In many ways standards-based school reform is at a crossroads. On one side, the movement has made tremendous strides. The Common Core State Standards Initiative, known simply as Common Core, is now strongly established in more than 40 states. Many teachers believe that the new, higher academic standards have helped them improve instruction. And,…

This article examined the performance of 57 students with learning disabilities (LD) from four middle schools. Students were followed over the course of a school year in their inclusive science classrooms as they alternated between the use of traditional curricular materials for some units of study and materials that were supplemented with video…

State of Michigan Education report -- "Stalled to Soaring: Michigan's Path to Educational Recovery" -- is the result of months of research and a year of Education Trust-Midwest's efforts to monitor where Michigan is making progress on improving public education. The report findings include: (1) Michigan now ranks in the bottom five…

The American Association of School Librarians (AASL) Standards for the 21st Century Learner do not just pay lip-service to the value of reading. They have been aligned with the Common Core standards that were derived from, and now influence, state standards-based tests, such as the Colorado Student Assessment Program (CSAP) reading tests. It is…

This study examines the efficacy and moderators of New York State interventions for schools in need of improvement under NCLB, including: (1) school transfer, (2) supplementary education service (3) corrective action, (4) planning for restructuring, and (5) restructuring. Despite the fact that schools in increasingly aggressive treatment groups…

Since 2003, the National Center for Education Statistics (NCES) has compared each state's standard for proficient performance in reading and mathematics by mapping each state's standard onto the appropriate National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP) scale. The results of those comparisons have been provided in three earlier reports, using…

The Kansas Association of School Boards (KASB) Comparing Kansas report data provides information related to the Kansas State Board of Education's Kansans Can outcomes and the "Rose Capacities" identified by the Kansas Supreme Court as a standard of constitutional funding and adopted as educational goals by the Kansas Legislature. It also…

According to the National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP), only one-third of American fourth grade students are at or above proficient in reading. Yet state assessments indicate that most American fourth-grade students are above average in reading. This analysis raises the questions about standards of success and what children need to…

Due to the growing importance of technology and engineering in the educational landscape, and to support America's ability to contribute to and compete in a global economy, the National Assessment Governing Board (NAGB) initiated development of the first NAEP Technology and Engineering Literacy (TEL) Assessment. Relating to national efforts in…

Paul Jablon's "The Synergy of Inquiry" (2014) is well-timed. The 2014 deadline set by No Child Left Behind (NCLB, 2002) for universal student proficiency has come and gone, and according to the National Assessment of Educational Progress, "proficiency rates last year were below 50 percent for nearly every racial and ethnic group, in…

The 2016 edition of the Brown Center Report (BCR) is number five in the third volume and the 15th issue overall. As is customary, this year's BCR contains three studies. Part one is on the Common Core State Standards (CCSS) and instruction in math and reading. National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP) data indicate that nonfiction is…

The current financial state of our nation, in combination with the pressure to meet state accountability testing and a global call for better prepared twenty first century learners, has produced a situation where all levels of government have to make difficult decisions regarding expenditures. In order to ensure that education receives appropriate…

We examined how rater language background affects the scoring of short-answer, open-ended test items in the assessment of English language learners (ELLs). Four native English and four native Spanish-speaking certified bilingual teachers scored 107 responses of fourth- and fifth-grade Spanish-speaking ELLs to mathematics items administered in…

Results from the 2013 NAEP assessments show fourth- and eighth-graders making progress in mathematics and reading. Nationally representative samples of more than 376,000 fourth-graders and 341,000 eighth-graders were assessed in either mathematics or reading in 2013. Results are reported for public and private school students in the nation, and…

Results from the 2013 NAEP assessments show fourth- and eighth-graders making progress in mathematics and reading. Nationally representative samples of more than 376,000 fourth-graders and 341,000 eighth-graders were assessed in either mathematics or reading in 2013. Results are reported for public and private school students in the nation, and…