Providing clear guidance to teachers is not a straightforward task for school systems: Teachers get information about what to teach and how to teach from many sources, some of which are beyond the control of school systems. When teachers get different, even conflicting, messages about what and how to teach from various sources, they likely…

This brief from the Region 2 Comprehensive Center, in consultation with the New York State Education Department, presents seven state case studies that illustrate the implementation of performance-based assessments. It contributes to the growing research on performance-based assessment, highlighting specific state-level policies that include…

This article explores the nature of a federal intervention into teacher education through state policy making and problem framing. The authors examined the 16 comprehensive educator equity plans that were approved by the U.S. Department of Education in 2015 and surface four inadequacies the reports communicate about teacher education: (a) an…

The purpose of this report is to provide insight into how state departments are implementing legislative requirements for educator evaluation, particularly the specific circumstances states encounter around arts education. Spotlights on Delaware, a first-round recipient of Race to the Top funding, and Colorado and Arizona, third-round recipients,…

The Every Student Succeeds Act (ESSA) challenges state education agencies (SEAs) to improve student outcomes by addressing the student-, teacher-, and school-level factors that drive achievement gains. This Guide for Identifying Evidence-Based Interventions for School Improvement is intended to help State Education Agencies (SEAs) carefully…

As they grow up, young people face important decisions about relationships, sexuality, and sexual behavior. The decisions they make can impact their health and well-being for the rest of their lives. Young people have the right to lead healthy lives, and society has the responsibility to prepare youth by providing them with comprehensive sexual…

It is not a simple matter to attempt to summarize the achievements or point out the apparent tendencies in an educational program providing for 21,000,000 children, engaging the services of 600,000 teachers, and involving an annual expenditure, with public secondary education, of more than $2,000,000. Neither is it a simple matter to present a…

The purpose of this study is to analyze current practices in the construction of State courses of study. Available State courses of study, reports of survey commissions and educational officials, and other State educational publications have been examined to discover the problems considered significant by State educational officials and the…