This report describes the final evaluation of a condensed work schedule, the Summer 2009 4-Day Work Week (S4-DWW), adopted by The School Board of Broward County, Florida. The goal for the program was to close the entire district for 1 day each week to reduce utility costs. Except for a few cases, district schools and offices were closed on Fridays…

In this No Child Left Behind era of renewed emphasis on the search for the "highly qualified" teacher, governors, legislators, and state department of education officials have an incentive to focus on improving teacher quality through teacher evaluation. While teacher evaluation practices have been traditionally problematic "based…

While there is a wide body of research to support the effectiveness of schoolwide positive behavior support (PBS), there are significant challenges to facilitating sustainable implementation. The present study begins to address these challenges by exploring PBS implementation in a diverse, regionally isolated elementary school that previously…

School districts, and even states, striving to identify optimal school size are confounded more often than not by the conflicting research findings and theoretical arguments presented throughout the literature. Some writers adamantly declare that smaller schools are a "must" if educational opportunity is to be optimized. Others argue that school…

An assessment of a brief, but intensive modified Bully Busters universal prevention program on measures of teacher efficacy, teacher self-efficacy, teacher skills and knowledge about peer victimization, and teacher-reports of students' peer victimization was conducted with 30 elementary school teachers. Paired-samples "t" tests revealed…

The purpose of this study was to determine teacher perceptions of the impact on instructional practice when using a complex, standards-based performance evaluation system. The study used expectancy theory to investigate teacher expectancy (did they believe they could enhance their practice to the identified program standards?), instrumentality…

Following a model for an extended-day kindergarten program that had been in operation in select schools for nearly 20 years, a southeastern Virginia school division expanded the Extended-Day Kindergarten (EDK) Program with an additional 40 classes in 39 schools during the 2006-2007 school year. The EDK Program supplemented the traditional half-day…

The authors conducted a study to determine the degree to which principals use research-based interviewing practices and found that educational leaders frequently report using recommended practices. This study is a part of a larger study in which the extant research literature on qualities of effective teachers and selection interviews were…

This article discusses assumptions often made by principals in K-12 schools regarding the role of literacy coaches and the presumed effects that coaching will have on teacher knowledge and practice as well as on student achievement. For the purposes of this article, a literacy coach is a content-area expert who assists teachers with instruction in…

This study applies the "Personnel Evaluation Standards" of the Joint Committee on Standards for Educational Evaluation to the procedures, practices, and related components of a school's staff evaluation program to determine the program's effectiveness. Evaluators sought answers to questions including the extent to which the intended structures and…

Using a case study of three elementary schools involved in a Response to Intervention (RTI) model demonstration project, the authors examine the features critical to successful RTI implementation. Preliminary findings suggest that access to and use of sensitive progress monitoring assessments and a willingness to use the data provided by those…

Recruiting quality teachers is a top priority for school districts across the country. However, recent research demonstrates that an even greater challenge facing schools is retaining newly recruited teachers, particularly in urban school settings. This article analyzes the effects of two key components of many formal induction programs--mentoring…

The purpose of this study was to determine how elementary school administrators in a large U.S. state perceived the overall effects of testing on education in general and, more specifically, on their instructional leadership responsibilities. We surveyed 325 Florida principals and assistant principals, many of whom viewed the testing program…

The Accelerated Reader program from Renaissance Learning Inc. is a popular program implemented in elementary and middle schools across the country that encourages students to read and monitors their progress in the program. Despite its widespread use and popularity, there have been some questions about the program's effectiveness at increasing…

This article reports on a national survey designed to learn how medium and large school districts are using standards-based leadership evaluation and related human resource management practices, such as pay for performance. Surveys were sent to all school districts in the United States with student populations 10,000 and over (total n=867).…