SuccessMaker mathematics is an instructional learning system rooted in behaviorist instructional theory. Previous research efforts have left much to be desired and have produced inconsistent results. Recent research for this program appears to be tapering off, despite advances in technology signaling integration of concepts from other theoretical…

Today's education policy places a high priority on improving teacher quality and teaching effectiveness in U.S. schools. Standards-based professional learning requires teachers to have deep subject knowledge and the most effective pedagogy for teaching the subject. States and school districts are charged with establishing teacher professional…

The 2001 renewal of the United States' Title I program instituted the Supplemental Educational Services (SES) program, through which students attending schools that fail to make adequate yearly progress (AYP) for 3 consecutive years are offered tutoring in core subjects. Although some SES evaluations have measured provider effects on student…

To determine the influence of district superintendents on student achievement and the characteristics of effective superintendents, Mid-continent Research for Education and Learning (McREL) conducted a meta-analysis of research on the influence of school district leaders on student performance. This study examined findings from 27 studies…

Background: School leaders argue that to make the improvements in both quality and equity that government mandates demand, they need more flexibility with regard to personnel management--specifically, teacher assignment. According to some, such flexibility is constrained by collective bargaining between teachers unions and school districts.…

In reviewing research from three successive research studies in one school district in Ontario, Canada, I trace the influence of leadership on the building of capacity in schools and the district. In so doing, it has become clear that the style of leadership has shifted to a more distributed approach, in which more teachers are becoming engaged in…

Educational software makers are often rebuffed by educational authorities, whose endorsements could lead to governmental stamps of approval, and thus explosive sales. But they usually get warmer receptions in the offices of the nation's school superintendents, who are, after all, their primary customers. The system was not supposed to work this…