This article examines French and English average performances and educational inequality in the Programme for International Student Assessment (PISA) between 2000 and 2018. It asks why English average scores in 2018 are much higher than those of France when they were fairly similar in previous PISA assessments. It questions why the impact of…

When done reliably and efficiently, measuring school climate can help improve schools' vital signs and help state boards of education realize their goals and objectives for the system as a whole. Moreover, because it is as consequential to schools as checking heart rates and blood pressure are to humans, schools should always use climate measures…

Recognizing the essential value of the arts, the Illinois State Board of Education (ISBE) included the arts as an indicator of school quality and student success in the state's Every Student Succeeds Act (ESSA) plan, which the U.S. Department of Education approved in August 2017. The indicator currently has no weight in Illinois's accountability…

Using data from Rhode Island, and deploying a fuzzy regression-discontinuity design, this study capitalizes on a natural experiment in which schools, in accordance with the No Child Left Behind (NCLB) waivers, were sorted into performance categories based on a continuous performance measure. The lowest performing schools were then mandated to…

This tenth edition of "Measuring up to the Model: A Ranking of State Charter School Laws" presents the latest activity in charter public school legislation across the country. This report evaluates each state's public charter school law against the 21 essential components of a strong charter school law. These 21 components are drawn from…

Analysis of Swedish educational policy will start the importance of some state commissions on education. The first one was published in 1946 (SOU, 1948:27) and the second in 2017 (SOU, 2017:35). The first commission's main aim was to form democratic citizens, while the second focused on equity in learning opportunities. Both state commissions had…

As this anniversary issue of "Change" goes to press, Congress should be considering reauthorization of the Higher Education Act. It was up for renewal in 2014. But meaningful action before the November 2018 elections seems unlikely. What was once routine housekeeping with broad bipartisan support has in the past 15 years become another…

This fact sheet finds that most states are shirking their responsibilities around two of ESSA's most important provisions for historically underserved groups of students: including student subgroups in school ratings and the definitions used to identify schools for targeted support. Is your state one of them?

This document records testimony from a hearing before the Committee on Education and the Workforce that was held to discuss the implementation of the Every Student Succeeds Act (ESSA). Given the monumental shift in education policy represented by ESSA, it is important to hear how implementation is progressing. This committee has been keeping a…

The Every Student Succeeds Act (ESSA) comprehensively reauthorized the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965 (ESEA). Among other changes, the ESSA amended federal K-12 educational accountability requirements for states and local educational agencies (LEAs) receiving ESEA funds, including those regarding the identification, support, and…

The collection and use of empirical data for educational decision-making in the United States is required by the Every School Succeeds Act (ESSA) and the Results Driven Accountability mandate, but there is insufficient data available for one population, in particular: refugee, asylee, and humanitarian migrant (RAHM) students. As a result, the…

Students with disabilities need quality education to develop their skills and reach their full potential. However, according to the U.S. Department of Education (ED) in its 2021 report, more than half of the 50 states and the District of Columbia did not meet the requirements or purposes of the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA)…

The purpose of the qualitative phenomenological study was to explore and understand the impact of standardized testing on educational practice in an urban, Title I school community, and to determine solutions to improve the utility of standardized testing in supporting student learning and achievement. The specific areas of focus are diagnosing…

The U.S. Department of Education (Department) continually seeks opportunities to ease administrative burdens on State educational agencies (SEAs) while ensuring strong fiscal and programmatic accountability. This letter grants limited prior approval to SEAs to approve pre-award costs and participant support costs for subgrantees for programs in…

Postsecondary readiness enables students to pursue their dreams, contribute to society, and thrive in the global economy. Since many accountability systems include a postsecondary readiness indicator in formal evaluations of schools and districts, it benefits educators, families, researchers, policymakers, and other education partners to…