In the past decade, research-practice partnerships (RPPs) have grown in number and reputation. Stephanie Brown and Annie Allen describe the varied ways partnerships facilitate more sustained and productive relationships between researchers and practitioners. They share key findings from a comparative case study of three different types of RPPs…

A public, Catholic, and charter school in Boston all work together to share their strengths and learn from each other in an effort to deliver the best education for all of their students. The arrangement is called the School Performance Partnership, and it is a grantee of the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation.

School districts on the leading edge of the Birth through Third Grade movement have demonstrated unprecedented success raising the achievement of low-income students by developing coherent strategies focused on the early years of learning and development. These communities are not merely improving preschool. Rather, they are building aligned,…

The 18 junior high school teachers at the Ironwood School in Phoenix (Arizona) meet once a week as a team to engage in mutual planning, problem solving, and decision making. The team concept's success is owed to the active support of the school's administration. (PGD)

Four small Connecticut school systems demographically different but similar in size have established a consortium to minimize the effects of declining enrollment by sharing their students, teachers, and resources. Despite such obstacles as scheduling and transportation costs, the consortium has generally proven successful. (JBM)