This article is an edited transcription of a groundbreaking multi-sector presentation on "Critical Race Theory in Schools?" by a prominent panel of PK-12 school educators, education organization leaders, legal advocate, teacher educators, and academic researchers. The presentation took place virtually as a public seminar in response to…

Beginning from an assumption that effective and equitable family and community engagement is an unrealized promise for many charter schools, this multi-case study explores the work of two charter schools in New Orleans. Nineteen educators, parents, and board members between two schools were interviewed to answer the question: Why do individuals…

Recent decades have witnessed a proliferation of nationally organized school reform interest groups like StudentsFirst. While historically active at the state and federal levels, these organizations are increasingly involving themselves in local school board elections by recruiting candidates, making donations, and offering policy advice. However,…

This paper is based on a study of 20 elementary teachers, especially in their tenth year of teaching (2013-2014). At this time, the teachers were working under heavy pressure from their government and school districts to implement "inquiry learning." While broadly accepting this pedagogy, however, the teachers varied substantially in…

In 2010 the Turkish Board of Education (BoE) introduced a new rights-based citizenship education course to supersede the previous civics courses that promoted nationalist-militarist norms and values. This paper explores the internal and external influences on this curriculum reform drawing on a dataset derived from semi-structured interviews with…

This study analyzes teachers' reflective conversations occurring while viewing authentic classroom video captures within a professional learning network. Select video recordings of participating teachers of the PLN were presented in both a small group and large group context. Members of the research team facilitated the discussions and guiding…

In this paper, we report on teachers' use of curricula and other instructional resources to address Common Core State Standards (CCSS), as well as how use of instructional materials is related to instructional practice. We draw on data from the American Teacher Panel, a nationally representative sample of teachers who periodically provide…

The accountability focus in higher education historically has been directed at the institutional level. The purpose of this comparative case study, however, was to look at state-level accountability. The research focused on the processes used in Tennessee, Minnesota, and South Dakota. Interviews were conducted with higher education administrators…

In her book "Building Better Boards," Sister Lourdes Sheehan listed eight reasons for establishing and fostering Catholic education boards. This paper presents findings of a study that gathered information about boards in different types of Catholic elementary and secondary schools. A national survey of almost 1,400 Catholic schools received 806…

The speaker presents the steps to be followed in creating a systematized and up-to-date district manual of board policies and administrative rules. The process was developed by the National School Boards Association's Educational Policies Service. Included are the eight performance objectives identified as stepping stones to the manual, the five…

Public dissatisfaction with school boards, which started building in the 1980s with the publication of "A Nation At Risk," is now evidenced by calls for national standards and accountability measures. This paper presents an overview of the changing school board and how some boards have reformed themselves. The paper discusses ways in which…

To have an efficiently functioning school district, the roles of the school board and the administration must be clearly delineated, so that the school board formulates school policy while the superintendent implements it. To avoid dissention over their respective spheres of authority, it is best for a superintendent to establish two-way…

This paper examines some of the factors involved in the dissatisfaction theory of local school governance. This theory holds that change in school board policy comes about through voter dissatisfaction expressed at the polls, since there is no other way for citizens to express their desires. School board "culture" dictates that the board…

The school board of the Maine Township High School District in Cook County, Illinois, negotiated a collective bargaining agreement with the local teachers' association independently of the teachers' employment contract. The board's negotiating team consists of five persons: three board members experienced in negotiations, of whom one is the…

Findings from a historical case study that analyzed a school board decision making process during a crisis situation are presented in this paper. Criminal allegations made against the superintendent of a midwestern school system in 1984 created a crisis for the board of education. The superintendent of schools was charged with third degree sexual…