Uncommon Schools is a nonprofit charter management organization that starts and manages public charter schools, primarily in traditionally underserved communities. As part of a 2016 grant awarded to Uncommon from the U.S. Department of Education's Charter Schools Program to support replication and expansion of its school model, we conducted a…

Purpose: This paper aims to describe the design and user testing of GeoForge, a multiple-player digital learning experience for middle school that leverages virtual reality (VR) and individualized websites for learning concepts in planetary science. This paper investigates how specific instructional design choices and features of the technology…

Throughout the history of the United States there have existed gaps in the educational achievement outcomes of different groups of students. One of the most well-known and persistent achievement gaps is seen in the academic performance of Black versus White students, which is also known as the Black-White student achievement gap (BWSAG). The BWSAG…

This article explores issues that had to be confronted over a three-year period in terms of two New York State funded grants for which I was the evaluator. Major, critical challenges are presented, described, and discussed. Specifically, the paper addresses issues related to lack of planning at the grant design stage that resulted in challenges…

The "Knowledge Is Power Program" ("KIPP") is a nonprofit network of more than 200 public charter schools educating early childhood, elementary, middle, and high school students. The What Works Clearinghouse (WWC) identified four studies of "KIPP" that fall within the scope of the Charter Schools topic area and meet…

New York State is experiencing teacher shortages in specific subject areas. One way to address these shortages is through the certification and placement of new teachers. This study explored the pathways through which new teachers between 2015/16 and 2017/18 earned certificates, their certification areas, and their subsequent placement and…

This report examines and explains the most recent achievement results for New York City and New York State students in district and charter schools, and to put New York City's achievement levels in context. The New York City public school system is the largest in the country, with more than 1 million students in grades prekindergarten through 12…

Between 1994 and 2014, New York City engaged in a historic overhaul of its publicly funded high schools. This included the opening of charter high schools (made possible by a 1999 state law) and the creation of new, smaller district high schools that would, in time, replace many of the city's large, traditional, comprehensive, and vocational high…

Entrepreneurial learning is the backbone of this Brooklyn charter school network which opened in Fall 2014 to serve grades 6-12, including English language learners and students with disabilities. LAB's academic model combines empirically effective learning practices with innovative implementation strategies, including a blended learning model…

New York State is experiencing teacher shortages in specific subject areas. One way to address these shortages is through the certification and placement of new teachers. This study explored the pathways through which new teachers between 2015/16 and 2017/18 earned certificates, their certification areas, and their subsequent placement and…

This Study Snapshot highlights key findings from a study that explored the pathways through which new teachers between 2015/16 and 2017/18 earned certificates, their certification areas, and their subsequent placement and retention in districts across the state, particularly high-need districts. New York State provides multiple certification…

These are the appendixes for the report, "Teacher Shortages in New York State: New Teachers' Certification Pathways, Shortage Areas, District of Employment, and Retention in the Same District." New York State has been experiencing teacher shortages in specific subject areas. One way to address these shortages is through the certification…

The academic model of this charter high school for boys in Rochester, New York has four pillars: 1) strong relationships, 2) personalized year-round academics, 3) character education, and 4) career preparation. The two-page grantee profiles from Next Generation Learning Challenges (NGLC) provide factual information about the secondary school and…

The author, a former school board member and currently head of nationwide parent organization, assesses the competition between charter and traditional public schools, concluding that the competition and acrimony among them does not help them deliver a better education. Policies should be focused on helping both types of schools improve education,…

The significant growth of charter schools in the United States has brought praise for the excellent results achieved by some schools as well as criticism that charter schools may not be serving the most disadvantaged students. Critics of charter schools, in New York City and elsewhere, commonly assert that charters' (often) strong academic…