The purpose of this study is to investigate policy coalitions of the Every Student Succeeds Act (ESSA) at U.S. congressional hearings. This study is grounded in the advocacy coalition framework, which argues that advocacy coalitions are forged by policy actors who have similar policy preferences. To identify the coalitions, according to the policy…

States are pushing ahead with efforts to make sweeping changes to education policy through the Race to the Top program, despite some of them having seen individual schools and districts back out of the process because of concerns over the time and money required to make those plans a reality. The Obama administration has envisioned Race to the…

Researchers and practitioners need to exchange information in order for education research to become more useful. Practitioners need to develop more understanding of research and how to interpret its findings in light of local conditions. The What Works Clearinghouse, a project of the Institute for Education Sciences of the U.S. Department of…

The author of this article states that, for more than 20 years, public educators have developed a professional inferiority complex and a strong sense of hopelessness. After all, he claims, the dominant message over those years, including from some within the profession, has been that educators have caused the declining quality in public schools.…

A summer reading list for teachers and policymakers including such books as "The View from Saturday" by E.L. Konigsburg and "It Could Always Be Worse: A Yiddish Folktale" by Margot Zemach. (PKP)

The National Staff Development Council (NSDC) has won recognition for the field of professional development. Researchers and education change agents acknowledge the importance of professional learning among strategies essential for reforming schools and raising teacher and student performance. The federal government, states, and school districts…

The rapidly changing field of bioinformatics is fuelling the need for suitably trained personnel with skills in relevant biological "sub-disciplines" such as proteomics, transcriptomics and metabolomics, etc. But because of the complexity--and sheer weight of data--associated with these new areas of biology, many school teachers feel…

This article examines the politics behind the initial centralization of primary education in Chihuahua, Mexico during the 1920s and 1930s. The article argues that the centralization of primary education was one of many tools used by the federal government to consolidate its power in the wake of the Mexican Revolution (1910-1917) and create a…

Assesses the National Educational Association's (NEA) influence and power to effect political change. Concludes that the NEA is neither very powerful nor very weak and that its potential is considerable if Reagan's conservative program falters. (WD)

A teacher from the Free School (Albany, New York) reflects on his experiences at the Stand for Children rally in Washington, D.C. The rally brought together hundreds of thousands of children to focus attention on the nation's responsibility for meeting children's needs; however, it could have had more impact if children themselves had organized…

Describes an econometric modeling of the labor market for teachers in an "administered" market setting in which the government partially controls the main determinants of demand and is very influential in setting teachers' wages. Reviews relevant econometric literature and shows market forces' crucial role. Discusses economic policy…

Notes prevailing attitudes about early childhood education in Brazil. Examines issues and recent trends in preparing Brazilian teachers of young children: (1) legislation shifting educational responsibility from federal and state governments to local communities; (2) low teacher salaries; (3) poor teaching conditions; (4) the need for leadership;…