This report is the fourth review of the accomplishments of Washington's 32 two-year colleges under the provisions of the Worker Retraining program. It provides detailed information about program results, with findings indicating that: (1) workers who participate in programs are finding good jobs at high salary levels, with 81% of all worker…

This report reviews the proposed Virginia Higher Education Performance Funding Model. It includes an overview of the proposed funding model, examples of likely funding scenarios (including determination of block grants, assumptions underlying performance funding for four-year and two-year institutions); information on deregulation/decentralization…

In this interview with New American Schools (NAS) editors, the author explains how design-based assistance to schools works and suggests reasons why it might help schools become more successful in teaching all students to high standards. Questions cover such areas as the features of the NAS effort that distinguish it from other well-known models;…

This document describes Rhode Island's School Accountability for Learning and Teaching (SALT) process. It defines SALT's vision, outlines Article 31 (which requires schools to engage in self-study and goal setting and sets rigorous requirements for schools), and explains how SALT concepts mirror and respond to Article 31 demands. SALT's vision is…

"The No Child Left Behind Act" (NCLB) aims to strengthen state Title I accountability systems to spur the improvement needed to reach the law's goals: that all students will reach proficiency by 2013-14. NCLB requires states and districts to report and act on student test results in a host of new ways. Among the many actions states and…

In the United States, large-scale assessment is beginning to be used to promote educational system accountability and improvement. Widespread dissatisfaction with student outcomes and public schooling is fueling the search for alternative assessments as a part of educational reform. (SLD)

An extended interview with management consultant Peter Senge who proposes that rethinking traditional patterns of leadership and interaction will produce a true learning community, where improvement becomes a lifelong journey. (MLF)

Effective schools research indicates that a good plan for school improvement grows out of the school and the school system in which it will be used. Outlines 11 components of a school system's improvement plan, and current educational trends to take into account in developing the plan. (MLF)

Explains how one Houston (Texas) educator (Thaddeus Lott) has turned failing schools into laboratories for learning. It describes how Lott used a charter giving him freedom to train staff, develop a curriculum, and make hiring, firing, and promotion decisions at four schools to improve reading and math skills. Concluding comments address the…

Some advocates of "all children can learn" downplay the need for adequate resources and child-friendly public policy. Educators' heroic efforts alone are insufficient. Other destructive fallacies include the principal as sole instructional leader and exception-based, uniform standards. The effective-schools movement has become too…

Discusses the nature of school restructuring in Australia and provides a justification for restructuring predicated on improving teaching and learning. Provides various restructuring frameworks, recognizes the need to clarify qualifying conditions, and addresses ways to overcome implementation problems. Ambiguity and ambivalence over…

Teachers supported higher achievement standards and increased accountability, but expressed concerns about variations in student preparation, automatic promotion policies, and standards for homework and grading. Teachers also advocated more standardization and continuity in education, and agreed that raising achievement requires a measure of…

Ontario's Education Quality and Accountability Office (EQAO) is an independent agency, answerable to the public, created in 1995 in response to input from educators, policymakers, parents, students, and citizens to do large-scale assessments and give objective and informed recommendations for educational improvements. Gives EQAO core values and 10…

Examined similarities and differences in teacher and principal perceptions of the effects of two state-level rewards and sanctions programs. Interviews with teachers, principals, and other administrators, and surveys of principals, indicated that overall, salary bonuses with sanctions linked to a comprehensive education reform initiative more…

A case study examined ways to improve schools through democratic accountability, highlighting a principal's strategies to increase staff and student expectations in a low-performing middle school in rural Florida. Results gleaned from interviews and surveys suggest that leaders must build schools' capacity for sustaining achievement. (Contains 32…