This paper has two purposes: First, we describe the components of the Student Ownership, Accountability, and Responsibility for School Safety (SOARS) framework in the context of the literature on school safety. Second, we offer outcomes from a pilot study testing the framework's impact on student perceptions of: (1) school belonging; (2) sense of…

States use their accountability systems to identify low-performing schools, which can receive added support and are expected to improve. Alternative schools serve students whose needs are not met in a regular school. They often serve at-risk students who are struggling academically or behaviorally. Given this unique population, the Government…

There is a growing body of research that suggests the first year of high school is a critical transition point for students. It also finds course-taking and successful completion of those courses in 9th grade to be valuable predictors of students' success in high school. The Every Student Succeeds Act (ESSA) provides states an opportunity to…

The current educational climate of increased accountability requires school principals to improve student learning for all students, implement national and state policies, maintain a positive culture, provide professional development, and supervise and evaluate faculty members. In order to improve learning in schools, education reform mandates…

In this case study, I examine the ways adult learners improve skills and practices around communication, problem-solving, motivation, self-esteem, and technology through engagement in a makerspace curriculum focused on composition. A primary objective is to provide insight into the various ways that adult education environments can incorporate…

This chapter is a research summary of the author's doctoral dissertation completed in May, 2015, which investigates the way Standardized Assessment (SA) is used in state educational accountability structures. This quasi-experimental quantitative study found that SA scores trend towards consistency over time, and that there is additional variance,…

The mission and vision of adult education is to provide every individual in Illinois access to Adult Education and Literacy services. In Illinois, more than 1.15 million adults have less than 12 grades of formal education, approximately 2.8 million Illinois residents speak a language other than English in their home, and more than 350,944…

This report, submitted in compliance with 105 ILCS 5/1A-4E, provides a discussion of the overall condition of education in Illinois. Information is included concerning student and teacher demographics; data on teacher and administrator licensure; federal, state, and local resources; and other data on Illinois education. The 2021 Condition of…

This report was commissioned by Mid-America Regional Council and the Ewing Marion Kauffman Foundation to gain an understanding of the current state of Career and Technical Education (CTE) in nine counties of the Kansas City region: Missouri counties of Cass, Clay, Jackson, Platte, and Ray; and Kansas counties of Johnson, Leavenworth, Miami, and…

The mission and vision of adult education is to provide every individual in Illinois access to Adult Education and Literacy services. In Illinois, more than 1.15 million adults have less than 12 grades of formal education, approximately 2.8 million Illinois residents speak a language other than English in their home, and more than 350,944…

When using time series accountability data to evaluate system-wide education policies, concurrent changes often pose threats to internal validity. The standard difference-in-differences (DID) method resorts to a non-equivalent comparison group whose average outcome change is due to such confounding. This strategy relies on the strong assumption…

This past year has been unlike any in recent history. In March, the global COVID-19 pandemic forced Illinois to shift suddenly to remote learning for all students. This adjustment exposed the digital divide as a stark reality. One bright spot in the year occurred in May, when the Illinois' plan for career and technical education (CTE) received…

The mission and vision of adult education is to provide every individual in Illinois access to Adult Education and Literacy services. In Illinois, more than 1.15 million adults have less than 12 grades of formal education, approximately 2.8 million Illinois residents speak a language other than English in their home, and more than 350,944…

This case study uses a theory of occupational ecology to understand why test-based accountability has been successful at redirecting principals' work toward high-stakes standards and assessments. The principals and English teachers at two Chicago high schools were interviewed annually over a four-year period. The study finds that test-based…

In today's economy, employers increasingly demand that workers have a high school diploma, yet America's graduation rates are unacceptably low, particularly among poor and minority students. Nationally, only about 70 percent of students graduate from high school on time with a regular diploma; for African American and Hispanic students, this…