In their article, "The Common Core is a Change for the Better," Gardner and Powell (2013) make an argument in support of implementing the Common Core to improve teaching and student learning. They opine the Common Core will enable students to become more college and career ready and state the Common Core standards will provide…

As states move to implement the Common Core State Standards, key challenges remain. One is how to make sure a high school diploma acknowledges what students have achieved. Should states adopt a two tiered diploma, in which students who pass internationally aligned Common Core exams at a career- and college-ready level receive an…

This article presents an interview with Gene Chasin, CEO of Accelerated Schools Plus. Chasin discusses changing schools and improving student achievement. Accelerated Schools is a national endeavor that is designed to transform whole school communities. It views the community as being much broader. It includes students, teachers, parents, other…

Improvement in black students' test scores is occurring nationwide, and an increasing number of black students are enrolling in demanding academic courses. Test scores can be a force for eliminating educational inequities and strengthening educational standards. (MLF)

This paper presents a "recorded history" of national leadership standards, a critique of that history, along with a conceptual framework for how the national standards movement is viewed. The analysis offers a deconstruction of the recorded history, emphasizing the specific events surrounding the spread of educational leadership standards. A…

Teachers are not adequately engaged in collaborative inquiry where it matters most, in the daily learning-teaching interactions between students and teachers, leading to failure in developing true learning communities by majority of school improvement efforts. Collaborative analysis of student learning (CASL), a particular form of learning…

The author finds the National Commission on Excellence in Education's report, "A Nation at Risk (1983)," deficient in three major aspects. It underestimates schools' contributions; it identifies the wrong problem; and it prescribes simple solutions for complex problems. (JMK)

Disagrees with the article by Kevin Ryan appearing in this issue recommending moral values education in the schools. Questions choice of moral system, whether schools are the place to begin moral reeducation, and how moral education alone can revive a depleted educational infrastructure and undervalued teaching force. (SM)

Recommendations are offered for change in every area of the educational matrix, to create school environments that will raise achievement levels of students with deafness, including minority students. Recommendations focus on changing the organization, new approaches to curriculum and instruction, and evaluating the assessment strategies. (JDD)

Identifies and discusses four major concerns with the 1996 National Education Summit's call for standards. Argues schools need more than just standards testing, criticized as an easy solution to a complex problem. By creating tougher standards and through the overuse of standarized tests, schools are transforming into sorting mechanisms,…

Discusses what constitutes higher education standards and suggests that the standards debate should focus on defining educational goals and examining the consequences of implementing them. Some standards characteristics are examined, including specific, publicized, rigorous, high-stakes, inclusive, and measurable standards. Standards in relation…

Critiques school reform evaluation and common misconceptions about it. The article warns against using evaluation to sort students in ways that hinder them from gaining quality education or force teachers into implementing school changes that are unresponsive to students' learning problems. Study findings involving school improvement efforts are…

Responds to the article by Kevin Ryan appearing in this issue recommending moral values education in the schools. This paper recommends that moral education avoid indoctrination of students and that moral questioning occur in an atmosphere of open discussion of alternatives so students understand they do not have to choose between hard work and…

This paper examines the potential influence of school reform policies on the high school dropout rate. We summarize a diverse set of reports on American education which recommend increasing academic standards in schools as a means for improving secondary school performance. We also describe our understanding of the processes by which youngsters…

Discusses how America can improve its educational system and student performance by creating equitable opportunities for all children to learn challenging curricula. Three problems are addressed: confronting entrenched beliefs, practices and policies; dealing with educational tracking; and working towards common rigorous standards combined with…