This study sought to identify major school improvement reform programs and initiatives in Louisiana during the period of 1997 to 2005. The criteria used to identify each program included: state funding that averaged at least $2 million per year in state funds; programs that affected teachers and students for school improvement purposes; and,…

Teachers are the most important factor in whether a student achieves in the classroom, so closing the achievement gap means improving the effectiveness of our teachers and their principals. But right now, no one really knows how effective our teachers are. The Obama administration recognizes that many states' evaluation systems are broken, and the…

This report explores the extent to which states (and several large cities) are positioned to provide high quality preschool education on a large scale. States and cities that are already doing so or that could do so with modest improvements offer opportunities for advocacy to advance access to high quality early education as well as for rigorous…

This report is Iowa's response to the four questions that the United States Department of Education, Office of Career, Technical, and Adult Education (OCTAE), requires of all states and territories receiving federal funding through the Workforce Investment Act (WIA), Title II, Adult Education and Family Literacy Act (AEFLA). The overall goal of…

This Quick Reference Document has been prepared by the Regional Resource Center Program ARRA/Fiscal Priority Team to aid RRCP State Liaisons and other (Technical Assistance) TA providers in understanding the general context of state questions surrounding excess cost. As a "first-stop" for TA providers in investigating excess cost…

This study uses the best available national data to project future supply and demand for occupations associated with the energy industry for each Appalachian state, and the number of people enrolled in and graduating from programs in the Region's institutions of higher education that will be available to meet or exceed the demand. The report…

Background/Context: In September 2007, the Arizona State Board of Education adopted the Structured English Immersion (SEI) model proposed by the Arizona English Language Learner (ELL) Task Force.During the 2008-2009 academic year, it required all school districts to implement the SEI model.The SEI program, best known as the 4-hour English Language…

While states have made tremendous progress building the capacity to collect longitudinal data, developing the systems and practices to tap into P-20W data remains a nascent effort in most states. This primer aims to provide policymakers with information and recommendations to propel states' progress toward using P-20W data to prepare…

The "Colorado Children's Budget 2012" examines the state's commitment to investing in the well-being of children. It tallies up Colorado's actual and planned investment during the past five years (Fiscal Year (FY) 2008-2009 through FY 2012-2013) on programs and services in four areas: Early Childhood Learning and Development, K-12…

This qualitative study uncovers the voices of five Latin@ students who are high-"achieving" and undocumented and have strong aspirations in science, in a Southern, Title I high school. Through critical race methodology and these students' "testimonios"/counter-stories, these students' struggles and successes reveal their…

This document is intended to serve as a practical guide for implementing a teacher-student data link (TSDL) that supports a range of uses at the local, regional, and state levels. The guide addresses the considerations for linking teacher and student data from multiple perspectives, including governance, policies, data components, business rules,…

This study sought to understand which aspects of current school accountability measures cause high school principals the most concern and what specific actions they were taking to address their concerns. This study took place in Genesee County Michigan. The primary method of data collection was semi-structured interviews. Thirteen traditional high…

The purpose of this study is to examine the differences in achievement on the end of course assessment in Geometry and the Grade 11 Literacy exam administered to students in Arkansas during the 2005-2006 and 2006-2007 school years. The three main types of scheduling are the traditional schedule with seven or eight periods; the A/B, or the…

As state policymakers strive to ensure that every student is taught by an effective teacher and is ready for college and 21st-century careers, they must also make drastic budget cuts. States cannot do more with less without collecting and using quality data to determine which programs and policies increase student achievement and the state's…

Nearly every high-priority item in national, federal, state, and local discussions about education--and policy proposals across the political spectrum--requires high-quality longitudinal data to inform its design, implementation, and evaluation. This factsheet shares Data Quality Campaign's (DQC's) analysis of what "Data for Action 2011:…