This report describes the establishment and delivery of Illinois career and technical education (CTE), the existing condition of Illinois CTE based on fiscal year 2021 data, and the future developments and recommendations for CTE in the state as required by Illinois School Code 105 ILCS 435/2e. Illinois CTE focuses on providing equitable…

This conceptual paper contributes to the literature base on promoting equality of opportunity for students in higher education through seeking to broaden understanding of the influences on part-time study in the United Kingdom (UK). These students constitute a significant proportion of the total student population in the UK with research…

Fair distribution of educational opportunities among people means that individuals' access to education doesn't depend on conditions beyond their control such as social class, religion, gender, place of birth or other parental characteristics. This paper addresses the issue of inequality of educational opportunities for pre-university education in…

TransferBOOST (Bachelor's Opportunity Options that are Straightforward and Transparent) is a multi-year state-level initiative developed to provide students with affordable, quality, well-supported two- to four-year pathways. Affordability matters a great deal for transfer students, but it has typically not been understood or prioritized. The IHEP…

Between 2015 and 2019, Holyoke Public Schools in Massachusetts cut its dropout rate nearly in half and increased its graduation rate by 10 percentage points, with notable gains among historically marginalized student groups. The district cites Opportunity Academy (OA), an alternative education program within the district's high school, as a key…

The economic logic of urban school reform holds that giving parents school choice options in an educational marketplace will lead to systemic improvements that will both resolve historical inequalities in American public schooling and will politically empower parents and urban communities. This article explores the economic logic of urban school…

International student achievement comparisons have aroused interest widely across the world. Finland dominated the comparisons for a long time but now Asian countries have fared better. Both countries studied have faced abundant immigration, which has changed the student groups. In this article, we compare two quite different top countries:…

Economic globalization not only brings opportunities to all countries in the world, but also brings crises and challenges. The solutions to crises and challenges also entrust education different missions. To this end, there is an urgent need to re-examine the purpose of education, to update the means of education and to change the role of…

Advance Illinois is an independent, objective voice for a healthy public education system that prepares all students in Illinois for success in college, careers, and civic life. Advocacy efforts have focused on securing equitable funding for schools, Common Core State Standards, high-quality assessments, and teacher quality efforts. As advocates…

Little is known about the role of local school boards in the policy-making process, particularly in terms of educational equity. Framed by concepts from existing scholarship on school board effectiveness, cultural responsiveness, and the opportunity gap, this article critically explores how school boards address policies and practices related to…

Transforming schools to ensure every student has the opportunity to learn requires innovation at the teacher education level. The goal of inclusion is complex, and so it is critically important to prepare teachers to lead organizational change that will increase engagement and achievement of children with diverse learning abilities.

The paper provides an historical but critical context for examining the relation of the pursuit of greater equality in schooling to the development of curriculum. This requires a brief account of what one means by the principle of equality, before showing the different ways in which there have been curriculum responses underpinned by philosophical…

Technological developments have attracted the attention of educational stakeholders around the globe and tempted them to incorporate these developments into their decisions in training students. Rural areas, on the other hand, have suffered from deprivation and unavailability of educationally relevant instruments and gadgets in education in…

For the last two decades, graduation rates have been one of the key metrics used to evaluate school effectiveness under federal law, with the goal of ensuring that all students receive a high-quality education. Researchers have found, however, that policies intended to optimize this accountability measure can have undesirable consequences for…

Throughout the past decade, scholars have argued that the persistent achievement gap between Black male students and their White peers is a result of unequal and inadequate educational opportunities instead of inherent differences in their capability or character. School counselors can help support Black males by using equity-focused…