The geographic skills, as outlined in "Geography for Life", provide an avenue for assessing students' work in geography. If used across the scope and sequence of the curriculum, a common scoring guide based on these skills offers opportunities for students to demonstrate their ability to use inquiry approaches to study geography and to…

This article aims to look at the concepts of internationalism and international education through the lens of postcolonial theory, arguing that the fundamental aims of international education are obstructed as it remains a concept locked in the idea of the nation state that has not evolved with the ideas of major postcolonial theorists. However,…

The International Baccalaureate (IB) has undergone rapid growth and largely unhindered expansion over the past four decades. It has moved beyond its European nexus and the three IB programmes now have a relatively large presence in the USA, especially among public high schools. The IB gathered federal funding in 2003, and a concerted attack has…

This study investigated how teachers at a national public school recently accredited in an international education program identified the changes in their educational pedagogy that resulted from the accreditation process. In particular, the study examined how the school administration and teachers implemented an international program, the…

In December of 2009, Indiana Governor Mitch Daniels announced that the latest state revenue forecasts predict that the state of Indiana will spend $1.8 billion more than it receives in tax revenue collections through July 2011. Therefore, Governor Daniels announced that he will cut at least $300 million from K-12 education spending in the next…

This paper discusses issues related to the design and psychometric work for mixed-format tests --tests containing both multiple-choice (MC) and constructed-response (CR) items. The issues of validity, fairness, reliability and score consistency can be addressed but for mixed-format tests there are many decisions to be made and no examination or…

Through narrative inquiry, this study investigated the role of personal and professional aspects of teaching and learning which teachers have developed and practiced, in relation to the dispositions, values, beliefs and knowledge that may assist them in successfully transforming to inquiry-based teaching, specifically in the implementation of the…

The psychometric considerations and challenges associated with including constructed response items on tests are discussed along with how these issues affect the form assembly specifications for mixed-format exams. Reliability and validity, security and fairness, pretesting, content and skills coverage, test length and timing, weights, statistical…

The free and open publication of course materials (OpenCourseWare or OCW) was initially undertaken by Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) and other universities primarily to share educational resources among educators (Abelson, 2007). OCW, however, and more in general open educational resources (OER), have also provided well-documented…

The International Baccalaureate and concurrent enrollment programs are both options available for high-ability high school students. Their value lies in their potential to provide greater depth and breadth of curriculum than is traditionally possible in public high schools. This study surveyed public school corporations in Indiana to examine the…

The study investigates the relationship between ethnicity and performance in selected AP courses for years 2001, 2005, and 2010. Data was collected from College Board annual reports for all 51 states and for subject groups Mathematics, Sciences, and Languages. Results show the evidence that there is significant achievement gaps among male and…

The three Magnet Schools Assistance Program (MSAP) schools: East Garner International Baccalaureate Magnet Middle School (EGMMS), Garner International Baccalaureate Magnet High School (GMHS), and Southeast Raleigh Leadership and Technology Magnet High School (SRMHS) have shown progress on MSAP performance measures during the 3rd year of the grant.…

This study is an ethnographic case study of two schools as they implemented an enrichment program. The sample included students, parents, teachers, school administrators, and board and government personnel. Data was drawn from interviews and observations of participants, curriculum analysis, and communication between school, home, and the public.…

This article identifies factors that promoted the successful implementation of an International Baccalaureate Diploma Program in an urban high school. The study draws on data from an in-depth case study at a large high school serving an urban community in a Western state. The study investigates seven implementation mechanisms that research…

In this study, the perceptions of parents (n = 14) and students (n = 47) enrolled in a blended learning course, the first of its kind at their school, were examined. Student performance in the blended and in the traditional portion of the course was examined, and the Educational Success Prediction Instrument (ESPRI) was administered to predict…