This study evaluated five teachers from a middle school with a history of low-performances and high teacher turnover. This school participated in a reform program, Pay-For-Performance, where they received financial bonuses to increase performances on literacy and mathematics assessments. Additional requirements included participation in workshops,…

This paper presents new evidence that explores the strengths, weaknesses and overall quality of school inspection practice in China. In one city region of Shandong Province, the research examines stakeholder perceptions of inspection purposes, processes and outcomes, as well as the potential to improve inspection practice and compulsory education…

Prior to the 2012-13 school year, New York and many other states underwent changes to their accountability systems as a result of applying for and being granted waivers from the requirements of the No Child Left Behind Act of 2001. A key component of these new accountability systems, under what is known as ESEA Flexibility or NCLB Waivers, was the…

The purpose of this hermeneutic phenomenological study was to understand the perceptions and emotions of teachers during the global pandemic, specifically looking at the "how" and the "what" teachers experienced during the pandemic, focusing on the emotions deriving from the participants' lived experiences with technology. The…

Although it is critical for students with autism to be included in large-scale assessment and accountability systems, it is not clear how to best measure their underlying academic skills and knowledge. Additional empirically-supported guidance is necessary to assist school teams that need to make decisions about how to best include students with…

Based extensive fieldwork and interviews, this study explains teacher evaluation policy enactment as shaped by three conditions: (1) a principal's backgrounds, role perceptions, knowledge of instruction, and interactions with teachers; (2) teachers' perspectives; and (3) environmental demands. Notably, principals may lack the backgrounds,…

In 2017, the state of Kentucky distributed the Teaching, Empowerment, Leading, and Learning (TELL) survey to gain an understating of the learning environments in Kentucky schools. Many of the items on the TELL survey addressed key components of the School to Watch criteria and rubric. Researchers were interested in the teaching and learning…

This study explores the dynamics of accountability and responsibility among mathematics educators as they integrate Social and Emotional Learning (SEL) into their teaching practices. Utilizing a hermeneutic transcendental approach, the research examines the lived experiences of teachers, their challenges, and the strategies they employ to balance…

In this article, we situate the relatively new wave of technology-enabled personalized learning platforms within the broader policy context of institutional accountability. Although many education technology innovations were developed in response to heightened accountability pressures, technology-enabled personalization introduces new…

We employ Sfard's ("Thinking as communicating," 2008) "ritual towards exploration" idea to theorize the learning trajectory of two middle school teachers attending a professional development (PD) program designed around the "5 Practices for Orchestrating Productive Discussions" and Accountable Talk. Data included four…

Learner-centred education has become a global reform policy among Southeast Asian countries including the Philippines. This policy however raised critical issues in pedagogy as it placed learner-centred teaching in binary opposition with teacher-centred instruction, thus creating a simplistic dichotomy between good and bad teaching in the…

The national K-12 science standards were reformed in April 2013. On March 8, 2017, the state of Louisiana's Board of Elementary and Secondary Education approved the rewrite of the science standards to align with these national standards, and they were implemented in the middle school science classes. In March 2020, the COVID-19 pandemic began and…

Great things happen when students are able to focus on their learning instead of their scores. However, assessment reform, including standards-based grading, remains a hotly debated issue in education. "Going Gradeless" shows that it is possible to teach and assess without the stress of traditional grading practices. Sharing their…

Secondary school administrators are prone to experience stressors that stem from role conflict, accountability standards, student and parental relationships, staff development, and managerial issues. Through the research foundations of McGrath (Stress Cycle), Gmelch (Administrator Stress Cycle), Allison (Coping Preference Scale) and Maslach's…

School improvement and its associated policies aim at providing a quality education, a burdensome weight which rests largely on the shoulders of teachers. To achieve such ends, policy texts have been reformed with neoliberal underpinnings, which allow private organizations to enter a space that previously operated through public institutions. In…