The purpose of this qualitative case study is to understand administrator and teacher perceptions of their ability to effectively implement the use of mobile devices in a rapidly changing, high-stakes accountability environment at the middle-level in three purposefully selected middle schools in a public school district in the Midwest. Data for…

Education policy debates over the last twenty years have focused on the need to increase students' test scores. The federal government and states have implemented and expanded a variety of test-based, school accountability policies. Accountability pressures have incentivized schools to narrow their curriculum, decrease time allocated to…

Improving public education has long been a cornerstone of the Democratic platform. Because progressives understand that access to a quality education is the gateway to a better life, their decades-long struggle to promote equal rights and opportunity for all Americans has been deeply tied to their struggle to create an effective public school…

The Department of Defense Education Activity (DoDEA) educates over 71,000 students in pre-school through grade twelve and impacts the lives of thousands more through the Non-DoD School Program (NDSP) and Local Education Agency grants program. This annual report represents an essential tool for communication and accountability. The purpose of this…

Postsecondary education in the United States has played an increasingly more important role over time. In fact, in just a few decades, the share of recent high school completers who enroll in college each year has grown from 51% in 1975 to 70% in 2016 (Snyder, de Brey, & Dillow, 2019, p. 395). However, only 58% of entering college students…

The U.S. government has become increasingly focused on school climate, as recently evidenced by its inclusion as an accountability indicator in the Every Student Succeeds Act. Yet, there remains considerable variability in both conceptualizing and measuring school climate. To better inform the research and practice related to school climate and…

A pilot program in New Hampshire models innovative ways creating and applying state assessments and educator accountability. A study of New Hampshire's new system, which has already received approval by the U.S. Department of Education under a waiver from NCLB, finds some positive results and also suggests challenges states might face in putting…

The issue of whether trainee teachers in the post-16 sector should have their classroom practice graded has been debated for a number of years. The case for training courses retaining an emphasis on written and verbal "developmental" feedback at the expense of "judgements" appears to be lost. This article is set within the…

The last twenty years have seen continual change in the education system, much of which has been poorly planned, ideologically driven, lacking in coherence and without an evidence base. The key aspects of accountability, school governance and structure, curriculum and assessment and teacher training and development are critiqued (reviewed) from…

The American college professor has traditionally filled three primary roles in institutions of higher education: that of teacher, of scholar, and of servant leader. But a call of alarm has been sounded of late and some suggest that the economic turbulence of recent years has given rise to a Pandora's box of public scrutiny resulting in fissures…

This study will examine the teacher accountability and evaluation policies and practices at three high performing charter schools located in San Diego County, California. Charter schools are exempted from many laws, rules, and regulations that apply to traditional school systems. By examining the teacher accountability systems at high performing…

The purpose of this phenomenological study was to explore how science teachers who persisted in urban schools interpreted and responded to the unique features of urban educational contexts. With 17 alumni who taught in metropolitan areas across seven states, the Science Educators for Urban Schools (SEUS) program provided a research setting that…

The idea of a "hyper-surveillance" state that devolves school management to the private sector and local governments, but, at the same time, evaluates, inspects, and sanctions schools in the name of "educational quality and equality," has been advocated by diverse sectors, right and center-left, conservative and liberal,…

Propelled by accountability policies, leaders have touted data-driven decision making as a means to improve K-12 student outcomes and drive equity, as teachers analyze data to change instruction. However, many data-driven decision-making reforms have failed to challenge inequity. Melanie Bertrand and Julie Marsh's study of six middle schools shows…

Blended learning utilizes the affordances of information and communication technology to integrate online learning with face-to-face teaching. It facilitates to meet students' disciplinary learning needs and helps them achieve the intended learning outcomes so that they can advance in their professional study. The present study focuses on…