The study compared the Outcome Measures (OM) to the traditional Graduation Rates (GR) to ascertain if OM portrayed the performance of higher education institutions differently than GR and to determine which of the two metrics aligned better with accountability policy objectives. GR refers to the percentages of first-time, full-time students who…

The purpose of this study was to examine variation in assistant principal (AP) social justice beliefs and high-stakes accountability perceptions and explore how APs balance accountability policies while addressing social justice issues in their schools. 79 assistant principals participated in a phase 1 survey with 10 APs selected to participate in…

School district takeovers--when a state education agency (SEA) assumes control of a low-performing district--are the most aggressive accountability intervention available to SEAs. Much of the scholarship on takeovers has been skeptical on both normative and pragmatic grounds, but these analyses don't wrestle with what else to do when students'…

This policy analysis examined the intersection of a statistical model and locus of control to recommend an accountability model that best upholds the criteria of equity, efficacy, and impact on student learning for Missouri schools. Using Eugene Bardach's eightfold path and informed by the quality education in schools framework, this analysis…

Women make up the majority of degree earners and a majority of those teaching at higher education institutions. Yet, women are not advancing to the highest ranks. How female faculty receive credit for the work that they do make account for the discrepancy in women advancing to the highest ranks. This single institution convergent mixed methods…

Through a landscape analysis and content analysis, this study investigated informal Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics (STEM) education funding and evaluation policies. The primary objectives of this study were to identify informal STEM education funding organizations, and to examine funding priorities and evaluation policies…

Performance funding has become a popular policy structure for public higher education institutions across the United States. The implications on budget and student success are considerable. This study examines performance funding through the perspective of chief executive officers (CEOs) at public community colleges in a southern state. Utilizing…

Performance funding policies are politically popular, however research on performance funding has shown that these policies are ineffective and can have unintended negative consequences, particularly for lower-resourced institutions and underserved students. The purpose of this study was to determine if the Montana University System performance…

This qualitative study explores teacher enactment of education policy, specifically Positive Behavioral Interventions and Supports (PBIS), in a large suburban Midwestern high school. Participating educators constructed policy meaning while they sought to understand it, over a multi-year rollout process. Data were gathered using five teacher and…

This qualitative case study focuses on the impact of neoliberal education reform on an urban charter school serving students of Color. This study has two main objectives: to examine how neoliberal reform influences the goal-oriented actions of data meetings (DMs) in an urban elementary school and engages in a formative intervention methodology to…

In education research test scores are a common object of analysis. Across studies test scores can be an important outcome, a highly predictive covariate, or a means of assigning treatment. However, test scores are a measure of an underlying proficiency we can't observe directly and so contain error. This measurement error has implications for how…

The practice of grading students began in the late 1800s and became institutionalized within the educational system. Grading in K-12 education has remained relatively unchanged in its purpose, intent, and use for nearly a century while simultaneously becoming an increasingly critical factor that impacts student opportunities, external perceptions…

Performance-based funding (PBF) policies that closely link higher education funding to performance metrics are common in the United States. Similar to other performance management systems, evidence suggests PBF policies have unintended impacts, such as cream-skimming. More specifically, evidence shows the fiscal incentives of PBF encourage…

This study was an autoethnography of the turnaround efforts of a Chicano leader in four low-performing schools in Texas. The U.S. Government and the State of Texas both impose sanctions on schools that fail to meet minimum standards on the State of Texas Assessments of Academic Readiness (STAAR) exams. The focus in the research was on how life…

Numerous policies and reforms have been proposed and implemented to increase accountability and improve performance in higher education in the United States (U.S.), which has included an emphasis on the state's role in authorizing colleges and universities to operate and award degrees. The recent surge in peer-reviewed and grey literature has…