All versions of top-down reform have an Achilles heel: Their focus on delivering the details of two or three measurable priorities is suitable only for systems pursuing traditional and comparatively narrow achievement goals. A digital age of complex skills, cultural diversity, and high-speed change calls for more challenging educational goals and…

For years, researchers have been working in school districts conducting studies that produce findings. Because educational research and the practice of education are centered in very different institutions with different expectations, incentives, and cultures, the connections have been tenuous at best. Meanwhile, there is increasing demand for…

A vision statement and call to action from Deans for Impact--a group of deans committing themselves to a set of principles intended to elevate the performance of educator preparation programs and the status of teachers. Their objectives include: Develop a consensus around a professional knowledge base for teachers; create a tighter connection…

Technology alone won't be enough to improve teaching and learning to where it needs to be for 21st century skills. Where it is being done successfully, teachers collectively share a vision of promoting deeper learning in all their students, and have collaboratively redesigned the role of the teacher to that of facilitator who uses technology as a…

The poor performance of students in America's urban high schools, both in absolute terms and in comparison with their more economically secure counterparts in suburban schools, is a critical issue for the country, and the opportunity for all students to learn mathematics has been heralded as the new "civil right." In a recent study of…

Reports the positive initial assessment of California's attempt to encourage individual elementary schools to assess the needs of their children, to plan appropriate instructional settings, and to evaluate the effectiveness of their efforts. (Author/IRT)

In this article, the authors describe a collaborative effort involving 30 school districts in California's Silicon Valley that are seeking to overcome the ill effects of mandatory high-stakes standardized testing in mathematics. These districts administer, score, and analyze a common set of performance assessments in mathematics in a way that…