Kappan's editor talks with political scientist Sara Dahill-Brown about the new realities of educational decision making under the Every Student Succeeds Act, which follows nearly two decades of strong federal influence over K-12 policies at the state and district levels. Rather than promoting one-size-fits-all approaches to school improvement,…

Research reliably demonstrates that teachers are the most important in-school factor affecting students' learning and lives. Yet on myriad measures of teacher quality, students from low-income families and students of color are less likely to have equitable access to excellent teachers. States set forth their plans to address any existing…

Title IX coordinators play an essential role in ensuring that schools are free of gender-based harassment and discrimination; however, a recent survey of coordinators in California and Colorado shows that many of them are poorly equipped to do this work. In their study, Elizabeth J. Meyer and Andrea Somoza-Norton found that contact information for…

In 2016, the federal government proposed and adopted the Every Student Succeeds Act, which retracted the federal government's prior control over states' teacher evaluation systems, permitting more local control. Kevin Close, Audrey Amrein-Beardsley, and Clarin Collins collected information from states to determine the degree to which states were…

The national track record for state-to-district assistance is not stellar. It is tactics in the absence of strategy and activities in the absence of accomplishment. The problem is systemic: State departments need to transform their organizational structures to facilitate rather than hinder effective assistance strategies. The starting place is…

Students with disabilities, especially those with non-apparent conditions, are entering universities in growing numbers. Yet more and more students are going off to college unprepared to manage their disabilities, in part because their high schools are overburdened, understaffed, and uninformed to identify and support them. A recent survey of…

Uses a table to present the subjects that are required by law in each state and the percentage of states requiring each subject. Concludes that local school districts, state departments of education, and a myriad of pressure groups appear to provide a relatively uniform national school system. (Author/IRT)

Supervisory collective bargaining in education has grown 67 percent in four years, from 1,100 to 1,838 units. In all, 21 states have laws that allow administrator unionization and bargaining. Seven other states and the District of Columbia have local, voluntary recognition of bargaining units for school supervisors. (Author/IRT)

Examines the fate of 25 innovative instructional programs implemented in 1971-73 as a result of state legislation. Arrives at seven conclusions about why some programs (seven) were still in existence eight years later and why others were not. (IRT)

Survey responses from 142 (66 percent) of the 214 Midwest schools that are members of the Association of Christian Schools International reveal that 73 percent of the schools require their teachers to hold valid state certificates. Tables illustrate state school and teacher certification requirements in 10 Midwestern states. (MLF)

Discusses the trend toward centralized decision making in schools brought about by state legislatures specifying curricular details. In the process, authority is shifted upwards to state level, and professionals become demoralized about changing or improving their schools' curricula. Citing Texas legislation and 11 other references, this paper…

Rose and Gallup report on the results of the 38th Annual PDK/Gallup Poll of the Public's Attitude Toward the Public Schools. This year's survey examined No Child Left Behind and the public's perception of the law, the appropriate role of standardized testing, the achievement gap between white students and black and Hispanic students, the…

Studies the performance of four of Minnesota's school-choice programs. Finds positive impact on student participants' satisfaction, aspirations, and academic achievement; the importance of continuous monitoring and review of choice options; and general lack of support for negative predictions such as open enrollment "could destroy our…

Analysis of changes in the graduation requirements, credit requirements, and curriculum in high school English in California since the adoption of minimum competency testing by state law during the 1976-77 legislative session suggests that statewide legislative mandates can have significant impact on school district programs and priorities. (PGD)