This article reports the teacher-quality plans of putting a highly qualified teacher in every core class which were due to the Education Department in July 7. In the plans, states are required to describe which groups of teachers are not yet highly qualified according to the federal standard, how they would help--and prod--districts to use only…

No Child Left Behind (NCLB), the reauthorization of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act, was passed in 2002. This legislation broadly states federal policy regarding education and is situated within the historical context of Lyndon Johnson's Great Society programs. Like any federal legislation, NCLB consists of the legislation itself but…

The new amendments to the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act became effective in July 2005 and contained a number of important changes to the current law. Some of the major changes regarding highly qualified teachers, alignment with the No Child Left Behind Act of 2001, eligibility, the Individualized Education Program process, and…

The end of the school year marks a deadline for states to meet a federal requirement that most teachers be "highly qualified." However, the cutoff holds little threat these days. Even one-time proponents of the provision are conceding their disappointment and are fixing their sights on new ways to raise teacher quality. Advocates vary in…

Concern for the status of linguistic minority education in Idaho provided motivation to investigate the perceptions of the inservice educators who work most closely with a large proportion of English language learners (ELLs) in the rural state's public schools. This study sought to learn directly from the state's ELL educators what they perceived…

Two years ago, the Center on Education Policy (CEP), an independent nonprofit organization known for its comprehensive studies of No Child Left Behind Act (NCLB) and related issues, began a research-based review of the federal role. As part of this process, the authors examined an extensive body of research from a wide range of sources. They also…

The major challenge faced by teacher education in an increasingly global society is to prepare teachers who can function effectively in a standards and accountability environment while modeling and inspiring their students to be internationally minded, creative citizens. However, the demographic changes taking place throughout the world,…

This study uses Early Childhood Longitudinal Study data to investigate the importance of three general aspects of teacher effects--teacher background qualifications, attitudes, and instructional practices--to reading and math achievement gains in first grade. The results indicate that compared with instructional practices, background…

In this article we reviewed the available literature concerning teacher turnover. The seriousness of this issue was addressed as cause for concern is clearly present. Issues we examined in this conceptual analysis were the federal government's role in public education, the No Child Left Behind Act, teacher turnover, teacher retention, teacher…

Highly qualified teachers and administrators are in high demand. Too often the challenge is not simply preparing more teachers and administrators, but preparing the teachers and administrators we have. The overall quality of teachers and administrators is misunderstood and misdirected. Do states have a sufficient surplus of teachers and…

In this article, the author reports how the "highly qualified" provision of the No Child Left Behind Act affected middle-grades teachers far more than teachers at the elementary and high school levels. Under the federal law, teachers beyond the elementary grades who were in the classroom two years ago may show their knowledge of academic…

This report provides a roundup of the rather modest set of actions the state Legislature and Governor Schwarzenegger took on education in 2005. It also sets the stage for what those who care about education might expect in the coming year. To provide some structure for addressing a wide breadth of topics, the report is organized into four…

As a principal, Ms. Brown has firsthand knowledge of the pressures educational leaders face in the NCLB era. If administrators are going to perform effectively in today's school environment, she argues, the programs that prepare them will have to undergo significant reform. She urges university leadership programs to adopt four changes that will…

In a review of current research and the No Child Left Behind (NCLB) legislation, this paper focuses on two specific issues: (a) how students with developmental disabilities show adequate yearly progress, including a description of the assessments in which this population may participate, and (b) the policy issues surrounding NCLB including…

Facing a growing population and the demands of No Child Left Behind, the Mississippi Department of Education (MDE) is finding itself destitute in the recruitment and certification of highly-qualified educators. Because of extremely low average salaries and the existence of critical-need areas, the MDE has decided over the past decade to create an…