

The "No Child Left Behind Act of 2001" is one of the most important legislative acts signed into law. The goals of this Act are clear; each state, school, and local education agency must make specific progress towards student achievement results each year until every child is 100 percent proficient by the year 2014. The goal of this…

In January 2004 President Bush authorized the DC School Choice Incentive Act, an initiative funded at $14 million that created a scholarship program providing 1,700 low-income Washington, DC, children the opportunity to attend participating K-12 nonpublic schools in the district. In addition to offering opportunities to participating children, the…

This report provides a detailed examination of the various federal programs for children and families and outlines ways in which the United States Congress and Executive Branch could make these programs work better. Intricate and often overlapping goals and actions are typical of the Congressional committees and Executive Branch departments that…

This report presents an evaluation of the general controls over the Federal Family Education Loan Program (FFELP) information system maintained and operated by a contractor for the U.S. Department of Education (ED), which administers FFELP. The evaluation found that ED's general controls over the FFELP information system did not adequately protect…