ethanporcaro/eric-fulltext-meta huggingface dataset:
Federal Student Aid Controls over the School Verification Process. Inspection Report. ED-OIG/I06S0001
Author: Office of Inspector General (ED)
Date: 2021-05-20
Type: Reports - Evaluative
Subjects: Student Financial Aid,Audits (Verification),Public Agencies,Compliance (Legal),Program Evaluation,Management Information Systems,Guidance,Higher Education,College Students,Reports,Federal Government

The objective of this inspection was to describe Federal Student Aid's (FSA) control activities over institutional processes for completing verification and reporting verification results in accordance with Federal requirements. The inspection covered award years 2016-2017 and 2017-2018 (July 1, 2016, through June 30, 2018). It was found that FSA implemented control activities over institutional processes for completing verification procedures and reporting verification results. Specifically, five significant control activities over these processes were identified: (1) annual compliance audits; (2) program reviews; (3) W code reports; (4) management information system (MIS) reports; and (5) verification guidance. It was found that FSA performed ongoing monitoring of the verification guidance control activity; but FSA did not monitor the other control activities on a regular basis. However, in September 2018, FSA's Enterprise Risk Management (ERM) group issued a document titled &quot;Verification Internal Review Report&quot; (ERM Report) that described its separate evaluation of the processes FSA had in place to ensure institutions performed verification. It was found that FSA did not address all of the control issues identified in the ERM Report and did not always determine the appropriate corrective actions or complete or document the corrective actions taken. The following recommendations are provided for FSA's Acting Chief Operating Officer: (1) establish and operate monitoring activities, including ongoing monitoring, separate evaluations, or a combination of the two to obtain reasonable assurance of the operating effectiveness of FSA's verification control activities; (2) establish processes to ensure that FSA management evaluates and documents corrective actions, or if corrective actions are not warranted, for verification control weaknesses identified by monitoring activities; and (3) for issues identified with its verification control activities in the 2018 ERM Report and other monitoring activities, ensure that FSA management evaluates and documents corrective actions, or if corrective actions are not warranted. FSA agreed with the findings and all but one recommendation.
An Analysis of Grade Boundary Marks in A Levels and GCSEs if the 2020 &apos;Standard&apos; Was Applied to 2019 Results. Research Report
Author: Gill, Tim
Date: 2020-12-18
Type: Numerical/Quantitative Data
Subjects: Academic Standards,Grades (Scholastic),Secondary Education,Exit Examinations,Foreign Countries,Test Score Decline,Mathematics,Latin,Computer Science,English Literature,Intellectual Disciplines

The aim of this research was to determine the standard that was effectively applied to General Certificates of Secondary Education (GCSE) and A levels in June 2020 by the decision to accept the maximum of the centre-assessed grade and the calculated grade. The data for this analysis came from the results tables for GCSEs and A levels in 2019 and 2020 in the ISP warehouse. Results show that overall, the mean fall in the grade boundaries was 0.76 of a grade. The subject means varied between 0.45 of a grade for Maths (specification B) and 1.42 of a grade for Latin. The largest mean for a subject with more than 1,000 students was for Computer Science (1.05). The biggest reduction at an individual grade was at grade E on English Literature (3.28), which saw the grade boundary fall from 89 in the actual June 2019 to 24 if the 2020 standard was applied. There were some interesting differences in the average changes at each grade. There was a clear pattern whereby the size of the change was higher at lower grades. The gap between actual 2019 and adjusted 2019 boundaries tended to be higher for lower grades.
Chartered for Profit: The Hidden World of Charter Schools Operated for Financial Gain
Author: Burris, Carol
Date: 2021-00-00
Type: Reports - Research
Subjects: Charter Schools,Proprietary Schools,State Legislation,Laws,Educational Finance,Corporations,Low Income Students,Federal Legislation,At Risk Students,Students with Disabilities,English Language Learners,Enrollment,Public Schools

In this report, we focus on the world of charter schools run for profit, a world both hidden and misunderstood. We pull back the veil on tactics and practices designed to reap as many public dollars as possible from charter schools while hiding behind laws designed to keep profit-making hidden from the public's eyes. This report exposes how both large and small for-profit companies evade state laws that make for-profit charter schools illegal by the use of related entities and a nonprofit front. We explain and provide examples of how for-profit owners maximize their profits through self-dealing, excessive fees, real estate transactions, and under-serving students who need the most expensive services.
International Models to Streamline VET Qualifications: Case Studies. Support Document
Author: Wibrow, Bridget
Date: 2021-00-00
Type: Reports - Research
Subjects: Foreign Countries,Vocational Education,Labor Needs,Industry,Employment Qualifications,Cultural Differences,Stakeholders,Institutional Role,Job Training,Time,Standards,School Business Relationship,College School Cooperation,International Cooperation,Secondary Education,Postsecondary Education,School Role,Consultation Programs,Program Development,Job Skills,Quality Assurance,Apprenticeships,Cooperative Planning

This project is focused on the second element noted by the Australian Industry Skills Committee (AISC) to streamline the national vocational education and training (VET) system so that it can better respond to the needs of industry -- faster development of qualifications. It looks at the vocational qualification development processes in different countries to see how they compare with Australia in terms of timeframe, the stakeholders or bodies involved, and qualification design. The information contained in the case studies is based on desktop-based research examining the qualification development process in several countries including: Canada, Finland, New Zealand, Singapore, South Africa, the United Kingdom, and the United States. The level of publicly available detail on processes varies for each country. The desktop-based research has been supplemented by contacting individuals within relevant agencies overseas but, overall, this approach had limited success. The key findings from this research are presented in this report, followed by a discussion of the similarities and differences between the development process in Australia and the comparison countries. Detailed information on each country is then presented thereafter. This document was produced by the authors based on their research for the report &quot;Vocational Qualification Development: Lessons from Overseas&quot; (ED612841) and is an added resource for further information.
Asleep at the Wheel: How the Federal Charter Schools Program Recklessly Takes Taxpayers and Students for a Ride
Author: Burris, Carol
Date: 2019-00-00
Type: Reports - Evaluative
Subjects: Charter Schools,Federal Programs,Federal Aid,Educational Finance,Grants,Deception,School Closing,School Effectiveness,Public Agencies,Federal State Relationship,Access to Education,Educational Discrimination,Elementary Secondary Education

This report details the Network for Public Education's two month examination of the U.S. Department of Education's Charter Schools Program (CSP). Our investigation found a troubling pattern of insufficient applicant review, contradictions between information provided by applicants and available public data, the gifting of funds to schools with inadequate financial and governance plans, a push-out of large grants to the states with little supervision by the department, and the waste of hundreds of millions of taxpayer dollars. By comparing claims made by charter grant applicants to information on state databases and school websites, we found numerous examples of federal tax dollars being misspent due to an inattentive process that routinely accepts applicants' claims without scrutiny. We found that it is likely that as many as one third of all charter schools receiving CSP grants never opened, or opened and shut down. In fact, the failure rates for grant-awarded charter schools in California has reached nearly four in ten. American taxpayers have a right to demand that their tax dollars not be wasted. Tax dollars that flow to charter schools that never opened or quickly close should not be considered the cost of doing business. And a program with a stated commitment to spread &quot;high-quality&quot; schools should not be a major funding source for schools that leave families in the lurch and promote discriminatory enrollment practices that increase segregation and unequal opportunity for students with disabilities, behavioral challenges or English language learner status. We cannot afford to continue to pump hundreds of millions of dollars into a program whose stewards are clearly asleep at the wheel. [For &quot;Still Asleep at the Wheel: How the Federal Charter Schools Program Results in a Pile Up of Fraud and Waste,&quot; see ED612868.]
Iowa K-12 &amp; School Choice Survey
Author: Catt, Andrew D.
Date: 2021-01-00
Type: Reports - Research
Subjects: Elementary Secondary Education,School Choice,State Surveys,Educational Finance,Scholarships,Tax Credits,Charter Schools,Private Schools,Public Schools,Individual Differences,Political Attitudes,Rural Urban Differences

The purpose of the &quot;Iowa K-12 &amp; School Choice Survey&quot; is to measure public opinion on, and in some cases awareness or knowledge of, a range of K-12 education topics and school choice reforms. EdChoice and the Iowa Alliance for Choice in Education developed this project in partnership with Braun Research, Inc., which conducted the online interviews and live phone call interviews, collected the survey data, and provided data quality control. This report explores the following topics and questions: (1) In which direction do Iowans think K-12 education in the state is heading?; (2) Do they believe district schools are adequately funded?; (3) How would they rate the various types of schooling options in the state in general and in their area specifically?; (4) What sort of schooling options would they prefer for their own children?; (5) How supportive are Iowans of the various types of educational choice programs?; (6) What are their views on Iowa's current educational choice program?; and (7) How has the coronavirus pandemic changed their children's education? [This report was produced with the Iowa Alliance for Choice in Education.]
Still Asleep at the Wheel: How the Federal Charter Schools Program Results in a Pile Up of Fraud and Waste
Author: Burris, Carol
Date: 2020-01-00
Type: Reports - Evaluative
Subjects: Charter Schools,Federal Programs,Federal Aid,Educational Finance,Grants,Deception,Elementary Secondary Education,Failure,Corporations,School Administration

&quot;Still Asleep at the Wheel&quot; continues the investigation of the U.S. Department of Education's Charter Schools Program (CSP) that began with the March 2019 report &quot;Asleep at the Wheel: How the Federal Charter Schools Program Recklessly Takes Taxpayers and Students for a Ride&quot; (ED612862). This report takes up where the first report left off, providing detailed information, state by state, on how federal dollars were doled out to schools that no longer exist or never existed at all. This report (which was revised in January of 2020), documents over a half-billion dollars that were wasted on defunct charter schools that had an active CSP grant from school years (SY) 2006-07-SY 2013-14. Prior to 2006, the U.S. Department of Education did not require the states to report the names and status of the schools to which they gave CSP funds. According to the analysis, 37% of the charter schools that were funded by CSP during those years either never opened (11%) or opened and then closed (26%). That figure is the result of the investigation of the status of nearly 5,000 charter schools that received funds from CSP. This report recommends that Congress end appropriations for new charter school grants in the upcoming budget and continue funding only for obligated amounts to legitimate projects. Once those grants have been closed, it is recommended that the CSP be ended and that charter schools continue to receive federal support only through other federal funding streams such as Title I and IDEA. Students, not charter school entrepreneurs, should benefit from federal funds.
Understanding Access to and Participation in Dual Enrollment by Locale and Income Level. REL 2021-089
Author: Gagnon, Douglas
Date: 2021-05-00
Type: Reports - Research
Subjects: Dual Enrollment,High School Students,College Credits,Access to Education,Geographic Regions,Institutional Characteristics,Low Income Students,Socioeconomic Influences,Rural Areas,Urban Areas,Suburbs,Municipalities,College Readiness,Career Readiness,Enrollment Rate,High Schools,Grade 11,Grade 12,Student Characteristics

By providing students with an opportunity to take college courses and earn college credits while in high school, dual enrollment programs effectively increase college access, enrollment, and degree attainment. Such programs might be particularly beneficial for high school students who might be less likely to go to college, including students from rural areas and low-income households. Given the comparatively rural geography of the Regional Educational Laboratory (REL) Central region, stakeholders need a comprehensive resource for understanding dual enrollment access and participation in their states in order to support the identification of strategies to expand opportunities for college and career preparation. This report presents information on patterns in dual enrollment access and participation for the 2017/18 school year in the REL Central states (Colorado, Kansas, Missouri, Nebraska, North Dakota, South Dakota, and Wyoming) and the region as a whole and compares these state and regional patterns with national patterns. The report also reveals how dual enrollment access and participation varied with school characteristics, including school locale (city, suburban, town, or rural) and percentage of students from low-income households. The study found that dual enrollment access and participation were higher in the REL Central region than nationally. Additionally, students in rural and city locales tended to have lower dual enrollment access than did their peers in town and suburban locales. In contrast, dual enrollment participation was generally higher for students in rural and town locales than for their peers in city locales. In some states, however, both dual enrollment access and participation were higher in rural and town schools than in city schools. The study also found that in the REL Central region and nationally, schools serving higher percentages of students from low-income households had higher dual enrollment access and participation than did schools serving lower percentages of students from low-income households. Education leaders can use the study findings to advance progress toward state and district postsecondary readiness goals and to inform the development of supports or incentives related to dual enrollment. [For the Study Brief, see ED612870. For the Study Snapshot, see ED612871. For the appendix, see ED612872.]
Understanding Access to and Participation in Dual Enrollment by Locale and Income Level. Study Brief. REL 2021-089
Author: Gagnon, D.
Date: 2021-05-00
Type: Reports - Research
Subjects: Dual Enrollment,High School Students,College Credits,Access to Education,Geographic Regions,Institutional Characteristics,Low Income Students,Socioeconomic Influences,Rural Areas,Urban Areas,Suburbs,Municipalities,College Readiness,Career Readiness,Enrollment Rate,High Schools,Grade 11,Grade 12,Student Characteristics

By providing students with an opportunity to take college courses and earn college credits while in high school, dual enrollment programs effectively increase college access, enrollment, and degree attainment. Such programs might be particularly beneficial for high school students who might be less likely to go to college, including students from rural areas and low-income households. Given the comparatively rural geography of the Regional Educational Laboratory (REL) Central region, stakeholders need a comprehensive resource for understanding dual enrollment access and participation in their states in order to support the identification of strategies to expand opportunities for college and career preparation. This report presents information on patterns in dual enrollment access and participation for the 2017/18 school year in the REL Central states (Colorado, Kansas, Missouri, Nebraska, North Dakota, South Dakota, and Wyoming) and the region as a whole and compares these state and regional patterns with national patterns. The report also reveals how dual enrollment access and participation varied with school characteristics, including school locale (city, suburban, town, or rural) and percentage of students from low-income households. The study found that dual enrollment access and participation were higher in the REL Central region than nationally. Additionally, students in rural and city locales tended to have lower dual enrollment access than did their peers in town and suburban locales. In contrast, dual enrollment participation was generally higher for students in rural and town locales than for their peers in city locales. In some states, however, both dual enrollment access and participation were higher in rural and town schools than in city schools. The study also found that in the REL Central region and nationally, schools serving higher percentages of students from low-income households had higher dual enrollment access and participation than did schools serving lower percentages of students from low-income households. Education leaders can use the study findings to advance progress toward state and district postsecondary readiness goals and to inform the development of supports or incentives related to dual enrollment. [For the full report, see ED612869. For the Study Snapshot, see ED612871. For the appendix, see ED612872.]
Understanding Access to and Participation in Dual Enrollment by Locale and Income Level. Study Snapshot. REL 2021-089
Author: National Center for Education Evaluation and Regional Assistance (ED)
Date: 2021-05-00
Type: Reports - Descriptive
Subjects: Dual Enrollment,High School Students,College Credits,Access to Education,Geographic Regions,Institutional Characteristics,Low Income Students,Socioeconomic Influences,Rural Areas,Urban Areas,Suburbs,Municipalities,College Readiness,Career Readiness,Enrollment Rate,High Schools,Grade 11,Grade 12,Student Characteristics

This Study Snapshot highlights key findings from a larger study exploring patterns in dual enrollment access and participation for the 2017/18 school year in the REL Central states (Colorado, Kansas, Missouri, Nebraska, North Dakota, South Dakota, and Wyoming). The study also explored how dual enrollment access and participation varied with school characteristics, including school locale (city, suburban, town, or rural) and percentage of students from low-income households. Stakeholders need a comprehensive resource for understanding dual enrollment access and participation in their states in order to support the identification of strategies to expand opportunities for college and career preparation. [For the full report, see ED612869. For the Study Brief, see ED612870. For the appendix, see ED612872.]
Understanding Access to and Participation in Dual Enrollment by Locale and Income Level. Appendix. REL 2021-089
Author: National Center for Education Evaluation and Regional Assistance (ED)
Date: 2021-05-00
Type: Reports - Research
Subjects: Dual Enrollment,High School Students,College Credits,Access to Education,Geographic Regions,Institutional Characteristics,Low Income Students,Socioeconomic Influences,Rural Areas,Urban Areas,Suburbs,Municipalities,College Readiness,Career Readiness,Enrollment Rate,High Schools,Grade 11,Grade 12,Student Characteristics

The &quot;Understanding Access to and Participation in Dual Enrollment by Locale and Income Level&quot; study explored patterns in dual enrollment access and participation for the 2017/18 school year in the REL Central states (Colorado, Kansas, Missouri, Nebraska, North Dakota, South Dakota, and Wyoming). The report also revealed how dual enrollment access and participation varied with school characteristics, including school locale (city, suburban, town, or rural) and percentage of students from low-income households. The study found that dual enrollment access and participation were higher in the REL Central region than nationally. Additionally, students in rural and city locales tended to have lower dual enrollment access than did their peers in town and suburban locales. This document presents the following appendix that accompanies the study: (1) Data and methodology. [For the full report, see ED612869. For the Study Brief, see ED612870. For the Study Snapshot, see ED612871.]
What Should We Really Learn from New Orleans after the Storm? 10 Years after Katrina
Author: Baker, Bruce D.
Date: 2018-00-00
Type: Reports - Evaluative
Subjects: Natural Disasters,Educational Policy,Educational Change,Academic Achievement,College Attendance,Academic Persistence,Graduation,Program Effectiveness,Poverty,Educational Finance,Financial Support,Resource Allocation,Governance,Educational Needs,Change Strategies,Educational Quality,Equal Education,Low Income Students,At Risk Students,Students with Disabilities,Minority Group Students,English Language Learners,Language Arts,Mathematics Achievement,Public Schools,Elementary Secondary Education

In July of 2018, the Education Research Alliance for New Orleans released a comprehensive, summative longitudinal report on the effects on student outcomes of the package of reforms implemented in New Orleans following hurricane Katrina in the fall of 2005. This policy brief reviews the findings of this report by Douglas Harris and Matthew Larsen, offers critique of their methods and interpretation of findings and attempts to provide broader policy context for those findings. In summary, Harris and Larsen find significant positive effects of Post-Katrina New Orleans school reforms on short-term student achievement measures, and longer term college attendance, persistence and completion. They attribute these results to the &quot;market-based&quot; reforms adopted following Katrina, and go to great lengths to dismiss or downplay threats to the validity of this conclusion. But for many reasons, that attribution may be misguided.