Systemic racism is pervasive in US society and disproportionately limits opportunities for education, work, and health for historically marginalized and minoritized racial and ethnic groups, making it an urgent issue of social justice. Because systemic racism is a social determinant of health prevalent across multiple social and institutional…

From my personal point of view, the role of a program evaluator is to gather information about the thoughts and experiences of individuals impacted by the program and to use the findings to inform program improvement. However, participants in the evaluation may be reluctant to share their full thoughts due to factors such as power imbalances and a…

According to creative writing pedagogies academic Susanne Gannon ("English in Australia, 54"(2), 43-56, 2019), and the Federal government-commissioned NAPLAN review (McGaw et al., 2020), NAPLAN has restricted how writing is taught in secondary schools. A NAPLAN-influenced structural approach to teaching writing has subsumed the…

Much research has been conducted to indicate that the freshman year of high school has an impact on a student's potential graduation from high school. Existing literature reveals that through the evolution of education in the United States, schools have been forced to place a strong emphasis on graduation. Many factors, including academic success,…

This report presents an approach to evaluating networked improvement communities (NICs) and describes the tools used to apply the approach to a formative evaluation of the Minnesota Alternative Learning Center Networked Improvement Community (Minnesota ALC NIC). In fall 2019 leaders at the Minnesota Department of Education requested support from…

To update its teaching and departmental review processes, Phillips Academy Andover, an independent boarding school in Massachusetts, commissioned RAND Corporation researchers to review the school's policies, conduct a literature review, interview other independent high schools, develop potential recommendations for revision of Andover's processes,…

Although many have suggested the use of games to motivate active learning, studies that evaluate the learning outcomes of games with high school students are scarce. Here, we present the evaluation of the board game "Taphonomy: Dead and Fossilized" as an active learning tool to teach fossilization and Earth systems thinking with rising…

The SUGAR Program Manual was designed based on an extensive literature review on bullying, adolescent development, resilience and protective factors, and anti-bullying programs. Literature on anti-bullying programs showed a deficit for older adolescents, particularly high school students. A whole-school approach is proposed by incorporating…

From the fall of 2017 to the winter of 2020, the Student-Centered Assessment Network (SCAN) aimed to transform high school teaching in Rhode Island. Researchers and teachers worked together to make high school classes more student centered by increasing teachers' use of student-centered formative assessment. Network leaders (the hub) organized…

The transition into higher education is a challenging process for many students. Students are often underprepared academically (amongst other aspects). This under-preparedness influences students' subsequent academic performance, and ultimately, overall student success. Research has shown that successful student transition into higher education…

Cross institutional benchmarking provides the opportunity to ensure comparability of standards by comparing learning outcomes and assessment practices, and acts as a catalyst for change and improved practice. The comparability of standards is crucial for the transparency and portability of qualifications as well as the assurance of quality student…

Purpose: Although physical education (PE) leadership programs are widespread, little research has examined the PE leaders' perceptions of these experiences. The purpose of this study was to assess student ratings of developmental experiences in a PE leadership program compared with ratings of the typical PE student experience. Method: A matched…

Public schools follow school improvement guidelines to improve outcomes for students. This study utilized a quantitative method with a correlational design to discern any relationship between the NCStar School Improvement Program Indicators and student proficiency scores. The population for the study was 636 public high schools implementing the…

The purpose of this study was to conduct a program evaluation of an online mental health literacy curriculum for K-12. In addition, the study established the next steps for professional development concerning mental health literacy for staff based on the findings. This study was guided by research questions: 1. How much knowledge has been gained…

The purpose of this study was to understand how fine art teachers viewed the quality of their programs within public school settings. The purpose was to also learn how funding can potentially affect the quality of a fine arts program from the stories of public high school fine arts educators. Goodson's theory of educational change was used to…