This collection of papers presents a variety of field-tested examples that use problem-based learning (PBL) for teacher education in many professional development settings. It describes PBL activities for preservice, novice, and experienced educators at all levels. The eight chapters describe teacher educators' experiences using PBL in their…

Community schools were created in Ohio to provide additional educational options for children in low-performing schools and to develop innovative teaching and management techniques that may be transferable to traditional public schools. In 1997 the Ohio General Assembly required the Legislative Office of Education Oversight (LOEO) to evaluate the…

This research brief recaps a study of California charter schools. After a discussion of the key distinctions among charter schools, the brief focuses on the following questions: (1) Who attends charter schools? (2) How does student achievement in charter schools compare with that in conventional public schools? (3) What oversight do chartering…

Among the major concerns surrounding school-choice programs is their potential to stratify students along the dimensions of race, ethnicity, or socioeconomic class. The latest among four U.S. Department of Education national evaluations of charter schools reports no evidence that charter schools are predominantly white or that they segregate…

"A Brief Profile of America's Public Schools" summarizes important findings from the 1999-2000 Schools and Staffing Survey (SASS). This document looks at differences between public and private schools and also examines public schools, and how they differ by community type (urban, suburban, and rural), and by school level (elementary,…

The CFO (chief financial officer) performs the budgeting, accounting, and financial functions for a local education agency (LEA). The CFO of 1998 works in a very different environment from 25 years ago, due to changes in school funding sources (from local to state systems), information technology, and school district organization and…

This article chronicles the evolution of legislation for Texas open-enrollment charter schools to their implementation by demonstrating how these schools have (or have not) used their freedom from state-mandated requirements to develop innovative learning environments as well as to bring innovative curricula into the classroom. The investigative…

Jeb Bush campaigned for Governor on a clear and bracing set of education reforms in 1998. Having won office, he immediately pursued a dual track strategy of education reform: standards and accountability for public schools, choice options for dissatisfied parents. Florida lawmakers followed these reforms with additional measures, including…

The "High School Feedback Report" prepared by the State of Florida's Department of Education provides pre-and-post-graduation data for public high school graduates throughout Florida. These data were used for the present report which contains individual data reports for all M-DCPS regular high schools and charter high schools graduating…

A reference work that presents a chronology focusing on special education, its development, and the important issues that both positively and negatively affect the field. Updated through current events, this second edition provides an excellent introduction to special education in all of its practical aspects--how it developed, its curriculum,…

The Common Core of Data (CCD) is a universe collection of public elementary and secondary education data that is administered by the National Center for Education Statistics (NCES). The CCD is a system of five surveys, three nonfiscal and two fiscal. The nonfiscal surveys are the: (1) Public Elementary/Secondary School Universe Survey; (2) Local…

To learn more about district and school decision making for No Child Left Behind (NCLB) restructuring, the Center on Education Policy (CEP) turned to California, a state with a substantial number of schools in restructuring and several state and regional supports for making decisions about restructuring. In the summer and fall of 2005, CEP…

This report offers a comprehensive account of Thomas B. Fordham Foundation's sponsorship policies and practices, including a history of its sponsorship efforts, as well as individual profiles of all Fordham-sponsored schools in Ohio. Included in the profiles are in-depth descriptions of each school's educational program, school philosophy, and…

The charter-schools movement provides the opportunity to observe whether granting schools freedom from most state regulations actually produces more freedom for school administrators and teachers, and whether this autonomy produces other distinctive outcomes. This report summarizes findings of Southwest Regional Laboratory's (SWRL's) statewide…

This report evaluates major developments in American education and federal education policy for the year 1994-95. Part 1 focuses on efforts to improve student achievement. It examines National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP) data and assigns the national public schools the grade of C+ in mathematics achievement and a D in reading…