The Career Ladder Teacher Incentive Program was designed by the Arizona legislature to attract, motivate, and retain talented teachers with both professional recognition and monetary incentives. The program was also intended to improve student achievement. Using carefully matched samples of career-ladder and non-career-ladder teachers in Mesa…

How can a writing program administrator (WPA) implement the "Statement of Principles and Standards for the Postsecondary Teaching of Writing," known as the Wyoming Resolution? Most administrators know that something like the resolution needs to be implemented, but they also know that the Statement lacks the wholehearted support of…

This study examined three questions: (1) Are district-wide reductions in teacher-pupil ratios related to gains in reading and mathematics achievement for students in grades 4, 8, and 11? (2) Are district-wide reductions in teacher-pupil ratios related to decreases in the percentage of students who leave school between grades 8 and 12 without…

Many argue that infusions of money have not helped to improve schools and that the American system of public education has failed. This paper describes the problems and puzzles posed by existing data and research on public school spending over time, with a focus on instructional spending. It compares 1990 current account spending to 1960 spending,…

The purpose of this report is to explain the procedures by which the Chicago public schools have attempted to equalize local school per-pupil costs. It is a case study designed to illustrate what one urban school system is doing to finance equity among schools. There are five major considerations related to the program to equalize per-pupil costs:…

Provided are findings of a survey of public school districts conducted by the Public School Early Childhood Study, a 30-month, three-phase investigation of the involvement of public schools in the delivery of early childhood programs. The district survey was designed to answer two basic questions: (1) What kinds of early childhood programs do…

The relationships among factors reported on report cards developed for local school districts in Tennessee were studied, offering information about how the selected factors relate to student outcomes. Each year Tennessee's State Board of Education produces a report card on each school district using data provided by the district and the State…

The present study is a pilot investigation of six alternative urban middle schools for students of color that follow the Nativity model. This model emphasizes small class and school size, extended instruction, and strong relationships with family. The six schools included in the study are found in five different urban locations in the United…