The report on which this brief is based describes performance assessments and their value for guiding and evaluating high school students' learning, as well as informing colleges and universities about what students know and can do. It explores state and local policies that support the use of such assessments, along with emerging higher education…

This brief is a compilation of lessons learned from the American Youth Policy Forum's (AYPF's) last two years of work focused specifically on systems-involved youth. Following a discussion about the education and workforce barriers these youth face, their outcomes, and the policies that affect them, this brief is organized into three key lessons…

The Massachusetts Business Alliance for Education (MBAE) continues its advocacy for Common Core and the Partnership for Assessment of Readiness for College and Careers (PARCC), a federally funded testing consortium, with the release of a study concluding that Massachusetts Comprehensive Assessment System (MCAS) performance is not an indicator of…

In May 2017, the Investing in Innovation Fund (i3) College Access and Success community embarked on a project to compile shared challenges and lessons learned as a resource for fellow i3 College Access and Success grantees, the larger community of i3 grantees, and the broader field of college access. Through this project, the authors discovered…

This Framework is built upon the foundation of the 2010 "Massachusetts Curriculum Framework for English Language Arts and Literacy," as well as earlier versions of the "Massachusetts English Language Arts Frameworks" published since 1997. The current Framework incorporates improvements suggested by Massachusetts educators after…

Though scholars agree that professional development (PD) is a key mechanism for implementing education policies that call for teacher change, and that PD generally needs to be content-focused, active, collaborative, coherent, and sustained, the application of this framework has yielded mixed results. In this qualitative study, we employed…

This brief examines strategies for leveraging State longitudinal data systems (SLDS) to promote college and career readiness (CCR) goals. The examples provided are based on current state efforts to use their state longitudinal data systems to achieve their CCR vision and goals. The following information outlines the basic purpose and elements of…

The civic education policy framework and gap analysis tool are intended to guide state leaders as they address the complexities of preparing students for college, career and civic life. They allow for adaptation to state- and site-specific circumstances and may be adopted in whole or in piecemeal fashion, according to states' individual…

Accuplacer is, like the SAT, a suite of tests. It assesses concrete English and math skills--things like decimals, percents, equations, reading comprehension and basic writing skills. Accuplacer tests are used by community colleges, state colleges and public universities in all New England states to place incoming students in the right courses.…

Rigorous courses and advanced learning in K-12 are vital to preparing students for college-level course work and success in the workforce. Yet not all students get the same opportunities to participate in high-level courses. As they weigh their options for a fifth indicator under the Every Student Succeeds Act (ESSA), many states are considering…

On the Partnership for Assessment of Readiness for College and Careers (PARCC) assessments, the attainment of performance level 4 is intended to indicate college readiness or being "on track" to college and career readiness. Students who achieve Level 4 should have a 0.75 probability of attaining at least a C in entry-level,…

The Condition of Education in the Commonwealth project is one way the Rennie Center fulfills its mission of producing non-partisan and independent research that promotes improvement in public education for all Massachusetts children. Its principles include: (1) Education encompasses more than academics; and (2) Schools should not--and cannot--work…

This paper argues for a radical restructuring of education for grades 11-14--by erasing the arbitrary dividing line between high school and college--to open opportunities for the learners the current systems leave behind. The authors make the case for an entirely new type of institution--neither high school nor college--designed specifically to…

"Bottom Line" provides intensive advising for low-income high school students, most of whom are the first in their family to go to college. The advising is designed to help students apply for college and financial aid and select a high-quality, affordable institution. For students who attend one of "Bottom Line's" target…

"Bottom Line" provides intensive advising for low-income high school students, most of whom are the first in their family to go to college. The advising is designed to help students apply for college and financial aid and select a high-quality, affordable institution. For students who attend one of "Bottom Line's" target…