In this paper, we discuss the design and development of an eBook titled "Building Democracy for All: Interactive Explorations of Government and Civic Life," which serves as an open educational resource for the eighth-grade Massachusetts social studies curriculum standards. This design case offers an example of an interactive,…

In the United States, higher education institutions must be authorized as postsecondary education providers -- through a process known as state authorization -- to be eligible to receive federal student financial aid funds. Through state authorization policies, state governments play a key role in maintaining accountability for higher education.…

In US public schools, linguistic diversity is growing rapidly with an increasing number of students who are learning English. Federal and state policies lay the foundation for language acquisition through (re)classification processes for English Learners (ELs). However, the classification process runs the risk of establishing separate services for…

For some colleges and professors, classified research promises prestige and money. Powerhouses like the Massachusetts Institute of Technology and the Johns Hopkins University have for decades run large classified laboratories. But most other universities either do not allow such research or conduct it quietly, and in small doses. The…

States are pushing ahead with efforts to make sweeping changes to education policy through the Race to the Top program, despite some of them having seen individual schools and districts back out of the process because of concerns over the time and money required to make those plans a reality. The Obama administration has envisioned Race to the…

Federal regulations have opened a door that allows schools to get credit under the No Child Left Behind Act for students who take longer than four years to earn a high school diploma. That option worries some education advocates, who fear it could relieve valuable pressure on high schools to graduate students on time. Under the law's…

In comments on the proposed federal guidelines for stimulus funds, some researchers say there's no evidence for the policies touted. Among education researchers, one complaint about the U.S. Department of Education under former President George W. Bush was that it relentlessly promoted "scientific research in education," while at the…

President Barack Obama's call for innovation to improve the nation's schools strikes a chord with many in policy circles, who are already discussing how the federal government can play a role not only in supporting the expansion of what works, but also in creating solutions to unsolved problems. But some experts are pointing out that significant…

As 48 states charge ahead with plans to adopt common academic standards, the U.S. Department of Education will enlist experts and the public to help design a $350 million competition for the next step: the development of common tests. In coming weeks, top Education Department officials will travel to Atlanta, Boston, and Denver for a series of…

Through a $7.5 million U.S. Department of Education grant, students at the Hudson (Massachusetts) Public Schools "attend" Virtual High School--a network of 30 schools in 10 states. Kids attend classes any time, work collaboratively, and choose among innovative, timely, technologically rich course offerings. Other sites are described.…

On the silver anniversary of the U.S. Department of Education, participants on all sides of the perpetual debate over the proper role of the federal government in education are taking its survival for granted. The Cato Institute this year issued its customary biennial call for Congress to demolish the department. Based on interviews with some of…

Recounts the political, economic, social, and governmental situations surrounding Shays' Rebellion, the 1786 farmer's uprising in Massachusetts which, among other things, demonstrated the need for a stronger federal government. Concludes with contemporary analogies and the statement that, in a free society, the conflict between the legitimate…

Reports on the work of Amherst College historian Robert A. Gross, a leading expert on the topic of Shays' Rebellion. Includes a collection of insights Dr. Gross has developed concerning the rebellion's meaning and its impact on the United States Constitution. (JDH)

This article examines definitions of "highly qualified" teachers posed by the federal government, the American public, the professionalization agenda in teacher education, and the deregulation movement in teacher education. It focuses on one university's definition in practice: the Lynch School of Education at Boston College. I describe…

In this article, the author takes an inside look at efforts in Worcester, Massachusetts to offer families the opportunities promised by the No Child Left Behind Act (NCLB). Worcester is the third largest school system in the state of Massachusetts, serving roughly 25,000 students in 46 public schools (36 elementary, 4 middle, 5 high, and one…