"Looking Closer" is the eighth biennial report to SREB states on their progress in meeting SREB's Challenge to Lead goals for education. Each customized state report documents progress on both measurable outcomes and state policies. Through effective policy implementation, the goals can help states drive improvements in student…

Because of its history from apartheid to democracy, the aspiration to reform schools is a recurrent theme in South African education. Efforts to reform education in schools based on the outcomes-based education (OBE) curriculum approach created major challenges for policy makers in South Africa. The purpose of this exploratory research was…

The U.S. arm of technology giant Siemens Corp. recently reported it has 3,000 jobs open because of the dearth of skilled workers. More than half of those open jobs require science, technology, engineering and math (STEM) skills. A recent study by ManpowerGroup found that a record 52 percent of U.S. employers have difficulty filling critical…

This paper is a part in a bigger research project related to ELT quality in secondary schools in Vietnam since the implementation of the new series of English textbooks was officially passed by in 2006, and the innovated direction was paid to task-based language teaching (TBLT). The purpose of this paper is to make argumentation on why, what and…

The study analyses the extent to which the sociological message transmitted by the teachers' pedagogic practice recontextualizes the official pedagogic discourse of the natural sciences curriculum for a Portuguese middle school. Theoretically, the study is based on theories of psychology (e.g. Vygotsky), epistemology (e.g. Ziman) and sociology,…

Based on a comparison of school external evaluation processes in three countries (England, France and Switzerland), this article questions the possible quality turn in the governance of European educational systems. Using materials collected through qualitative methods (91 interviews, surveys of literature and observations) during a sociological…

Greater academic pressures have been placed on rural schools to provide effective learning that will allow students to fulfill high school graduation requirements and prepare for entry into post-secondary institutions. Rural schools are confronted with many problematic issues including remote locations, limited resources, and shortage of qualified…

Policies and programs aimed at increasing educational and economic opportunities typically target either low-income children or their mothers, but not both, which limits their impact in fostering intergenerational mobility. This insight undergirds the development and implementation of dual-generation strategies, which focus simultaneously on both…

Several studies have examined parent expectations of schools in general (Gewertz, 2008; Carney-Hall, 2008; Keller, 2008; Stelmach, 2005; Boal, 2004; Lawson 2003; Wherry, 2003; Cheney, 2002; Bomotti, 1996; Epstein & Hollifield, 1996). Other studies have more specifically addressed parents' expectations of urban schools and their reasons for…

This study is based on a survey in 2007 of 12,961 senior secondary final year students in seven major cities in China, and shows that students in less developed cities manifest a stronger intention to study abroad than students in better off cities, controlling for students' other demographic characteristics and their major perceived attractions…

Background: The Trends in International Mathematics and Science Study (TIMSS) assesses the quality of the teaching and learning of science and mathematics among Grades 4 and 8 students across participating countries. Purpose: This study explored the relationship between positive affect towards science and mathematics and achievement in science and…

This Striving Readers evaluation examined the impact of a targeted intervention for struggling adolescent readers in participating schools. This study was conducted in nine high schools in nine school districts serving large percentages of at-risk students in Kentucky. The targeted intervention for struggling readers was the Kentucky Cognitive…

Last year the United States unveiled the Common Core State Standards (CCSS) in English and Mathematics for grades K-12. In particular, the authors included two possible sequences of 8-12 mathematics courses that would fulfill the standards. Most notably, the courses titled "3a" and "3b" in these two sequences have become…

"PISA 2009 at a Glance" is a companion publication to "PISA 2009 Results", the six-volume report on the 2009 survey conducted by the OECD's Programme for International Student Assessment (PISA). PISA assesses the extent to which students near the end of compulsory education have acquired some of the knowledge and skills that…

Students who are d/Deaf or hard of hearing often receive accommodations that are intended to increase access to the educational environment. The authors provide the results of a large national study of accommodations use in secondary and postsecondary settings. The article focuses on three aspects of accommodations use: access, quality, and…