Billions of dollars have been injected to reform turnaround schools over the past decades with minimal tangible positive outcomes related to improving student achievement, if any. In this qualitative study, we investigated how using longitudinal external root cause analyses (RCAs) contributed to enhancing leadership instructional practices in thee…

In this qualitative collective case study, we investigated how participating in external longitudinal root cause analyses (RCAs) contributed to the enhancement of instructional leadership practices of the leadership teams in three turnaround elementary schools in Texas. We participated with an external team of expert professors in conducting the…

The purpose of this case study was to identify the role of reading response in two elementary classrooms: one first-grade and one fourth-grade. The study examined the structured and incidental opportunities students had for response, the formats of their responses and the utility of the responses to each teacher. Qualitative data collection…

Educational Policy Improvement Center (EPIC) researchers visited 38 public high schools around the United States in 2007 and 2008 with the goal of validating and operationalizing a definition of college readiness. Schools in the sample were selected because they were demonstrating success at enabling more students from underrepresented groups to…

Elementary social studies was "custom made" to fit progressive era issues and theories, and to "develop" children into good citizens. Social studies has not developed fast enough to keep pace with culture changes since World War II. Assumptions changed in the United States during World War II and elementary social studies…

A study investigated the nature of reading difficulties from the perspective of sixth graders in a low-income school district on the border of New Mexico, Texas, and Mexico. R. C. Bogdan and S. K. Biklin (1992) describe this style of research as an attempt to gain entry into the conceptual world of subjects to understand what meaning they…

Presents challenges to knowledge management revealed in a 1998 study of county judges and clerks in rural Texas courts. Proposes a model for integration of knowledge management work practices in local courts into large-scale state information systems. This model emphasizes the need for a holistic, well-integrated view of local practitioners' work…

A study of Texas high school students who are native speakers of Spanish with high levels of language ability was undertaken on the assumptions that (1) a large number existed, (2) bilingual schooling may have increased the prevalence of these individuals, and (3) from academic and professional points of view, these abilities might be used more…

While much has been written about state-level textbook selection and adoption, little careful, systematic data gathering has taken place. One result of this absence of formal study is that few people understand the scope and complexity of interacting persons and processes taking place whenever states make textbook decisions. This paper presents…

This paper explores problems inherent in requiring elementary and secondary school social studies teachers to teach economics and be tested with regard to their knowledge of economics without requiring any academic preparation in economic education. Information is based on test scores of 34 elementary and secondary school Texas social studies…

High stakes testing presents a significant problem for the design of effective professional development. The absurdity of asking teachers and administrators to raise test scores constantly encourages teachers to teach to the test without regard for the intellectual development of students. This case study from Texas describes the reflective…

This paper discusses the supply and importance of minority teachers and predicts the effects of admissions and certification exams on the percentage of minorities in the new teacher pool. The analysis is based on the results of tests administered in one state, Texas (a teacher education program admissions test and a certification examination). The…

This paper presents a case study illustrating the experiences of a first-year elementary-school principal. It follows her through her 18 months on the job, and analyzes the factors contributing to her ouster. The data for the study were gathered through two interviews with the principal and interviews with five other persons in her school…

In three southwestern states, grassroots movements of citizens, educators, and local businesses developed and implemented two-way interactive television projects in their schools and communities. A descriptive multiple case study design was used to examine six project sites in New Mexico, Texas, and Oklahoma. Research questions were categorized in…

Texas Schools, Inc. (TSI) developed a pilot program in bilingual education for Mexican-American vocational workers in the Department of Diesel Mechanics at Texas Tech University. This study assesses the transfer of technology in that environment using quantitative and qualitative measures. TSI, a technical and vocational school in Lubbock, Texas,…