ERIC Number: EJ785529
Record Type: Journal
Publication Date: 2008-Feb
Pages: 11
Abstractor: Author
ISBN: N/A
ISSN: ISSN-0272-7757
EISSN: N/A
Available Date: N/A
Strategic Responses to School Accountability Measures: It's All in the Timing
Sims, David P.
Economics of Education Review, v27 n1 p58-68 Feb 2008
The adoption of state accountability testing in the 1990s coincided with the movement of some school start dates from September into August. Using data from Wisconsin, this paper connects these phenomena, showing that some low-scoring districts advanced their school start dates to allow their students more time to prepare for exams. I use a 2001 Wisconsin state law that restricted districts to start dates after September 1st to identify the effects of this extra time on student achievement. Extra classroom days are associated with small increases in Math scores for 4th graders, but not average reading or language scores. Extra classroom time may also have increased third grade reading scores for students in the upper portion of the ability distribution.
Descriptors: State Legislation, Academic Achievement, Accountability, Educational Testing, Scores, Extended School Year, Time Factors (Learning), Program Effectiveness, Educational Change, Educational Improvement, School Districts
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Publication Type: Journal Articles; Reports - Evaluative
Education Level: Elementary Secondary Education
Audience: N/A
Language: English
Sponsor: N/A
Authoring Institution: N/A
Identifiers - Location: Wisconsin
Grant or Contract Numbers: N/A
Author Affiliations: N/A