ethanporcaro/eric-fulltext-meta huggingface dataset:
Can We Create a &quot;Gold Standard of Education&quot; for Our Children through the &quot;Advancement via Independent Determination (AVID) Program&quot;?
Author: Gaskins, Darlene
Date: 2014-11-00
Type: Reports - Evaluative
Subjects: Academic Achievement,Program Effectiveness,Public Schools,Mathematics Achievement,Scores,Comparative Analysis,Statistical Significance,High School Students,Critical Thinking,Charter Schools,Measures (Individuals),Validity,Problem Solving,Educational History,College Preparation,College Entrance Examinations,Remedial Mathematics,Grouping (Instructional Purposes),Ability Grouping,Educational Quality,Predictor Variables,Instructional Leadership,Student Motivation,Inquiry,Educational Change,Sustainability

We need to come together as a team and become one system of total quality improvement regarding the education of our nation's children. In order to achieve a gold standard in the education of our nation's children, leadership has to be willing to go against the status quo and build bridges for long-term sustainable change. In order to survive, organizations must create smart new strategies and strategic initiatives and implement them in ways that drive change fast enough, with sustainable results. Student achievement is the number one criteria under which schools are judged. Mathematical capability in the 21st century is the key determinant to productivity concerns. Proven improvement, continuous quality improvement (CQI) through the Advancement via independent determination (AVID) program could be the beginning of creating a &quot;gold standard of education&quot; for all children. Schools and communities should know if educational programs are providing results. This paper explores whether or not the implemented change program, AVID, successfully improved student's academic achievements in the public school system. The research will focus specifically on student's scores in mathematics. The research question is whether or not there is a statistically significant difference in the ACT mathematical scores between AVID elective 11th graders and non-AVID 11th graders. Current academic achievements in the public school system indicate the need for a collaborative approach between a traditional system and a change intervention. Appendices include: (1) AVID Secondary Certification Facts; (2) AVID Certification Report and Self Study Continuum; and (3) The Joy of Learning.
Headed to College the Effects of New York City's Small High Schools of Choice on Postsecondary Enrollment. Policy Brief
Author: Unterman, Rebecca
Date: 2014-10-00
Type: Reports - Research
Subjects: Urban Schools,Small Schools,High Schools,Selective Admission,Enrollment Trends,Academic Persistence,Postsecondary Education,Gender Differences,Minority Group Students,Academic Achievement,Academic Standards,Low Income Groups,School Effectiveness,Graduation Rate,Comparative Analysis,Control Groups,Experimental Groups,College Preparation,Institutional Characteristics,Grade 8

Taking advantage of lottery-like features in New York City's high school admissions process, previous MDRC reports have provided rigorous evidence that new small public high schools are narrowing the educational attainment gap and markedly improving high school graduation prospects, particularly for disadvantaged students. The new findings in this policy brief demonstrate that these schools are also having a sustained effect on students' enrollment and persistence in postsecondary education, with positive impacts for many different subgroups, including male and female students of color, students who partially or fully met their eighth-grade proficiency standards in math or English, and students eligible for free or reduced-price lunch. These gains involve postsecondary institutions representing a broad range of selectivity. Given available data, it is too early to determine the resulting effect on college degree attainment. [For &quot;Headed to College: The Effects of New York City's Small High Schools of Choice on Postsecondary Enrollment. Supplementary Tables for the Policy Brief,&quot; see ED553313.]
Evaluating Early Childhood Educators: Prekindergarten through Third Grade. Supplement to the &quot;Practical Guide to Designing Comprehensive Educator Evaluation Systems&quot;
Author: Martella, Jana
Date: 2014-10-00
Type: Reports - Evaluative
Subjects: Early Childhood Education,Preschool Evaluation,Preschool Teachers,Teacher Evaluation,Evaluation Methods,Guidelines,Educational Legislation,Faculty Development,Individual Differences,Individual Testing,Definitions,Teacher Characteristics,Design Preferences,Program Implementation,Institutional Characteristics,Measures (Individuals),Audiences,Guidance Objectives,State Regulation,Design Requirements,Achievement Rating,Educational Practices,Weighted Scores,Evaluation Criteria

Early childhood educators play a critical role in preparing students for success later in their school experience. The instructional techniques, emotional supports, and assessment approaches for early childhood settings are different from classroom settings in later grades. How can states and districts develop evaluation systems that are tuned to these differences to ensure that early childhood teachers receive accurate and fair evaluations and feedback? Designed as an extension to the GTL Center&apos;s resource, Practical Guide to Designing Comprehensive Teacher Evaluation Systems, this supplemental guide helps state and district teams to problem-solve and make design decisions to differentiate evaluation systems for early childhood teachers. The supplemental guide is organized into four sections: (1) Statutory and regulatory requirements that guide the development of educator evaluation systems and that detail inclusive and exclusive criteria used to determine which early childhood educators are subject to evaluation per the regulations and policy decisions. (2) Suitability and need for differentiation within measures of instructional/teacher practice and student growth based upon specific national/state professional association standards and relevant student growth and outcome information. (3) Professional learning for evaluators designed to guide and assist state and local teams in the recognition, evaluation, and support of best practices for evaluators of early childhood educators. (4) Professional learning for teachers designed to assist early education teachers to enhance and move toward best practices. Each section includes state-level examples and a series of questions you can use to facilitate an evaluation design process that better accounts for the early childhood classroom context. This supplement includes an Appendix: Practical Example.
Self-Assessing Social and Emotional Instruction and Competencies: A Tool for Teachers
Author: Yoder, Nicholas
Date: 2014-02-00
Type: Reports - Descriptive
Subjects: Social Development,Emotional Development,Self Evaluation (Individuals),Correlation,Academic Achievement,Skill Development,Interpersonal Competence,Teacher Competencies,Teaching Methods,Teacher Evaluation,Interaction,Evaluation Methods,Planning,Teacher Role,Student Role,Decision Making,Self Management

Social and emotional learning (SEL) is crucial for improved educational attainment. As teachers help students achieve new college and career readiness standards, they need to use teaching practices that promote student social and emotional learning in the classroom. Our new resource, &quot;Self-Assessing Social and Emotional Instruction and Competencies: A Tool For Teachers,&quot; helps teachers reflect and assess how well their own teaching practices support SEL for students. In the tool, teachers can self-assess on 10 teaching practices that support social and emotional learning for students, which we identified in our recent brief, &quot;Teaching the Whole Child: Instructional Practices That Support Social and Emotional Learning in Three Teacher Evaluation Frameworks.&quot; The self-assessment tool, however, goes beyond these 10 teaching practices. Teachers also need to strengthen their own social and emotional skills to implement the 10 teaching practices successfully. The tool includes five teacher social and emotional competencies for users to reflect on including: self-awareness; self-management/emotion regulation; social awareness; relationship/social skills; and responsible decision making. Download this crucial social emotional learning resource today and use it to reflect on your own SEL practice, or bring together teachers in your school to use as part of a professional learning activity. This tool also contains the appendices: (1) Ten Teaching Practices That Promote SEL; and (2) Teacher Social and Emotional Competencies.
Balancing Autonomy and Comparability: State Approaches to Assessment Selection for Student Learning Objectives. Ask the Team
Author: Cushing, Ellen
Date: 2014-11-00
Type: Reports - Descriptive
Subjects: Educational Assessment,Professional Autonomy,Academic Achievement,State Policy

States take a wide range of approaches to Student Learning Objectives (SLO) assessment selection. This &quot;Ask the Team&quot; brief helps states consider the trade-offs between approaches that offer more teacher choice and those that offer better comparability across SLOs. The brief identifies four common approaches to selecting SLO assessments: (1) The teacher or teacher team chooses the assessment(s) to use in SLOs; (2) The state or district provides assessment criteria or a bank of available assessment options; (3) The state or district provides a list of required assessments; and (4) The state or district requires that SLOs be based on common assessments. In addition to the benefits and challenges of each approach, you will read about state and district examples from the field.
Access Matters: Meeting the Nation&apos;s College Completion Goals Requires Large Increases in Need-Based Grant Aid
Author: Advisory Committee on Student Financial Assistance
Date: 2013-00-00
Type: Reports - Evaluative
Subjects: Access to Education,College Graduates,Low Income Groups,Bachelors Degrees,Federal Aid,Disproportionate Representation,Paying for College,Academic Persistence,Educational Trends,Trend Analysis,Educational Policy,Educational Attainment,Graduation Rate,High School Graduates,Enrollment Trends,Enrollment Rate,Financial Support,Family Income,Student Costs,Student Loan Programs,Debt (Financial),Declining Enrollment,Ethnicity,Racial Differences,Economic Impact,Change Strategies,Educational Assessment,Educational Indicators,Longitudinal Studies

This document addresses the status of equality in access to higher education. Some of the motivating factors behind this presentation include: (1) College completion rates including rates of bachelor&apos;s degree completion are falling today, particularly among young Americans; (2) Reversing the current trend and increasing college completion has become an imperative at all levels of American government; (3) The possibility of limiting or redirecting federal need-based grant aid, which could prove counterproductive; and (4) The belief that America&apos;s 2020 goals cannot be met without increases in need-based grant aid from all sources. In this presentation, the Advisory Committee addresses the following questions: How Unequal is Access to College and Why?, How Unaffordable is College--And For Whom?, How are Access and Persistence Related?, What Implications Can Be Drawn For the Future?, and What are ACSFA Findings and Recommendations? The analyses uses data from five National Center for Education Statistics (NCES) reports: (1) The National Education Longitudinal Study of 1988; (2) The Education Longitudinal Study of 2002; (3) The Beginning Postsecondary Students; (4) The National Postsecondary Student Aid Study; and (5) The Integrated Postsecondary Education Data Systems.
Is College Affordable? Are Loans Manageable? What Do Colleges&apos; Net Price Calculators Show? Policy Bulletin
Author: Advisory Committee on Student Financial Assistance
Date: 2012-11-27
Type: Reports - Evaluative
Subjects: Access to Education,Paying for College,Student Loan Programs,Student Costs,Finance Reform,Financial Policy,Financial Needs,Parent Financial Contribution,Debt (Financial),Input Output Analysis,College Outcomes Assessment,Computation,Bachelors Degrees

A review of net price calculators--a financial aid tool mandated by the &quot;Higher Education Opportunity Act&quot; of 2008--reveals that students from low-, moderate-, and middle-income families face record-level net prices at 4-year public colleges today. These net prices will translate into levels of average total loan burden far in excess of $27,000--the level often cited in current policy discussions as total borrowing by students who have completed college. While this level is useful in assessing whether loan burden is reasonable and manageable for those who have completed college, it cannot be used to assess whether the total level of borrowing that families must undertake to finance completion of a bachelor&apos;s degree today is manageable. Today&apos;s net prices at 4-year public colleges and universities will take an enormous toll on the enrollment, persistence, and completion rates of students from low-, moderate-, and middle-income families, even if income-contingent loan repayment is improved and expanded. Failing to increase total need-based grant aid, which data from net price calculators show is clearly inadequate, will greatly exacerbate these losses and undermine student success. To be useful to policymakers, the higher education community&apos;s conversation about college completion, need-based grant aid, and student loan policy must be based on a frank and accurate assessment of the loan levels required to complete a bachelor&apos;s degree today and in the future.
Building Leadership Capacity in California's Public Education Systems: Lessons from the SCALE Initiative
Author: Knudson, Joel
Date: 2014-12-00
Type: Reports - Descriptive
Subjects: Capacity Building,Public Education,Interviews,Instructional Leadership,Observation,Workshops,Program Effectiveness,Partnerships in Education,Decision Making,Educational Administration,Facilitators (Individuals),Content Analysis,Interpersonal Relationship,Confidentiality,Trust (Psychology),Attendance,Group Membership

This report documents the history and evolution of the Stuart Foundation California Leaders in Education (SCALE) Initiative through 2014. It tells the story of how the work began, what it entails, and how it has developed across time. The report also identifies lessons learned from the SCALE experience. These lessons can inform the participants of the initiative itself as they continue their work together, as well as other educators who might seek to create similar learning and networking opportunities to improve their own systems. The report draws on three primary data sources. The first is a set of interviews conducted in late spring and early summer 2014 with the active participants in the SCALE Initiative, including all active system leaders and representatives from both Bain &amp; Company and California Education Partners. (See Appendix A for a complete list of interviewees.) The second data source is direct observation of three of the group's six workshops that took place in 2013 and 2014. The third data source is a document review from early planning conversations among initiative participants and from each of the six workshops, including prereading materials, tools, slide presentations, and products from the workshops of the participants' work together. The pages that follow address several questions key to understanding the SCALE Initiative. (1) What is the history of the initiative? What does it look like, and how has it evolved? (2) How do participants describe their experience with the SCALE Initiative? (3) What elements of the initiative have been the most effective? (4) What elements of the initiative have posed the greatest challenges? (5) What lessons can we learn from the SCALE Initiative? In answering these questions, this report can inform the broader field of education stakeholders about ways in which school system leaders can best contribute to student success.
Educational Equity, Adequacy, and Equal Opportunity in the Commonwealth: An Evaluation of Pennsylvania's School Finance System
Author: Baker, Bruce
Date: 2014-10-00
Type: Reports - Evaluative
Subjects: Educational Finance,Public Schools,Disadvantaged Schools,School Districts,Financial Support,Equal Education,Educational Policy,State Policy,Educational Change,Outcomes of Education,Costs,Models,Educational Assessment,College Entrance Examinations,College Readiness,Educational History,Educational Trends,Vignettes,State Legislation

Pennsylvania has historically operated one of the nation's least equitable state school finance systems, and within that system exist some of the nation's most fiscally disadvantaged public school districts. The persistent inequalities of Pennsylvania's school finance system are not entirely a result of simple lack of effort, as policies intended to mitigate inequities serve in some cases to exacerbate them. This report provides an overview of the state of school funding in Pennsylvania, a review of current conceptions of educational equity, adequacy and equal opportunity, empirical methods for measuring education costs, current policies across states and recent reforms. The review is organized in three chapters. The first summarizes the current status of the school funding system and student outcomes in Pennsylvania. The second outlines conceptions of equity, adequacy and equal educational opportunity and provides an overview and critique of methods for measuring educational adequacy and informing state school finance policy. The report concludes with an overview of the current landscape of school finance policy, and the intersection between emerging evidence on education costs and state school finance policy design. Appended are: (1) Data Sources; (2) Adjustment Factors in BEF; (3) Pennsylvania Confirmatory Analysis; (4) All States Adjusted NAEP Comparisons; (5) Correlations between Traditional Equity and Neutrality Indicators and Funding Fairness Indicators; (6) Fiscal Neutrality Coefficients; (7) Fixed and Random Effects Models of Gaps and Outcomes; (8) Bridging Pennsylvania State Assessments and SAT College Readiness Benchmarks; (9) Economies of Scale in Education; (10) New York Reforms; and (11) Rhode Island Numbers Games.
Building Leadership Talent through Performance Evaluation
Author: Clifford, Matthew
Date: 2015-01-00
Type: Reports - Descriptive
Subjects: Leadership Training,Talent Development,Capacity Building,Leadership,Professional Development,Principals,Best Practices,Standards,Guidelines,Administrator Evaluation,Evaluation Methods,Evaluation Utilization

Most states and districts scramble to provide professional development to support principals, but &quot;principal evaluation&quot; is often lost amid competing priorities. Evaluation is an important method for supporting principal growth, communicating performance expectations to principals, and improving leadership practice. It provides leaders with evidence for reflection--a critical first step for professional learning and development. To help school leaders achieve their goals, American Institutes for Research (AIR) has engaged with educators at the state level to design the &quot;Five Essential Practices of School Leadership&quot; framework. Frameworks are the backbone of any performance evaluation system, identifying levels of performance and the professional practices that matter most. Unlike state or national standards (e.g., the Interstate School Leaders Licensure Consortium standards) that broadly describe what principals should do, frameworks describe levels of performance in observable and measurable terms. AIR and its clients are using this framework for principal coaching, self-reflection, and performance evaluation to facilitate principal growth with accountability. With input from more than 200 educators and more than 100 research studies on principals&apos; approaches to school improvement, AIR designed the Five Essential Practices of School Leadership framework. These practices are as follows: (1) Build shared purpose. The leader develops a compelling, shared organizational vision and assures that the vision is &quot;lived&quot; in the daily work of educators. (2) Focus on learning. The leader engages in instructional leadership to develop and maintain student access to appropriate, ambitious, and strong instructional programs focused on academic excellence and social-emotional development. (3) Manage organizational resources. The leader acts strategically and systematically to create safe and supportive conditions for better teaching and learning by aligning financial assets, human resources, data, and other resources. (4) Collaborate with community. The leader assures that parents and community organizations are engaged with the school. (5) Lead with integrity. The leader models professionalism by acting with integrity and making his or her learning visible. The framework is designed to support principals in developing their own professional goals and to provide them with an approach for reflection on their practices, but other stakeholders and professionals in the field can take full advantage of this tool.
Prospective EFL Teachers' Perceptions of Listening Comprehension Problems in Turkey
Author: Solak, Ekrem
Date: 2014-00-00
Type: Reports - Research
Subjects: Foreign Countries,Preservice Teachers,English (Second Language),Second Language Learning,Second Language Instruction,Listening Comprehension,Listening Skills,Language Teachers,Student Attitudes,Questionnaires,Computer Software,Gender Differences

Listening skill has been called as the &quot;Cinderella Skill&quot; which is overlooked by its elder sister speaking in language learning. Therefore, the purpose of the study was to reemphasize the importance of listening skill in ELT context and to determine prospective English teachers' perceptions of listening comprehension problems. The study was conducted at ELT Department at a state-run University in Turkey and subjects were 124 prospective English teachers. The questionnaire on the &quot;Beliefs on English Language Listening Comprehension Problems&quot; was used to collect data to assess prospective teachers' beliefs about the English language listening comprehension problems they could encounter in unidirectional listening. The data was analyzed in SPSS program. The study revealed that participants used top-down processes effectively during the listening process, but they were not so good at using bottom-up processes. In addition, no significant difference was found in terms of genders' perceptions of listening problems.