Community colleges continue to increase their efforts to better serve students who enter their institutions with limited basic math, reading, or writing skills. In 2015, MDRC partnered with the Texas Coordinating Higher Education Board on a study to examine how colleges implemented state guidelines for students scoring below ninth-grade…

Communities in Schools is one of the nation's oldest and largest providers of integrated student supports, also known as "wraparound services." Started in New York City in the 1970s, the agency now works with more than 2,300 schools in 25 states and the District of Columbia. The model is straightforward: Communities in Schools recruits,…

Recently the state of Missouri, through the Missouri Department of Higher Education, has started to work toward the goal of having 60 percent of state residents hold some type of postsecondary credential. This goal aligns with similar initiatives in other states as well as President Obama's objective for the nation. In order to reach this…

This study examines whether "SimCalc Mathworlds"[TM] improves students' knowledge of the algebra concepts of rate and proportionality. Strengths: The study is a well implemented randomized controlled trial (RCT) with acceptable sample attrition rates and no indications of other problems. Cautions: The study authors describe a rigorous…

This research examined the impact of preservice teachers delivering individualized instruction of basic computer skills to at-risk, ethnic minority alternative high school students in an urban school district in South Texas. The alternative high school students' achievement of computer skills, motivation to use computers, and self-efficacy as…

In this important resource, Dr. Fleming (a noted expert in the field of minority retention) draws on educational evaluations she has developed in the course of her distinguished career. This book analyzes the common factors and the role institutional characteristics play in minority student retention to show what really works in increasing…

Recent scores on state tests show that middle grades students have made some progress in meeting their state's academic standards over the last half-decade. Yet a closer look at state standards indicates that too many Southern Regional Education Board (SREB) states have set them too low. Quite a few states have taken steps to improve their…

This prospective, longitudinal study showed that an intense educational program significantly improved academic performance in underserved students who were selected solely for their desire to participate in the program and their parents' willingness to support them. Mean performance in six representative components of the Woodcock-Johnson Tests…

Phase II of a three-phase study developed a statewide overview of compensatory education in Texas and examined instructional practices and other variables related to a broad definition of student success. Questionnaires (developed in Phase I) received from 3,235 campuses (a 55% return) collected descriptive information on compensatory programs and…

This is the second progress report under "Academics 2000: First Things First," a Texas initiative under the Goals 2000 program. The Academics 2000 Education Improvement Plan, adopted in 1995, is organized under the nine objectives for Texas public education listed in the Texas Education Code. The progress report discusses implementation…

The Texas/Montana Distance Learning Project was a summer (1992) pilot program administered by the Texas Education Agency in collaboration with the Montana Office of Public Instruction. Targeted participants were children of migratory workers who attended Texas schools, but were living temporarily in Montana during the early summer. The goals of…

The 1982-83 report on the Individualized Bilingual Instruction (IBI) Interstate Training Project evaluates Project activities in Washington and Texas, funded through Section 143 of the Migrant Education Interstate and Intrastate Coordination Program. The purpose of the Project is stated: to disseminate the Pasco (Washington) School District's…