This study was an exploration of how the Katy Independent School District (ISD) Purchasing Department can effectively communicate its processes to district staff to improve efficiency. In recent years, the number of requisition rejections and order cancellations indicated a breakdown in communication-related to communication of procurement…

This report describes findings from the Austin Independent School District's (AISD) Department of Leadership Development 2018-2019 evaluation. The purposes of the evaluation in 2018-2019 were to update the Department of Leadership Development theory of change (ToC) and logic model and to evaluate the implementation of the newly developed assistant…

This report summarizes the results from the 2018-2019 Austin Independent School District (AISD) Professional Learning (PL) Department evaluation.

Denver Public Schools' Professional Learning Center was still relatively new when it decided to tackle a problem of practice that has vexed systems and departments across the country: How to measure the impact of professional learning. To do so, the Professional Learning Center created a new comprehensive measurement approach--one that would…

Supported by the omnipresent State in the past, French music education leans increasingly towards a more liberal and competitive model. In the current context of a decentralized economy and European integration, music conservatories are called upon to contribute to regional and municipal development and enhance European student mobility. How do…

Recent trends indicate a move away from self-contained classrooms and toward content-focused departmentalization in elementary schools. This study takes a snapshot of the existing organizational structures used in elementary schools in one district and explores administrators' beliefs and practices regarding this phenomenon. Our findings suggest…

School district central offices regularly engage with external partners in improvement efforts, but these partnerships are not always productive. Indeed, little is known about under what conditions partnerships are likely to lead to organizational learning outcomes. We conducted a longitudinal comparative case study of two departments in one urban…

The University at Buffalo School of Social Work established the VISA Center (the acronym stands for "vision, integrity, service, and accountability") in collaboration with the school district of Buffalo, New York. With funding from the New York State Education Department, a university on-campus center was set up to serve 30 students at a…

This case study report will identify modifications made to a traditional leadership program's structures and the effects of the work on faculty perceptions of non-traditional doctoral programs. Union Free School District is the only school district to ever be taken over by the state. A nearby university's research-based educational leadership…

Teacher evaluation is currently a major policy issue at all levels of the K-12 system driven in large part by current US Department of Education requirements. The main objective of this study is to explore the patterns of relationship between observational scores and value-added measures of teacher performance in math classrooms and the variation…

"Harvard Education Letter" is published bimonthly by the Harvard Graduate School of Education. This issue of "Harvard Education Letter" contains the following articles: (1) "Platooning" Instruction: Districts Weigh Pros and Cons of Departmentalizing Elementary Schools (Lucy Hood); (2) Behind the Classroom Door: A Rare Glimpse Indicates the…

This case study provides an illustration of the heuristic practices of a high-performing research department, which in turn, will help build much needed models applicable in the context of large urban districts. This case study examines the accountability, planning, evaluation, testing, and research functions of a research department in a large…

This report integrates 2009-2010 AISD campus, central office, student climate survey and parent survey responses that address cultural competency in the district. Longitudinal data are provided when available.

Purpose of this article is to identify the organization, job functions and activities of a practicing department of research and evaluation in a public school system. (Author)

This statewide study identified an association between the relative integration of instructional technology departments and information services departments with indicators of high technology performance in school districts. Discusses cultural integration between the two subcultures of information services and instructional technology, types of…