Educators in Virginia have been working hard to improve student performance. Their efforts are highlighted in this report, which notes trends and common practices in schools that have consistently demonstrated high achievement and in schools that have shown remarkable improvement in recent years. The first section of the report presents a historical perspective on education in the United States that includes a discussion of failed education reforms of the past. The second section assesses educational achievement in Virginia in comparison with national averages. A section titled "The Virginia Honor Role" highlights public school divisions that have outperformed others in the "top performers" category of consistent achievement and the "rising stars" category of recent improvement. The "Analysis and Recommendations" section discusses a number of current issues in education, such as instructional grouping, instructional techniques, and school choice. Other sections suggest topics for future research and describe the methodology used in this study of Virginia schools. A blank report card for evaluating the reader's own school division is provided. The first four appendixes contain data on the high achieving school divisions identified in this study. The latter five appendixes contain the data required to fill in the blank report card for the individual school division. (Contains 16 tables, 4 graphs, and 38 appendix tables.) (SLD)