ethanporcaro/eric-fulltext-meta huggingface dataset:
Science Achievement and Occupational Career/Technical Education Coursetaking in High School: The Class of 2005. Statistics in Brief. NCES 2010-021
Author: Levesque, Karen
Date: 2010-05-00
Type: Reports - Evaluative
Subjects: Science Achievement,Vocational Education,Public Schools,High School Graduates,Comparative Analysis,Courses,Secondary School Science,Credits,National Competency Tests,Scores

The definition of CTE (career/technical education) used by the National Center for Education Statistics (NCES) includes, at the high school level, family and consumer sciences education, general labor market preparation, and occupational education (Bradby and Hoachlander 1999; Bradby and Hudson 2007). Most researchers focus on occupational education courses (including courses in agriculture, business, and health sciences, among other fields) when examining the relationship between CTE and key outcomes (Silverberg et al. 2004). This emphasis reflects the fact that occupational courses represent the majority of CTE coursetaking (Levesque 2003b; Levesque et al. 2008; Hudson and Laird 2009) and studies suggest this is the part of the CTE curriculum most strongly related to employment and earnings outcomes, which are the ultimate goals of CTE (Boesel et al. 1994; Bishop and Mane 2004). This Statistics in Brief also focuses on students who participate in occupational education, comparing the science coursetaking and achievement of public high school graduates of the class of 2005 who concentrated in occupational education with graduates who did not. While the Brief includes a comparison between occupational concentrators overall and nonconcentrators, the primary focus here is on comparing concentrators in 13 different occupational program areas with nonconcentrators. This Brief provides new information on the academic achievement of CTE participants by focusing on science achievement and describing this achievement for CTE concentrators in different occupational programs. The Brief also examines the science achievement of CTE participants who earned similar numbers of science credits, and looks at how the level and types of science courses taken differ among participants. These analyses are useful because previous studies have found that achievement gaps may be linked to the differing levels and types of academic coursework that students take (Plank 2001; Levesque 2003b; Silverberg et al. 2004), and because academic coursetaking is relatively amenable to policy action. Although this Brief cannot examine the causal impact of coursework on achievement, the analysis shows the varying relationships between science coursework and achievement for concentrators in different occupational programs and suggests areas for further research. The reader is cautioned that many additional factors--such as students' prior academic achievement, aptitudes, and interests, and varying curricular and teaching quality--can influence science achievement. This Brief does not examine the effects of such factors on student achievement. Appendices include: (1) Supplemental Table; and (2) Standard Error Tables. (Contains 1 exhibit, 10 tables, and 16 footnotes .
Nonprofit Sector: Treatment and Reimbursement of Indirect Costs Vary among Grants, and Depend Significantly on Federal, State, and Local Government Practices. Report to the Chairman, Committee on the Budget, House of Representatives. GAO-10-477
Author: Czerwinski, Stanley J.
Date: 2010-05-00
Type: Reports - Evaluative
Subjects: Nonprofit Organizations,Grants,Federal Government,State Government,Local Government,Costs,Financial Problems,Housing,Health,Human Services,Public Agencies,Classification,Differences,Federal Aid,Vocabulary

Nonprofits are key partners in delivering federal services yet reportedly often struggle to cover their indirect costs (costs not readily identifiable with particular programs or projects). This raises concerns about fiscal strain on the sector. To provide information on nonprofits' indirect cost reimbursement, especially when funding flows through entities such as state and local governments, GAO (Government Accountability Office) was asked to review, for selected grants and nonprofits, (1) how indirect cost terminology and classification vary, (2) how indirect costs are reimbursed, and (3) if gaps occur between indirect costs incurred and reimbursed, steps taken to bridge gaps. GAO selected six Departments of Health and Human Services and Housing and Urban Development grants and 17 nonprofits in Louisiana, Maryland, and Wisconsin. GAO selected these agencies for their historical relationship with nonprofits. GAO reviewed policies and documents governing indirect costs and interviewed relevant officials. GAO also reviewed research on nonprofits' indirect costs. GAO recommends that the Director of the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) bring together federal, state, local, and nonprofit representatives to help clarify and improve understanding of how nonprofits' indirect costs should be treated, particularly for grants passed through state and local governments to nonprofits. OMB agreed with GAO's recommendation. Appendices include: (1) Objectives, Scope, and Methodology; and (2) GAO Contact and Staff Acknowledgments. (Contains 2 tables, 2 figures, and 41 footnotes.)
Examining the Turning Points Comprehensive Middle School Reform Model: The Role of Local Context and Innovation
Author: Feldman, Jay
Date: 2004-00-00
Type: Reports - Research
Subjects: Federal Government,School Restructuring,Middle Schools,Models,Educational Change,Local Issues,Adjustment (to Environment),School Culture,Educational Research,Academic Achievement,Teaching Methods,Data,Decision Making,Team Teaching,Reflective Teaching,Goal Orientation

For the past decade, the federal government has supported comprehensive school reform as a way to improve under-performing schools (US Department of Education 1998). Thousands of schools across the country are now implementing scores of different whole school reform models with the hopes of improving school culture and raising student performance. Numerous studies have examined the effectiveness of CSRD schools (Sterbinsky and Ross, 2002; Sterbinsky, Ross, and Redfield, 2001; Berends, Bodilly, & Kirby, 2002a; Berends, Bodilly, & Kirby, 2002b). Their most significant finding is that schools which are able to implement the design fully are more likely to show gains in student improvement; however, levels of implementation vary greatly across schools, districts, and designs (Berends 2000; Berends et al, 2002a). The ability of designs to adapt to local contexts has met with mixed levels of success (Bodilly, 2001), as has their ability to have an impact on the "core of educational practice" (Elmore, 1996). In a recent article in Phi Delta Kappan, Mike Schmoker argues that "comprehensive school reform" must take a more flexible, less prescriptive approach that cultivates professional learning communities focused on improving instruction. Much of the research on CSRD schools has been focused on quantitative outcomes. Additional research needs to examine ways that schools and model developers adapt their designs based on local context to examine closely teaching and learning. This study uses qualitative methods to examine four Turning Points Middle Schools to understand how these schools have achieved success in adapting the Turning Points design. Appendices include: (1) Turning Points Principles and Practices; and (2) Profile of Current Regional Centers. (Contains 11 footnotes.)
The Role of a Third Party Organization in the Boston Pilot Schools Network
Author: French, Dan
Date: 2001-01-06
Type: Reports - Descriptive
Subjects: Educational Change,Pilot Projects,Institutional Role,Partnerships in Education,Program Descriptions,School Choice,Educational Development,Social Networks,Educational Policy,Coaching (Performance),Institutional Characteristics,Administrator Role,Teacher Role,Role Perception,Change Agents

This paper describes the role of Center for Collaborative Education (CCE) in supporting a unique urban public school network, the Boston Pilot Schools Network. By informing the educational community of its strategies, activities, and challenges, CCE hopes to contribute to the understanding of how change promoted from outside the school can affect teacher and student learning. The Center for Collaborative Education is a non-profit organization whose mission is to improve student learning in K-12 public schools and districts by promoting models of systemic reform.
Guide to Collaborative Culture and Shared Leadership. Turning Points: Transforming Middle Schools
Author: Lummis, Ben
Date: 2001-01-00
Type: Guides - Non-Classroom
Subjects: Middle Schools,Collegiality,Educational Experience,Teacher Effectiveness,Teamwork,Participative Decision Making,Transformational Leadership,Guides,School Culture,Skill Analysis,Program Effectiveness,Administrator Role,Institutional Characteristics,Performance Factors

Turning Points schools create a new culture built around the collaboration of all members of the school community. This collaborative culture requires structures that empower teachers and administrators to work together to make the most important decisions regarding the educational experiences of their students. The two primary components of this culture are: (1) shared leadership and decision making; and (2) the creation of effective teacher teams. This guide begins with rationales and detailed explanations for developing a collaborative culture and for creating shared leadership, decision making, and effective teacher teams. The Shared Leadership section describes the changing roles of the members of the school community. The Effective Teams section explains the components and skills needed for team members to be successful when they work together on the challenges facing their school. The Appendix includes a selection of tools, protocols, and exercises that can be used to develop a collaborative culture and shared leadership.
School Quality Review. Turning Points: Transforming Middle Schools
Author: Naidoo, Jordan
Date: 2002-00-00
Type: Guides - Non-Classroom
Subjects: Accountability,Educational Quality,Self Evaluation (Groups),Portfolios (Background Materials),Institutional Characteristics,Guidelines,Administrator Role,Administrator Responsibility,School Visitation,Quality Control,Evaluation Methods,Program Descriptions,Educational Change,Educational Improvement,Improvement Programs

All schools need to constantly reflect on the quality of their work and the progress and achievements that they make over time. The primary goal of an accountability system is to help schools improve through critical self-reflection. It enables students, teachers, and other members of the school community to evaluate their practices, especially the quality of learning. The school community welcomes an external viewpoint because it can enhance and strengthen good practices. The Turning Points accountability process has two major components: the Annual Assessment and the School Quality Review (SQR). This guide focuses on one of the two components, namely the School Quality Review, which includes the School Self-Assessment and the School Quality Review Visit. Two appendices are included: (1) Sample Visit Schedule; and (2) Sample Report Format and Example of Commendations, Issues, and Recommendations. (Contains 5 footnotes.)
Experiential Education in Boston's Pilot Schools: A Three-Year Demonstration Project. PSEED Documentation Report
Author: Miller, Beth M.
Date: 2008-00-00
Type: Reports - Descriptive
Subjects: Urban Schools,Demonstration Programs,Experiential Learning,Research Reports,Pilot Projects,Program Implementation,Summative Evaluation,Stakeholders,Professional Development,Barriers,School Culture,Curriculum Development,Teaching Methods,Partnerships in Education,Student Attitudes,Student Behavior,Academic Achievement,Performance Based Assessment,Program Descriptions,Portfolio Assessment

The Pilot schools Experiential Education Demonstration (PSEED) project was intended to deepen and embed high-quality experiential education within each participating school's academic programs. A continuation of a multiyear set of initiatives by the Barr Foundation, PSEED was an effort to unify the foundation's content area foci on arts, fitness/sports, and environmental education with its belief that Pilot schools held promise as a systemic reform in the Boston Public School system (BPS). The Barr Foundation chose to collaborate with the Pilot schools in this work, in part because their greater flexibility allows for the adjustments in budget, staffing, and scheduling at the school level that are a prerequisite for successful experiential education programming. The PSEED work was grounded in the belief that high-quality experiential education would significantly enhance student engagement and performance over time. PSEED implementation began in the fall of 2005 and ended in the spring of 2008. The purpose of this PSEED documentation report is to summarize the three years of work in the seven Pilot schools, all of whom had diverse goals and implementation plans. Two appendices are included: (1) Instruments Used in the Documentation Project; and (2) Documentation Exemplars from Schools. (Contains 5 tables and 11 footnotes.)
Progress and Promise: Results from the Boston Pilot Schools
Author: Tung, Rosann
Date: 2006-01-00
Type: Numerical/Quantitative Data
Subjects: Academic Achievement,Pilot Projects,Standardized Tests,Performance Based Assessment,Educational Indicators,Educational Assessment,Achievement Gains,Learner Engagement,Attendance,Outcomes of Education,School Demography,Institutional Characteristics,Student Characteristics,Educational Change,Comparative Analysis,Educational Objectives,Educational Development,Educational Principles,College Bound Students

New research conducted by Boston's Center for Collaborative Education documents significant achievement by students who attend the city's Pilot Schools. Pilot School students are performing better than the district averages across every indicator of student engagement and performance, including the statewide standardized assessment (MCAS). In other standard measures, Pilot School students show better rates of attendance and fewer out-of-school suspensions, and more go on to attend university or technical college after they graduate. Five appendices are included: (1) Methods; (2) Methods for School Characteristics; (3) 2003-04 Pilot School Outcomes by School; (4) Boston Pilot Schools/Horace Mann Network Vision Statement; and Principles and Practices; and (5) School Lists. (Contains 40 footnotes.) [This report was written with the assistance of Vera Mouradian, Dongning Bai, Bob Frank, Dan French, Mary Doyle, Dawn Lewis,Vivian Unterweger, Dania Vazquez, and Beatriz Zapater. Funding was provided by Brinson Foundation, Goldberg Family Foundation, Washington Mutual, and William E. Schrafft and Bertha E. Schrafft Charitable Trust.]
How Are Boston Pilot School Students Faring? &quot;Student Demographics, Engagement, and Performance,&quot; 1998-2003
Author: Tung, Rosann
Date: 2004-03-00
Type: Numerical/Quantitative Data
Subjects: Urban Schools,Public Schools,Academic Achievement,Educational Quality,Learner Engagement,Student Diversity,Student Characteristics,Pilot Projects,Educational Innovation,School Restructuring,Academic Persistence,School Demography,Attendance,Student Mobility,High School Students,Educational Assessment,Educational Indicators

This report examines the efficacy of the Boston Pilot Schools, a model of urban schools created in 1994 to promote innovation and increased choice options within the Boston Public Schools (BPS). Unlike most urban public schools, the Boston Pilot Schools have control over budget, staffing, curriculum, governance, and time, all critical conditions to building a unified learning community in which teaching and learning are personalized and of high quality. They represent a new vision of public schools and districts in which schools are provided flexibility to create challenging learning environments in exchange for increased accountability. Today, there are nineteen Boston Pilot Schools spanning grades K-12. This report examines student demographics, achievement, and engagement at the thirteen Pilot Schools that have been in operation for more than one year. These thirteen schools are serving approximately 3400 students, or 5.5% of the total Boston Public Schools (BPS) enrollment. The student assignment process is the same for Pilot elementary and middle schools as for all schools within BPS. Pilot high schools have special admissions processes that screen for fit and commitment to the school's philosophy; prior academic achievement is not a factor. For urban, mostly low-income students and students of color, there is an urgency to develop models of schooling that provide greater access to high quality education. How are students in the Pilot Schools faring, especially as compared to their counterparts in regular BPS schools? Do the Pilot Schools' conditions of smallness and autonomy over resources improve student engagement and performance? This report examines quantitative indicators of Pilot Schools on three levels: 1) student demographics, 2) student engagement, and 3) student performance. A list of comparison schools for all levels is appended. (Contains 11 figures, 20 tables and 30 footnotes.) [Funding for this report was provided by the Barr Foundation, the Goldberg Family Foundation, and the Walton Family Foundation.]
Strong Results, High Demand: A Four-Year Study of Boston's Pilot High Schools
Author: Tung, Rosann
Date: 2007-11-00
Type: Numerical/Quantitative Data
Subjects: Graduation Rate,High School Students,Educational Assessment,Educational Indicators,Learner Engagement,Research Reports,Transfer Students,Attendance,Student Promotion,At Risk Students,Enrollment Trends,Racial Differences,Dropout Rate,Academic Persistence,Achievement Gains

New research from the Center for Collaborative Education finds that students in Boston's Pilot high schools outperform students from other non-exam Boston Public Schools on every standard measure of engagement and performance. This level of achievement holds for every racial, economic, and academic subgroup examined. Pilot high school students show better MCAS scores, higher attendance rates, higher promotion rates--and the four-year graduation rate for 2006 was more than 23 percentage points higher than the rate for BPS students, 75.7% as compared with 52.2% for BPS. (&quot;BPS&quot; in this report refers to non-Pilot, non-exam schools.) The study found that Pilot high schools reflect the BPS demographics in terms of race, income, and mainstream special needs students. The report also identifies some areas in which Pilot School demographics fall short of the goal of representing the student population of the Boston school district. Pilot high schools have proportionately fewer students designated as Limited English Proficient and fewer students with moderate to severe special needs. In addition, proportionately fewer students arrive with certain other warning signs of &quot;risk,&quot; such as low grade 8 math MCAS scores and poor attendance records in eighth grade. It is not possible to isolate how much differences in populations, in addition to the Pilot features of schools, affected differences in performance outcomes. However, the news from the report is that Pilot high school students in every category--including students with risk factors--performed better than their counterparts in the Boston school district. The present study offers a review of Pilot high school student performance over the course of four years, looking at overall outcomes. It then parses the data to identify how different populations of students are being served by the Pilot Schools. Five appendices are included: (1) Pilot Schools/Horace Mann Network Vision, Mission, and Principles and Practices; (2) Pilot High School Information; (3) Group Sizes for Analyses; (4) Detailed Methods and Limitations; and (5) 2004-05 Subgroup Demographics by Pilot High School (in percent). (Contains 22 tables, 14 figures and 22 footnotes.) [Funding for this report was provided by Jessie B. Cox Foundation, Goldberg Foundation and Washington Mutual Foundation.]
Including Performance Assessments in Accountability Systems: A Review of Scale-Up Efforts
Author: Tung, Rosann
Date: 2010-01-00
Type: Reports - Evaluative
Subjects: Performance Based Assessment,Performance Tests,Accountability,Educational Opportunities,Literature Reviews,Program Descriptions,Use Studies,Barriers,Performance Factors,Success,Improvement Programs,Program Improvement,Educational Practices,Change Strategies,Foreign Countries

The purpose of this literature and field review is to understand previous efforts at scaling up performance assessments for use across districts and states. Performance assessments benefit students and teachers by providing more opportunities for students to demonstrate their knowledge and complex skills, by providing teachers with better information about student progress, and by encouraging schools to build professional collaborative cultures through integrating curriculum, instruction, and assessment. Despite these benefits, performance assessments in accountability systems are still relatively rare in the U.S. This review of such systems found that the main challenges facing educators interested in using performance assessments at scale, and for accountability purposes, are the technical quality of performance assessments, the sustainability of implementation through strong professional development models, and political buy-in. Through the wealth of their collective experiences, the knowledge and capacity to tackle each of the challenges exists, and those lessons should be applied to the next generation of accountability systems. Through a systematic description of seven performance assessment scale-up efforts, as well as descriptions of analogous efforts from teacher certification, medicine, and law, this review concludes with implications for future endeavors to integrate performance assessments into accountability systems. Some of these implications include: (1) Develop and provide schools and districts with criteria and guidelines for achieving technical quality in performance assessments; (2) Use external partnerships and experienced teachers to create professional development models in assessment literacy, assessment design, and scoring; (3) Use state and district policy incentives to support the regular collection of technical quality evidence for each assessment; and (4) Build public and political support for including performance assessments in accountability systems. (Contains 5 tables and 3 footnotes.)
Teaching Literacy in the Turning Points School. Turning Points: Transforming Middle Schools
Author: O'Brien, Martin
Date: 2001-01-00
Type: Guides - Non-Classroom
Subjects: Literacy,Middle Schools,Educational Practices,Educational Strategies,Educational Improvement,Improvement Programs,Change Strategies,Educational Change,Curriculum Guides,Program Descriptions,Classroom Techniques,Teaching Methods,Teaching Models,Instructional Design

The purpose of this guide is to provide a middle school literacy model, to describe practices and strategies of literacy education, and to assist school communities as they implement a balanced Turning Points literacy program that is responsive to the particular needs of middle school students. This guide includes: (1) the rationale for a Turning Points model for literacy education; (2) an explanation of the literacy model; (3) literacy practices that demonstrate how a balanced literacy program for both school and classroom can be created in Turning Points schools; and (4) specific tools that can be used by members of the school community engaged in Turning Points literacy education. Six appendices are included: (1) Guidelines to Seven Comprehension Strategies; (2) Socratic Seminar Format; (3) School-wide Writing Assessment; (4) Roles for the Literacy Teacher; (5) Literature Response Options; and (6) Forms of Writing.