This study sought to determine if the implementation of standards-based learning in high schools affects students' transition to learning in university courses. Surveys and interviews with 13 students who had graduated from high schools implementing standards-based learning and who had completed their first academic semester at a midsize, private,…

The purpose of this study was to determine how K-12 public school teachers perceive the use of student performance data in teacher evaluations. The proprietary, utility, feasibility, and accuracy standards created by the Joint Committee on Standards for Education Evaluation served as a framework for the study. An online survey was deployed to a…

This study examines the validity of a statewide teacher evaluation system in the Commonwealth of Virginia. Three hundred and thirty-eight teachers from 16 at-risk schools located in eight school districts participated in an evaluation system pilot during the 2011-2012 academic year. Teachers received ratings on six teacher effectiveness process…

The purpose for this study was to ascertain the perceptions principals of public secondary schools in Minnesota have in relation to the evaluation of their job performance. Responding principals reported that past evaluations have been fair and consistent but have questioned their value with regard to professional growth. When asked if student…

This article examines a school district's Advancement via Individual Determination (AVID) program using perceived self-efficacy in academic achievement and self-regulated learning, GPA and attendance as indicators of program effectiveness. Results suggest that AVID participation was positively and significantly correlated with attendance in the…

The Collaborative Project (CP) began as a pilot project in five North Carolina school districts in 2007 featuring a performance incentive initiative for teachers and administrators. The objective of this study was to document principals' perceptions of the performance incentive initiative to determine challenges encountered during implementation.…

Over the past 10 years, since No Child Left Behind started pressuring school districts to focus on student test scores, many states have begun to consider student performance when evaluating teachers. This article will provide preventive measures of fairness and substantive due process to avoid potential teacher objections and gain teacher…

This study reports on four urban middle- and high school principals' emotionally shaped sense making of Race to the Top policies and their ability to balance the competing demands of teachers' emotional needs with the charge to implement mandated, accountability-driven, instructional, and evaluation changes in their schools. Despite the pressure…

Prior research on Troops to Teachers (TTT) affirms that TTTs are effective instructors likely to work in high-poverty, high-minority schools, teach high-demand subjects, use research-based instructional and classroom management practices linked with student achievement, and plan to stay in the profession. A nonexperimental, mixed method design…

The Early Warning System is a tool developed by the National High School Center to collect data on indicators including attendance, grade point average, course failures, and credits earned. These indicators have been found to be highly predictive of a student's likelihood of dropping out of high school in large, urban areas. The Early Warning…

The purpose of this qualitative research study was to discover the influence of a student achievement program implemented at one large urban high school that employed extrinsic motivation to promote student achievement on state assessments. Using organismic integration theory as the theoretical framework, 19 randomly selected students participated…

The use of value-added modeling (VAM) in school accountability is expanding. However, trying to decide how to embrace VAM can be rather nettlesome. Some experts claim it is "too unreliable," causes "more harm than good," and has "a big margin for error," while other experts assert VAM is "imperfect, but…

Research literature highlights the principal as central to teacher evaluation. However, principal reports do not provide adequate information to document teacher quality. Good teacher evaluation adds multiple data sources such as client surveys, peer reviews of materials, and pupil achievement data, which vary by teacher and setting. Principals…

Grading should be used to support learning and encourage student success. Under proposed guidelines, teachers should limit the valued attributes to achievement, sample student performance, grade in pencil, relate grading procedures to intended outcomes, crunch numbers carefully, use absolute grading distribution standards, use quality assessment…

At the core of evaluating school outcome is a clear goal statement and the ability to gather important and appropriate information. This process must not be left to chance. Able school leaders develop congruent testing and feedback activity for each phase of the school year cycle. Information is then used to build a framework for school…