The policy landscape around curriculum selection and implementation is thorny: the federal government cannot mandate any state or local curricula, state policy varies widely, and local schools and districts often lack the capacity to support and sustain detailed reviews of materials and ongoing teacher training in quality curricula. Cultural and…

In recent years, career and technical education (CTE) programs that include quality work-based learning (WBL) opportunities for students have gained significant traction among educators, policymakers, and stakeholders as an effective way to prepare students for the labor market. However, a lack of data on WBL--which many CTE students participate…

States have recognized the impact of high-quality early childhood education (ECE) on a child's later college and career readiness and success in life. Yet disparities in program access, quality, and resource allocation continue to deprive many young children and their families of adequate support. By investigating and applying state boards'…

Teachers need comprehensive support to improve students' literacy. This Policy Update shares how state boards of education can provide this holistic support to improve through: (1) better teacher preparation standards in early literacy; (2) professional development guidance; (3) high-quality literacy coaches and other support professionals; and…

Policy capacity in music education can be enhanced through understanding the policy-making process and state governmental policy. Three examples of engagement in state-level policy action are used to explore agency, negotiation, and visioning as important dispositions for advancing music education policy goals. First, influencing state-level…

State implementation of new standards (revising, adapting, and adopting new standards) is a significant undertaking. Such an effort at the state level requires extensive support, planning, and resources. Implementing new state standards also requires the support of multiple education leaders--governors, legislators, state departments of education,…

It is easy to forget the continuous, slow, often difficult path that the May 17, 1954 Brown decision of the Supreme Court has taken and the many small--and often forgotten--problems that have been faced in the past 22 years. Delaware had some warning in 1952 that desegregation might occur and what it might involve. Most school districts received…

Delaware was a pioneer member of Project RE:LEARNING, designed to garner state policy makers' support for school reform. This article introduces three papers from various perspectives (school principal, policy analyst, and project coordinator) that target the political culture shaping school reform. Papers highlight mobilization difficulties…

This report presents specific educational objectives for grades K-8 in Delaware's public schools. The objectives evolved from nine major goals for education adopted by the State board of education in the spring of 1972. Specific objectives for each subject area were developed by task forces made up of teachers, supervisors, and administrators from…