This analysis and synthesis explores constructs of professional autonomy and accountability using constructivist theory and practice to examine the organizational dynamics of centralization/decentralization, particularly as applied to educational organizations. Major schools of constructivist thought are explored to shed light on…

In this article, I first take on the issue of standards and the degree to which they do or do not contribute to the improvement of language and literacy outcomes for children in multilingual societies. Then I consider the relation of standards to language and, finally, raise the vexed issue of content knowledge and its relation to standards, on…

Studies of the use of teacher judgement for summative assessment in the USA are considered in two general categories. (1) Studies of teacher classroom summative assessment, that is, teacher grading practices, have historically and currently emphasised the lack of validity and reliability of these judgements. (2) Studies of how teacher judgement…

We examine the distinction between teaching and teachers as it relates to instructional improvement. Drawing from work outside of education on improvement systems and from analyzing the Japanese system of lesson study, we contend that a focus on teaching can shape a coordinated system for improvement whereas a focus on teachers, common in the…

This study investigates the relationship between school-level accountability practices and science achievement of 15-year-olds, across four counties: Australia, Korea, Portugal, and the United States. We used PISA 2006 data, since 2006 is the only administration that has focused on science. School-level accountability practices are here defined as…

The purpose of this article is to examine how and to what extent schools' responses to accountability policies in the United States influence the ability of new teachers of color to draw on their own and their students' cultural resources to engage in culturally responsive teaching. A 5-year study of 17 new teachers of color reveals that these…

With the increasing diversity in schools and the call for addressing specific regional needs, decentralized regulation of the education system is often proposed as an alternative approach to achieve school improvement. Researchers have often associated experimentation and risk-taking as key aspects of effective educational leadership while…

This volume contains selected papers submitted to the 18th Annual International Conference of the Bulgarian Comparative Education Society (BCES) held virtually in June 2020. The 18th BCES Conference theme is "Educational Reforms Worldwide." This year's book includes 38 papers written by 73 authors from 19 countries. The volume starts…

In 2016, 42 states carried out a total of 139 policy actions relevant to CTE, including laws, executive orders, board of education actions, budget provisions and ballot initiatives. This represents an increase over 2015 activity. Several states passed packages of legislation impacting multiple elements of CTE programming, such as…

Three studies contrasting Indian and American negotiators tested hypotheses derived from theory proposing why there are cultural differences in trust and how cultural differences in trust influence negotiation strategy. Study 1 (a survey) documented that Indian negotiators trust their counterparts less than American negotiators. Study 2 (a…

The author reports on a long-stalled, bipartisan rewrite of the No Child Left Behind Act approved by the Senate education committee which faces steep political hurdles, including opposition from civil rights and business leaders who see it as a step back on student and school accountability and from Republican lawmakers who say it does not pull…

In 2011, the Council for Advancement and Support of Education (CASE) founded the Center for Community College Advancement to provide training and resources to help community colleges build and sustain effective fundraising, alumni relations, and communications and marketing programs. A goal for the center is to collect data on best practices at…

Within this article, we thematically present common challenges associated with the role of the rural principal. In this literature review, we delimit our search to work published from 2003-2013. A limitation of this study is that it represents data predominantly from American, Canadian, and Australian rural settings, restricting a global…

Even though 34 states and the District of Columbia have No Child Left Behind Act waivers in hand, many of them are still negotiating with the U.S. Department of Education over their teacher evaluation systems--a crucial component if they want to keep their newfound flexibility. More than six months after waiver recipients turned in their…

In 2005, the Task Force on Charter School Quality and Accountability issued "Renewing the Compact," a position statement for the charter school sector that presented recommendations for achieving the goals of growth and quality. This report evaluates the sector's progress on those goals and recommends bold actions to capitalize on its…