This exploratory study, in which the participants portrayed a critical role, aimed to discover the perceptions of professional development in changing educator practice at the secondary level with middle school teachers in an urban school district. The data collection process included semi-structured interviews with nine secondary teachers via…

The purpose of this program evaluation was to evaluate the impact of CORE District's Breakthrough Success Community (BTSC) Program at an urban Title I high school located in Southern California. BTSC aims to improve the ninth-grade experience through a focus on five key change drivers and the implementation of improvement science. Through teacher…

In response to budget problems, many urban school systems reduced resources for getting students to come to school, like truancy officers. Chicago, for instance, went from 150 truancy officers down to, in 1991, a total of zero. Is that a good idea? We explore here the effects of increased support by a pro-social adult, or "social…

The learning losses caused by the COVID-19 pandemic make this an important time to identify strategies that can help students accelerate their learning. The Strategic Adolescent Reading Intervention (STARI) is a year-long supplemental reading intervention that is intentionally designed to address the motivational barriers of middle school students…

Background: Youth violence is a significant problem affecting community health. Community-academic partnerships can advance youth nonviolence education by synergizing the strengths of collaborators while working toward a common goal. We describe a collaboration between an urban public middle school, community nonprofit, and university-based…

This study explores the impact of attending optional professional learning events on the critical consciousness development of Ready to Learn (RtL) mentors over the course of one program year. Ready to Learn is an out of school time math tutoring and mentoring program that seeks to address opportunity gaps in math learning for middle school…

This study discusses the effectiveness of a science, technology, engineering, and math (STEM) program spanning grades six through eight in a traditional, urban school district located in Northeastern Ohio. The history and expressed need for STEM education within post-steel producing and economically depressed regions are discussed. Important…

This study discusses the effectiveness of a science, technology, engineering, and math (STEM) program spanning grades six through eight in a traditional, urban school district located in Northeastern Ohio. The history and expressed need for STEM education within post-steel producing and economically depressed regions are discussed. Important…

Many urban New Yorkers believe that the Hudson River is so polluted that nothing could possibly live there. In reality, the estuary is thriving, and The River Project (TRP), a marine science field station in lower Manhattan, exists to showcase its vast biodiversity through place-based education. In 2014, TRP began collaborating on a city-wide…

Inquiry-based science interventions aim to improve students' science proficiency by helping them understand scientific processes. In these interventions, students conduct hands-on investigations of science concepts and everyday phenomena, construct explanations for what they observe, consider alternative explanations, and communicate and justify…

Engaged in the evaluation of LDC tools since June 2011, UCLA's National Center for Research on Evaluation, Standards, and Student Testing (CRESST) is using multiple data sources and a quasi-experimental design to examine LDC implementation and impact in two cohorts of schools in two large, urban school districts. This report presents the results…

Engaged inthe evaluation of LDC tools since June 2011, UCLA's National Center for Research on Evaluation, Standards, and Student Testing (CRESST) is using multiple data sources and a quasi-experimental design to examine LDC implementation and impact in two cohorts of schools in two large, urban school districts. This report presents the results on…

City Year is a learning organization committed to the rigorous evaluation of its "Whole School Whole Child" model, which trains and deploys teams of AmeriCorps members to low-performing, urban schools to empower more students to reach their full potential. A third-party study by Policy Studies Associates (PSA) examined the impact of…

The iMentor College Ready Program is a model that combines school-based mentoring with technology and aspects of whole school reform. The program aims to create strong relationships between low-income youth and college-educated mentors--and to leverage these relationships to help students develop the mindsets, skills, and knowledge necessary to…

The iMentor College Ready Program combines school-based mentoring with technology and aspects of whole school reform. The program strives to create strong relationships between low-income youth and college-educated mentors--relationships that it hopes to leverage to help students develop the mindsets, skills, and knowledge necessary to enroll and…