Differentiated instruction, an inclusive teaching strategy incorporating essential skills while individualizing curriculum at current instructional levels, has little inquiry into its effect on standards-based grading system within the middle grades setting. This qualitative study was designed to better understand teacher perceptions of…

This report describes initial findings from a study of middle school science curriculum materials that were designed to promote learning as called for by the Next Generation Science Standards (NGSS). WestEd led an independent randomized controlled trial to evaluate the efficacy of the NGSS-designed Amplify Science Middle School (ASMS) curriculum.…

Teachers' beliefs about the reading standards as well as curriculum materials used to address the standards affect how teachers implement the standards, which further impacts student learning. In this case study, 26 middle grades (6-8) reading teachers each participated in a 90 minute one-on-one audio-taped interview consisting of 33 open-ended…

The purpose of this study was to examine the Cumberland County Schools district-wide issue surrounding the disproportional performance of eighth grade Math I students' proficiency scores on standardized end-of-grade and end-of-course assessments. The study focused on the impact of the school district incorporating eighth grade math standards in…

The Berge et al. article in this volume presents the functional construct of writing that underlies summative and formative assessment of writing as a key competency in Norway. A functional construct implies that specific acts of writing and their purposes constrain what is a relevant selection among the semiotic resources that writing generally…

The purpose of this study was to understand how secondary level United States History teachers approached controversial issues in their standards-based, high-stakes testing classrooms. Controversial issues consisted of multiple points of view, were socially constructed, and had the potential to challenge belief systems. The audience and their…

The author compared NCLB-prompted standards-based reforms with earlier reforms and found that earlier manifestations of standards-based reforms may have been more productive and constructive. NCLB, with its emphasis on accountability through high-stakes testing, has produced many perverse results alongside documented achievement gains, the author…

The purpose of this dissertation was to understand how teachers who are successful with low-achieving students of color living in poverty supported their students in learning mathematics. Standards-based instruction and culturally responsive teaching (CRT) have both been suggested as pedagogical approaches that may support traditionally…

This report provides evaluation findings of the 1981-82 Promotional Gates program, a program designed to bolster instruction and learning in order to enable New York City public school students in grades four and seven to meet city-wide performance standards required for promotion. Altogether, there are six chapters. The first chapter deals with…