Across the country, urban school districts are opting to close under-enrolled schools as a way to consolidate resources. Motivated by a reported $1 billion deficit and declining enrollments in depopulating neighborhoods, the Chicago Board of Education voted in May 2013 to close 49 elementary schools and one high school program located in an…

Teachers are found in every community and are essential to fulfilling the potential of every student. The teaching profession is large, with K-12 teachers comprising 3% of all jobs in the United States. And yet, what is known about the characteristics of teachers in the Milwaukee metro area? In this report, the author addresses this question with…

This is the third in a series of reports on public school educators in the Milwaukee area. It provides an updated analysis to a previous report, "Help Wanted: An Analysis of the Teacher Pipeline in Metro Milwaukee." This report finds that teacher turnover in both metro Milwaukee and across the state has stabilized. However a higher…

Last August, a "New York Times" headline proclaimed "Teacher Shortages Spur a Nationwide Hiring Scramble." The article detailed how school districts across the country "have gone from handing out pink slips to scrambling to hire teachers…a result of the layoffs of the recession years combined with an improving economy in…

Each edition of the IDRA Newsletter strives to provide many different perspectives on the issues in education topics discussed and to define its significance in the state and national dialogue. This issue focuses on Teaching Quality and includes: (1) The "Fourth-Grade Slump" and Math Achievement: Addressing the Challenge with Student Engagement…

This anthology collects stories from various classrooms and collaborations supported by the Orion Society. Orion's Stories in the Land fellowships are 1-year teacher stipends that promote effective place-based education: interdisciplinary studies of the local natural and cultural history using extensive field experiences and diverse "human…

At the request of the school committee of that town, this bureau made last spring a comprehensive survey of the schools of Winchester, Massachusetts, a residential suburban town near the city of Boston. The report of the findings of the committee making the survey, together with constructive criticisms and recommendations for the improvement of…

This document consists of the three issues of "The Teacher Trainer" published during 1995. This journal of modern language teacher education contains articles by teacher trainees and teacher trainers, including: "The Use of Lesson Transcripts in Teacher Development" (Richard Cullen); "Pair and Group Work--Confessions of Ignorance" (Tessa…

"Education Indicators" are facts and statistics that help to describe a public education system. They are tools which are useful in examining and measuring the effectiveness of the system. Examples include information such as the amount of local funds raised to support local schools, per pupil expenditures, pupil-teacher ratios, and…

This eighth edition of "The Condition of K-12 Public Education in Maine" is designed to provide Maine citizens, legislators, and educators a yearly report on the state of Maine public schools and education. This new edition updates educational information which appeared in earlier editions, and also provides information on several new…