In this study, we compared the perspectives of students' 21st-Century competencies (critical thinking and communication, applied learning, and intrapersonal and interpersonal skills) based on participating in an urban magnet information technology (IT) career academy compared to a traditional, comprehensive high school. We utilized propensity…

This brief is the fifth in Baltimore Education Research Consortium's (BERC's) "Launching into Adulthood" series, which examines the trajectories of Baltimore graduates over six years. BERC established a partnership with Baltimore's Promise and the Maryland Longitudinal Data System (MLDS), which has made it possible to examine both…

Purpose: This study aimed to examine the effects of Cambodia's New Generation Schools (NGS), as compared to their traditional counterparts, in enhancing the seven constructs--(1) science and math achievement, (2) science and math self-efficacy, (3) science and math outcome expectations, (4) attitudes toward science, (5) interactive science and…

This is a quantitative phenomenological study of the perceptions of principals of public secondary schools in rural Appalachian Ohio. The purpose of the study is to understand the experiences of the principals as online charter schools become feasible for students in their school district. A random sample of ten principals was obtained from the…

Using a DisCrit intersectional lens and statistical and spatial methods, we trace how the creation of K-8 schools functioned to create pockets of privilege in one urban U.S. school district. K-8 schools were both whiter and wealthier than district averages, serving as "enclave" schools. Although far fewer students with disabilities were…

This article provides a socio-spatial analysis of youth identities within the context of school choice reforms. Unable to conform to cultural ideals inscribed in the American school, a diverse group of youth forced out of traditional schools mediate the local production of school choice initiatives through the formation of youth identities as…

Charter schools represent an increasingly important form of school choice in the United States. Charter schools are public schools, with a difference. Compared to traditional public schools, they are exempted from some of the state laws and regulations that govern traditional public schools. In this way, parents come to have a greater number of…

This paper draws on the results of an ethnographic project carried out with five groups of secondary students. During one academic year, our research team accompanied youth in an inquiry into learning practices in and outside school. Here their observations and contributions are brought together to problematize the relationship between formal and…

This article reports a study that is based on the framework of personal epistemology proposed by Kuhn, Cheney, and Weinstock (2000). The instrument developed by Kuhn et al. (2000) for assessing the three positions (absolutist, multiplist and evaluativist) of epistemological understanding across five judgements' domains was translated 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,…

In FY16, the School District of Palm Beach County (SDPBC) outperformed Florida and six other large urban school districts and increased the graduation rate from FY15. The Federal High School Graduation Rate includes standard diplomas but excludes special diplomas and GEDs (General Education Diplomas). This memorandum reports the graduation rates…

On January 5, 2016, the Florida Department of Education (FDOE) released graduation rates for the State of Florida and the School District of Palm Beach County (SDPBC). The Federal High School Graduation Rate includes standard diplomas but excludes special diplomas and GEDs (General Education Diplomas). In FY2015, SDPBC outperformed Florida and six…

The educational experiences of students engaged in different contexts of learning, particularly curriculum delivered and international travel and residence experiences may be related to problem-solving skills and game decisions and efficiency of high school students engaged in modified game play during physical education class. This study explores…

Urban districts are important places to observe the array of non-traditional schooling options in which high school students can be educated. We examined enrollment distributions in 1 traditional and 3 different types of alternative high schools in 1 urban school district. We coded all high schools in the sample district into 4 school types…

The ongoing push to raise or eliminate the charter school cap in Massachusetts provides an opportunity to reflect upon the purpose of charter schools. When the legislature created the Commonwealth's charter school law, as a part of the 1993 Massachusetts Education Reform Act (MERA), it clearly stated a main reason for these new schools was…