ethanporcaro/eric-fulltext-meta huggingface dataset:
Exploring College Outcomes for Low-Income AP® Exam Takers with Fee Reductions. Research Report 2016-2
Author: Godfrey, Kelly E.
Date: 2016-00-00
Type: Reports - Research
Subjects: Low Income Groups,Advanced Placement,Student Records,Databases,Enrollment,College Graduates,Family Income,Racial Differences,Grade Point Average,High School Students,Gender Differences,Ethnic Groups,Parent Background,Educational Attainment,Graduation,Academic Persistence,Scores,Academic Achievement,Intellectual Disciplines

The focus of this study is to explore college outcomes for students who come from traditionally lower-income backgrounds, reporting a household income of $30,000 or less, and who were awarded a fee reduction to take one or more Advanced Placement® (AP®) Exams, compared to students with a similar background and ability who did not participate in an AP Exam in that subject area or discipline. Matched samples of AP Exam taking and non-AP Exam taking students in each of five disciplines were created using student background variables, and these samples were compared on the following college outcomes: immediate enrollment in a four-year institution following high school graduation, persistence to the second year of study at the first-enrolled institution, graduation within four years of matriculation at any four-year institution, and graduation within six years of matriculation at any four-year institution. Results indicate that fee-reduction lower-income AP examinees, when compared to their non-AP Exam-taking peers, tend to have higher likelihood of enrolling, persisting, and graduating from four-year colleges. Results are presented in the Appendix.
Why Massachusetts Should Abandon the PARCC Tests and the 2011 Coleman et al English Language Arts Standards on Which the MCAS Tests Are Based. Testimony
Author: Stotsky, Sandra
Date: 2015-06-00
Type: Reports - Evaluative
Subjects: Common Core State Standards,Standardized Tests,Language Arts,English Instruction,Qualifications,Test Construction,Committees,Test Validity,Scores,Test Items,Student Evaluation,Evaluation Methods

In this testimony, the author first describes her qualifications, as well as the lack of relevant qualifications in Common Core's standards writers and in most of the members of Common Core's Validation Committee, on which she served in 2009-2010. The author then details some of the many problems in the 2011 Massachusetts ELA standards, written by David Coleman, Susan Pimentel, James Patterson, and Susan Wheltle (so the document indicates), in the tests based on Common Core's standards (PARCC), and in the two external reports--one issued in February 2015, the other yet to be completed--comparing the PARCC tests with MCAS tests. The author offers several recommendations for parents who want civically sound and academically rigorous standards and tests written and reviewed by English teachers and who want a form of accountability that does not penalize their children's teachers for results of tests based on the Coleman et al standards or Common Core's standards. The following are appended: (1) URLs for locating all MCAS ELA test items from 1998 to 2007, plus some URLs for later items; and (2) Letter from Superintendent William Lupini to the Brookline School Committee.
Massachusetts Charter Public Schools: Best Practices Serving English Language Learners. White Paper No. 140
Author: Candal, Cara Stillings
Date: 2015-12-00
Type: Reports - Descriptive
Subjects: Charter Schools,Public Schools,Best Practices,English Language Learners,State Legislation,Case Studies,Student Needs,Institutional Autonomy,At Risk Students,Disadvantaged Youth,Special Education,Limited English Speaking,Economically Disadvantaged,Accountability,Inclusion,Formative Evaluation,Teacher Competencies,Parent Participation,Community Involvement

In recent years many charter public schools in Massachusetts have increased the number of English language learners (ELLs) that they enroll. A 2010 amendment to the charter school law has made it easier for charter schools to recruit English language learners. The success that many charter schools have had with this subset of students defies critics who claim that charter schools &quot;cream&quot; students, attracting and retaining only those who are &quot;easiest to teach.&quot; Case studies of high-achieving charter schools with large and sometimes culturally and linguistically diverse populations of English language learners reveal common best practices. These practices include but are not limited to: individually tailored curricula that emphasize inclusive teaching practices; intentional and continuous use of high-quality formative assessments; language-enriched learning environments; recruitment and retention of teachers with knowledge of the communities that the school serves; and efforts to engage parents and community that are attuned to relevant cultural and linguistic contexts. The following report highlights three high-performing charter schools, detailing the common best practices that they continue to use and refine and highlighting the subtle but important ways each school caters to its specific student population. The case studies make clear that the autonomies that these schools enjoy because of their charter status allow them to be nimble in serving a changing student population. The same autonomies also enable these schools to design and refine approaches to serving English language learners that enhance student learning and achievement.
Massachusetts Charter Public Schools: Best Practices in Curricular Innovation. White Paper No. 141
Author: Candal, Cara Stillings
Date: 2016-01-00
Type: Reports - Descriptive
Subjects: Charter Schools,State Legislation,Educational Innovation,Teaching Methods,Public Schools,Traditional Schools,Educational Quality,Elementary Schools,Middle Schools,High Schools,Honors Curriculum,Science Instruction,Mathematics Instruction,Curriculum Development,Alignment (Education)

The ongoing push to raise or eliminate the charter school cap in Massachusetts provides an opportunity to reflect upon the purpose of charter schools. When the legislature created the Commonwealth's charter school law, as a part of the 1993 Massachusetts Education Reform Act (MERA), it clearly stated a main reason for these new schools was innovation. Charters were expected to provide new curricular and pedagogical options and even experiment with existing school structures, such as grade configurations and the length of the school day and year. This paper highlights two Massachusetts charter schools that offer curricular opportunities rarely available in other public schools in Massachusetts. Both of these schools enable students to achieve exceptional results in comparison to their peers in traditional district schools. The Mystic Valley Regional Charter School (MVRCS) consistently ranks among the best schools in Massachusetts and the country. It offers two distinct but complementary curricula--the Core Knowledge Curriculum at the elementary and middle school levels and the International Baccalaureate (IB) curriculum at the high school level. At the Advanced Math and Science Academy (AMSA) in Marlborough, MA science and math are the &quot;driving forces&quot; behind much of the curricular content, but students are exposed to holistic and rigorous content in all subject areas. The curriculum is horizontally and vertically aligned and follows a logical, chronological sequence of content from grade to grade, enabling students to make intellectual connections not just within but also among and between content areas. In the current policy environment, understanding some of the important innovations that charter schools offer to students and families can productively inform the debate. The schools profiled in this white paper are providing high caliber educational opportunities and interesting curricular options to students and families in the communities that they serve.
Exploring Middle-Skill Training Programs for Employment in the Retail Industry
Author: Kazis, Richard
Date: 2016-04-00
Type: Reports - Evaluative
Subjects: Skill Development,Job Skills,Employment Programs,Retailing,National Surveys,Nonprofit Organizations,Community Education,Interviews,Stakeholders,Educational Practices,Labor Force Development,Educational Demand,Barriers,Occupational Mobility

The retail industry is a huge and growing sector of the U.S. economy, accounting for about 10 percent of the nation's jobs in 2013 and projected to increase by 7 percent between 2012 and 2022. The sheer size of the industry and the number of employment opportunities it affords low-skilled workers led MDRC to explore the potential of the retail sector as a ladder to middle-skill and middle-income jobs. MDRC wanted to understand more about the national experience among nonprofit workforce training providers preparing low-skilled youth and adults for middle-skill jobs in retail, and to assess the potential for expanding these efforts. In 2015, with support from the Walmart Foundation, MDRC conducted a national survey to begin to answer these questions, focusing on programs delivered by community-based nonprofit organizations. This report is based on interviews with more than 70 policymakers, industry representatives, workforce development funders and practitioners, and others. Key findings include: (1) This broad survey of current practice yielded an unexpected finding: few nonprofit workforce training programs that prepare low-skilled workers for careers in the retail industry focus on middle-skill jobs; most instead focus on low-wage, entry-level positions. Community-based training programs targeting middle-skill jobs operate on a relatively small scale; (2) The opportunity exists, however, to create more workforce training programs that prepare low-income individuals for middle-skill job opportunities in the retail industry, if retail employers, particularly large national firms, and nonprofit providers work together to overcome current obstacles and disincentives to developing these training programs; and (3) Factors that constrain nonprofit workforce training providers from developing programs that target middle-skill jobs in retail are varied. The relatively limited opportunity for career advancement in entry-level retail positions dissuade many providers from spending scarce and valuable staff time trying to identify and target higher-wage niches in the industry. Human resource practices in the retail industry present additional challenges. Firms tend not to share information on recruitment and hiring for fear of losing a competitive edge; lean staffing of retail stores makes it hard for providers to find partners with the time to collaborate on the design of well-targeted programs; and retail firms that promote employees internally often train in-house rather than partnering with external providers.
Expanding METCO and Closing Achievement Gaps. White Paper No. 129
Author: Apfelbaum, Katherine
Date: 2015-03-00
Type: Reports - Evaluative
Subjects: Achievement Gap,Educational Opportunities,School Segregation,Racial Segregation,Population Trends,Trend Analysis,Racial Composition,Student Diversity,Low Income Students,Educational Trends,Minority Group Students,Graduation Rate,Mathematics Achievement,English,Language Arts,Enrollment Trends,Educational Finance,Expenditure per Student,Accountability,Statistical Distributions

School systems around the United States are heavily segregated by income and race. At the same time, an achievement gap between white and nonwhite students persists despite many efforts to close it. Against this background, in this white paper the authors explore the history and successes of the Metropolitan Council for Educational Opportunity program, better known as METCO. The paper begins by examining segregation in the United States and in Massachusetts. [This white paper contains a preface by Gerard Robinson.]
Great Teachers Are Not Born, They Are Made: Case Study Evidence from Massachusetts Charters. White Paper No. 130
Author: Candal, Cara Stillings
Date: 2015-04-00
Type: Reports - Evaluative
Subjects: Teacher Competencies,Charter Schools,Teacher Qualifications,Teacher Certification,Pedagogical Content Knowledge,Educational Quality,High Achievement,Teacher Characteristics,Grade 4,Grade 8,Reading Achievement,Mathematics Achievement,Teacher Persistence

In recent decades, the Commonwealth of Massachusetts has implemented reforms aimed at improving and controlling the quality of the teaching workforce in public schools. Among those reforms are tests for licensure that assess both general and content-area specific knowledge, requirements for ongoing teacher professional development, and procedures for teacher evaluation. Notable is the continued high performance of Massachusetts's commonwealth charter schools--schools that, by law, do not have to comply with requirements for teacher licensure. With a teaching workforce that is comparatively young, unlicensed, and slightly less likely to stay in the profession, Massachusetts's charter schools achieve stellar student achievement results. Evidence presented in this report from case studies of five high-performing charters schools from around the state reveal that these schools create highly effective teaching workforces in specific ways. The schools included in this report have varied but well defined philosophies about the importance of teacher retention and the need to build organizational pipelines to support the induction of new teacher recruits and the growth of more experienced faculty members.
Modeling Urban Scholarship Vouchers in Massachusetts. White Paper No. 134
Author: Ardon, Ken
Date: 2015-07-00
Type: Reports - Descriptive
Subjects: Urban Education,School Choice,Private Schools,Educational Vouchers,Scholarships,Legal Responsibility,Barriers,Low Income Groups,At Risk Students,Satisfaction,Racial Composition,Tax Credits,State Programs

For most families, their home address determines the school that their children will attend. While wealthier families can move to the community of their choice or choose a private school, lower-income families have fewer alternatives if they are not satisfied with their local schools. In the past two decades, many states have begun to subsidize private school choice through scholarship tax credits, educational savings accounts, and vouchers. These programs often target specific students such low-income, special needs, or students in struggling districts. In the 2015-16 school year 23 states will offer subsidies to roughly 400,000 students. Research consistently indicates that private school choice programs increase parents' satisfaction and have a positive impact on students. The positive outcomes may explain why states almost always expand private school choice programs in the years following implementation. Unfortunately, the Massachusetts Constitution includes an amendment that makes it impossible to enact a private-school choice program. While the legal barrier presents a high hurdle to proponents of increased choice, this paper models how a voucher program for low-income urban students might work in the Commonwealth. Vouchers have the potential to do many things--improve family satisfaction, reduce racial isolation, and strengthen educational outcomes for both the recipients and the children remaining in public schools--all at little or no net cost to taxpayers. The program described in this paper could provide 10,000 students from low-income families with the choices that other families already possess. A table titled: Low-Income Voucher Programs in the U.S. 2014-155 is appended. [This white paper includes a preface by Patrick J. Wolf.]
Massachusetts Charter Public Schools: Best Practices Using Data to Improve Student Achievement in Holyoke. White Paper No. 143
Author: Candal, Cara Stillings
Date: 2016-03-00
Type: Reports - Evaluative
Subjects: Charter Schools,Public Schools,Best Practices,Data Collection,Information Utilization,Academic Achievement,Criticism,Proprietary Schools,Partnerships in Education,Curriculum Development,Educational Assessment,Instruction,Testing,School Effectiveness,School Turnaround,School District Autonomy,Accountability

Holyoke Community Charter School (HCCS) provides high quality educational opportunities to students and families in a city where such opportunities are not widely available. A long waitlist, high lottery subscription, and low attrition rate are all evidence of community demand for the school. Student outcomes that surpass the district of Holyoke attract parents and help to put students on the path to college success. Despite its success, HCCS has been the target of charter critics because of its association with the for-profit educational management organization SABIS. Most critics are focused on the organization's worldwide presence and for-profit status. They are unable to describe the SABIS approach or the extent to which it enables students to succeed. They also have limited or inaccurate information about why schools would choose SABIS. This white paper shines a light on Holyoke Community Charter School and the SABIS-designed systems that the school uses; systems that relate to curriculum, assessments, and the gathering of school level data pertaining to both. Drawing upon school- and state-generated data and interviews with HCCS students and faculty, this cases study describes how SABIS's integrated approach to curriculum, assessment, and data-driven instruction engages students in a way that encourages them to take ownership of their own learning--something rarely seen in schools, especially at the K-8 level.
Building College Readiness before Matriculation: A Preview of a CUNY Start Evaluation. Research Brief
Author: Scrivener, Susan
Date: 2016-04-00
Type: Reports - Evaluative
Subjects: College Readiness,College Preparation,Developmental Programs,Academic Achievement,Outcomes of Education,Models,Transitional Programs,Noncredit Courses,Enrollment Rate,Institutional Characteristics,Program Effectiveness,Program Evaluation,Educational Change,Change Strategies

Graduation rates from community colleges in the United States are quite low overall, but they are even lower for the many entering students who need some remediation. This brief provides a first look at an evaluation of CUNY Start, an innovative developmental education program at the City University of New York (CUNY) that was designed to improve the success rates of its least prepared community college students. Participating students delay college matriculation for one semester, beginning instead with a semester of non-credit, time-intensive instruction in reading, writing, and mathematics; enhanced academic advising and tutoring; and a weekly &quot;College Success&quot; seminar. Students pay only $75 for CUNY Start, including the textbooks. The evaluation examines the effect of the program on students' academic outcomes compared with CUNY's traditional pathways for community college students who need significant developmental education. If CUNY Start is making a meaningful difference in boosting the success rates of students with very low basic skills, it will be a model for others to consider.
Expanding Access to Vocational-Technical Education in Massachusetts. White Paper No. 136
Author: Ardon, Ken
Date: 2015-10-00
Type: Reports - Evaluative
Subjects: Access to Education,Vocational Education,Technical Education,Career Education,Educational Finance,Budgets,Enrollment Trends,Dropout Rate,State Aid,Costs

It is clear from assessment, graduation, and follow-up data that career-vocational technical education (CVTE), as it is practiced in Massachusetts, is a success. CVTE is becoming so popular that there are up to 5,000 more applicants for places in Massachusetts' vocational technical schools than there are openings, creating waiting lists. This paper examines the conditions that have created the present predicament whereby there are waiting lists for vocational education, and 52 Massachusetts cities and towns do not have access to either district or regional career vocational technical programs. It also examines funding for vocational-technical education; while vocational-technical education is more expensive than traditional high school, it would cost the state less than ½% of the FY16 education budget to provide 5,000 more CVTE placements in Massachusetts.
FY2015 Analysis of the Teamwork USA Program. Memorandum
Author: Howard, Mark
Date: 2015-08-20
Type: Numerical/Quantitative Data
Subjects: Teamwork,Elementary School Students,Music Activities,Music Education,Statistical Significance,Student Characteristics,Achievement Gains,Program Effectiveness,Performance Based Assessment

The Department of Research and Evaluation (DRE) has completed an analysis of the performance of students who participated in the Teamwork USA Program, administered in FY2014 at three District schools. Teamwork USA hopes to improve student achievement at select Title I elementary schools via its Instrumental Music Program grant. This memorandum to Keith Oswald, Chief Academic Officer presents an assessment of the students' Spring FY2014 to Fall FY2015 performance on the Reading Running Records (RRR) assessments in Grades K-4. The results of the analysis indicate that there was no statistically significant increase in the percent fluent for Teamwork USA students. However, Teamwork USA students recorded substantial mean RRR gains between Spring FY2014 and Fall FY2015.
Setting Academic Performance Standards: MCAS vs. PARCC. Policy Brief
Author: Phelps, Richard P.
Date: 2015-11-00
Type: Reports - Evaluative
Subjects: Academic Standards,Educational Policy,Achievement Tests,College Readiness,Career Readiness,Standard Setting,Academic Achievement,Remedial Programs,Transitional Programs,College Preparation,Common Core State Standards

The Massachusetts Comprehensive Assessment System (MCAS) high school test is administered to all Bay State students--both those intending to enroll in college and the many with no such intention. The MCAS high school test is a retrospectively focused standards-based achievement test, designed to measure how well students have mastered the material in the MCAS standards. A February 2015 report of the pro-Common Core Massachusetts Business Alliance for Education (MBAE) claims that Common Core and PARCC (Partnership for Assessment of Readiness for College and Careers) will raise standards from the allegedly low level where (MCAS) lay. In this policy brief, Phelps concentrates on the &quot;Summary of Findings&quot; table (p.5 of the report), which purports to answer the question, &quot;Does the test identify students who are college- and career-ready? The MBAE report continues in its MCAS criticism: &quot;More than one-third of Massachusetts high school graduates who enroll at one of the state's public colleges or universities place into one or more noncredit-bearing, remedial courses.&quot; Meanwhile, on the other side of the table, where only laudatory praise resides for PARCC: &quot;Students receiving the PARCC college- and career-ready determination may be exempt from having to take and pass placement tests in two- and four-year public institutions of higher education.&quot; Here Phelps argues that If PARCC is successful, by the time it completes its studies &quot;to ensure that students [with above-proficient PARCC scores] have a high probability of passing entry-level, credit-bearing English and mathematics courses&quot; they may find that they actually do. But, the &quot;high probability&quot; will more likely be a result of lowered standards in entry-level college courses than raised standards at the high school level. Without placement tests and remedial courses, the standards of entry-level college courses will be forced down. Entry-level college courses will acquire the same content as today's remedial courses. The content of today's entry-level credit-bearing college courses will become the content for second- or third-year college courses. The MBAE (Massachusetts Business Alliance for Education) report suggests that the MCAS high school test scale is not robust enough at the high end of the scale to validly measure college readiness. More high-end content however could easily be added to the test.