This study aims to examine the performance of students who completed the North Carolina Math 1 EOC assessment. The provided test scores are for students in middle school and high school who identify as Asian, Black, Latinx, and White, and are specifically for the North Carolina Math 1 EOC assessment. This applied research study focuses on Math 1…

Measuring educational opportunity is a topic of interest to policymakers and education stakeholders alike. Standardized assessments of student achievement are commonly used to measure educational opportunity in North Carolina and across the nation. This research brief examines two measures of educational opportunity in North Carolina public school…

Researchers examined the relationship between superintendent longevity and district variables on standardized test scores for students in North Carolina. The authors used hierarchical multiple regression to understand if superintendent-specific variables explained variance in student performance over and above district-based variables documented…

Purpose: This work describes community-based participatory research (CBPR) to support language and literacy development with Pre-K and kindergarten African American boys. Method: The aim and goals of the project were designed using the CBPR model. Interventionists were trained with researcher-designed videos. Interventionist fidelity to training…

This review critiques the highly-praised and influential 2001 study, "Getting Tough? The Impact of High School Graduation Exams," which concluded that "minimum competency," or high school "graduation exams," had no effect on student achievement. The review compares the test classifications of "Getting…

The present study examined potential synergistic relationships between reading engagement and reading comprehension among 3,689 third and fourth graders across 59 schools in North Carolina. Using hierarchical regression analyses, we replicated previous findings that reading engagement explains unique variance in reading comprehension. Our results…

Although the vast majority of American parents believe their child is performing at or above grade level, in reality two-thirds of U.S. teenagers are ill-prepared for college when they leave high school. Why this enormous disconnect? Could it be that test scores signaling that kids are "less than proficient" don't register with parents…

This update to "SAT Wars" provides new evidence in the case against standardized college entry tests, including the experiences of test-optional colleges. "The Scandal of Standardized Tests" sheds significant light on key problems such as: (1) Are the tests stronger proxies for race and family income today than they were 20…

Purpose: The purpose of this two-year study was to assess the impact of the CORE program, a model that integrates technology and active learning modules in high schools by providing multi-disciplinary teams of teachers and administrators with professional development and resources to support the development of students' non-cognitive skills and…

English learners' (ELs) day-to-day experiences in school change when reclassified as fully English proficient. Prior research, however, is mixed on how reclassification influences outcomes. Many studies also do not or cannot explore key long-term outcomes or identify impacts over time. In this study I leverage longitudinal student data in a…

We examined which of two instruments (Text Reading and Comprehension inventory [TRC] or a traditional informal reading inventory [IRI]) provides the more valid assessment of a primary-grade student's reading instructional level. The TRC is currently the required, benchmark reading assessment for students in grades K-3 in the state of North…

School districts across North Carolina are implementing co-teaching practices as a part of inclusive education. This study analyzed the effectiveness of co-teaching as an instructional delivery method and the components needed for success. This study also examined the defined roles needed between the general education teacher and the special…

In August 2010, the Smithsonian Science Education Center (SSEC) received a grant of more than $25 million from the U.S. Department of Education's Investing in Innovation (i3) program for a five-year study to validate its Leadership Assistance for Science Education Reform (LASER) model in three very diverse regions of the United States: rural North…

Improving academic achievement for students of color has long been the subject of debate among advocates of education reform (Anyon, 2013; Breitborde & Swiniarski, 2006; Payne, 2008). Some scholars have advocated for the Montessori method as an alternative educational approach to address some chronic problems in public education (Lillard,…

This dissertation consists of three separate essays on the economics of education. In the first chapter, co-authored with Esteban Aucejo, studies the relative effectiveness of reducing absences to extending the school calendar on test score performance. Using administrative data for North Carolina public schools, we exploit a state policy that…