ethanporcaro/eric-fulltext-meta huggingface dataset:
The Cognitive Science behind the Common Core
Author: Marchitello, Max
Date: 2014-09-00
Type: Reports - Descriptive
Subjects: Common Core State Standards,Cognitive Science,Scaffolding (Teaching Technique),Educational Research,Literacy,Mathematics Instruction,Conventional Instruction,Cooperative Learning,Problem Based Learning,Active Learning,Student Projects,Elementary Secondary Education,Teacher Expectations of Students,Academic Achievement,Teaching Methods

Raising academic standards has been part of the education policy discourse for decades. As early as the 1990s, states and school districts attempted to raise student achievement by developing higher standards and measuring student progress according to more rigorous benchmarks. However, the caliber of the standards--and their assessments--varied greatly from state to state. For example, Massachusetts adopted some of the highest standards and most challenging exams in the country and has some of the highest-achieving students in the nation. On the other hand, Mississippi set a low bar, and the state's students are often ill prepared for college and careers. Recognizing that the previous patchwork system did not work, a group of bipartisan governors and state superintendents came together to develop a shared set of more rigorous, internationally benchmarked academic standards in English language arts and mathematics called the Common Core State Standards. Some worry that the standards have not been proven to improve student learning, as they were entirely new as of 2010. However, the Common Core is grounded in the latest cognitive science regarding how students learn. A review of the research base for the standards found that the Common Core promotes greater student learning in the following key ways: (1) Scaffolding student learning to provide a strong knowledge base on which new ideas and concepts are stacked; (2) Holding all students to high expectations, which promotes greater student achievement and growth; (3) Incorporating the latest research on how students learn to read to help close the literacy gap; (4) Employing both the traditional method of teaching math and conceptual strategies to provide students with a strong understanding of math and the skills to apply it; (5) Increasing the opportunities for students to learn from their peers and collaborate on assignments, which improves learning and interpersonal skills; and (6) Promoting problem- and project-based learning, which leads to a deeper understanding of concepts. If teachers and students are supported with high-quality curricula and instructional materials, a properly implemented Common Core will help prepare students to be complex problem solvers, as well as critical thinkers and readers. These six research-based practices get to the heart of how the Common Core will make that goal a reality for all students.
Elementary and Secondary Education Act Flexibility Waivers: Are States Using Flexibility to Expand Learning Time in Schools?
Author: Miller, Tiffany D.
Date: 2013-12-00
Type: Reports - Evaluative
Subjects: Federal Legislation,Educational Legislation,Elementary Secondary Education,Compliance (Legal),Accountability,Extended School Day,School Turnaround,State Policy,Statewide Planning,Academic Achievement,School Districts,Common Core State Standards,Professional Development,Achievement Gap,Standards,Guidelines,Program Implementation

The Center for American Progress previously examined the extent to which states applying for first-round Elementary and Secondary Education Act (ESEA) flexibility waivers in 2012 planned to expand in-school learning time to turn around low-performing schools. This report provides an up-to-date review of states' ESEA flexibility plans and assesses the extent, if any, to which states have strategically thought about how expanded learning time can support school turnaround efforts. In doing so, reviewers examined the &quot;Principle 2: State-Developed Differentiated Recognition, Accountability, and Support&quot; section of all state plans for submission windows one through three. Specifically, the analysis focused on the extent to which each state plan outlined its intent to either use more time as part of its strategy to turn around its lowest-performing schools, or redesign the school day to reach student-achievement goals. Among states that requested flexible use of 21st Century Community Learning Centers (CCLC) funds, reviewers looked for details about its planned use. State plans were grouped in part based on the level of detail provided in three research-based building blocks for the effective use of increased learning time for core academics, enrichment opportunities, and teacher collaboration. States that provided the most detailed information were considered &quot;standouts.&quot; Only four state plans met these criteria: Connecticut, Colorado, New York, and Massachusetts. Six out of 42 states demonstrated a commitment to increased learning time but did not provide enough detail. The majority of states--32 out of 42--did not think strategically about how increased learning time could complement school turnaround plans and increase academic achievement. As a result of the analysis, the following recommendations are included: (1) States develop guidelines promoting high-quality expanded learning time; (2) States develop a guide for school districts and principals that want to implement expanded learning time; (3) States encourage schools that choose to expand learning time to add 300 additional hours to the standard school-year schedule, allowing more time for the three key areas: academics, enrichment programming, and teacher collaboration; (4) States outline how they will use their 21st CCLC funding to increase learning time; (5) Districts and schools implement additional time strategically through an intentional, one-year planning period if possible; (6) Districts and schools use data analyses to strategically implement more time; and (7) Districts monitor schedule redesign.
Retaining Teachers of Color in Our Public Schools: A Critical Need for Action
Author: Partee, Glenda L.
Date: 2014-06-00
Type: Reports - Evaluative
Subjects: Teacher Persistence,Minority Group Teachers,Public School Teachers,Public Schools,Teacher Effectiveness,Educational Quality,Access to Education,Diversity (Faculty),Educational Policy,Elementary Secondary Education

As a nation, we need to undertake strategic efforts to retain and increase the number of effective teachers of color in our educator workforce. Teachers of color are significantly underrepresented in the public school population, despite the fact that the number of students of color is growing rapidly. Greater teacher diversity will help ensure that today's students are prepared to succeed in the future workforce, some in various educator roles. This report, the third in a series, focuses on the need to retain teachers of color--specifically, those who effectively improve student achievement. It explores reasons for low teacher retention rates, and discusses promising retention policies and practices to ensure that the most capable teachers of color enter and remain in our public schools. The aim of this report is to generate a serious dialogue among educators and policymakers, as well as within communities of color and among their representatives, about the actions necessary to appreciably increase the numbers of effective teachers of color in public schools. [This report was produced under Progress 2050: New Ideas for a Diverse America, a project within the Center for American Progress.] [For the second report in the series, &quot;America's Leaky Pipeline for Teachers of Color: Getting More Teachers of Color into the Classroom,&quot; see ED561065.]
Engaging Evidence: How Independent Colleges and Universities Use Data to Improve Student Learning
Author: Coughlin, Mary Ann
Date: 2014-01-00
Type: Reports - Descriptive
Subjects: Private Colleges,Data,Information Utilization,College Outcomes Assessment,Educational Improvement,Learning,Consortia,College Faculty,Teacher Participation,Teamwork,Planning,Intercollegiate Cooperation

Postsecondary institutions are under increasing scrutiny to provide evidence of student learning. Despite efforts to increase the number and frequency of assessments of student learning, many colleges and universities need help to make good use of assessment results for the improvement of teaching and learning. To address this need, in February 2012, the Council of Independent Colleges selected 40 independent colleges and universities to participate in a new project named the Engaging Evidence Consortium. The primary goal of that initiative, funded by the Teagle Foundation, was to develop a network of colleges and universities that have learned how to use the results of student outcomes assessment to improve student learning. This report tells the story of the &quot;Engaging Evidence Consortium&quot; by documenting the work of the participating institutions and some lessons learned that include: (1) The Right Assessment Matters; (2) Engage the Faculty; (3) Make It a Team Effort; (4) Planning Matters; (5) Keep It Focused; and (6) Collaboration among Institutions Is a Powerful Strategy.
Strengthening the STEM Pipeline: The Contributions of Small and Mid-Sized Independent Colleges
Author: Rine, P. Jesse
Date: 2014-03-00
Type: Reports - Evaluative
Subjects: Small Colleges,Private Colleges,STEM Education,Undergraduate Students,Graduate Students,Academic Persistence,Time to Degree,Bachelors Degrees,Doctoral Degrees,Comparative Analysis,Public Colleges,College Graduates

&quot;Strengthening the STEM Pipeline: The Contributions of Small and Mid-Sized Independent Colleges&quot; demonstrates that small and mid-sized independent institutions are preparing students for careers and graduate study in STEM fields more efficiently than many public universities. Contrary to popular assumptions, the report shows that smaller private colleges have higher student persistence and degree completion rates in STEM fields and shorter time to the bachelor's degree than larger universities. Bachelor's degree recipients from small and mid-sized independent institutions in the STEM fields also are more often committed to further education at the time of graduation, and many of them immediately enroll in graduate programs after obtaining bachelor's degrees. And graduates of private colleges are more likely to pursue doctoral degrees in STEM fields than graduates of public four-year institutions. In some of the STEM fields, small and mid-sized independent colleges produce more graduates who obtain PhDs than much larger research universities. An appendix contains endnotes and references. [Wei Song contributed to the writing of this report.]
Making Sure They Make It! Best Practices for Ensuring the Academic Success of First-Generation College Students. CIC/Walmart College Success Awards Report
Author: Strand, Kerry J.
Date: 2013-00-00
Type: Reports - Descriptive
Subjects: First Generation College Students,Academic Achievement,Best Practices,Private Colleges,Student Recruitment,College Programs,Student Characteristics,Student Personnel Services,Academic Support Services,Mentors,College Environment,School Holding Power,Student School Relationship,Family School Relationship,Student Financial Aid,Program Evaluation

A baccalaureate degree is essential to success in the contemporary United States. The degree offers improved economic security and the development of capabilities such as critical thinking, effective communication, quantitative reasoning, creativity, problem solving, personal and social responsibility, and social and cultural capital. Failure to offer the best possible education to the greatest number of people counters the best interests of civic participation and the country's economic well-being. With these facts, this report, with generous support from Walmart Foundation's College Success Awards program and Council of Independent Colleges, examines &quot;Best Practices&quot; for promoting success among first-generation college students who: (1) most likely come from low-income families; (2) are mostly students of color, mainly Hispanic and African American; (3) have lower expectations for success; (4) are less prepared to find and use financial information and other resources; and (5) are more likely to attend part-time, to take one or more remedial courses. The following are appended: (1) List of Participating Institutions, and (2) Index.
Mayoral Governance and Student Achievement: How Mayor-Led Districts Are Improving School and Student Performance
Author: Wong, Kenneth K.
Date: 2013-03-00
Type: Reports - Research
Subjects: City Government,Public Officials,Governance,Public Schools,Academic Achievement,Educational Improvement,Accountability,School Effectiveness,Educational Change,Educational Administration,Urban Schools,Resource Allocation,Elementary Secondary Education,National Competency Tests

Mayoral control and accountability is one of very few major education reforms that aim at governance coherence in this nation's highly fragmented urban school systems. A primary feature of mayoral governance is that it holds the office of the mayor accountable for school performance. As an institutional redesign, mayoral governance integrates school-district accountability and the electoral process at the system-wide level. The so-called education mayor is ultimately held accountable for the school system's performance on an academic, fiscal, operational, and managerial level. While school board members are elected by fewer than 10 percent of the eligible voters, mayoral races are often decided by more than half of the electorate. Under mayoral control, public education gets on the citywide agenda. This report examines the effects of mayoral governance on two specific areas--resource management and student achievement. In analyzing multiple, longitudinal databases on student achievement and financial management, this report found that mayoral governance has improved urban school districts. The findings will be useful to current and future mayors who may consider taking a greater role in public education. The following are among the report's key findings: (1) Mayoral-led districts are engaged in strategic allocation of resources; (2) Over the past decade, mayoral-control school districts have generally improved district-wide performance relative to average school district performance statewide; (3) There were 11 districts that were governed by some degree of mayoral leadership toward the end period of the authors' database on state assessment results. Among these 11 districts, five made substantial improvement in narrowing the student achievement gap within their states. These districts include New York; New Haven, Connecticut; Chicago; Philadelphia; and Baltimore; (4) Mayoral control in New York City appears to have had significant positive effects on both fourth- and eighth-grade student achievement; and (5) In Boston and Chicago, achievement improvement was strong during the initial period of mayoral governance, but there has been a relative tapering of performance in recent years. An appendix contains: Methodology on statistical analysis.
The Economic Benefits of Closing Educational Achievement Gaps: Promoting Growth and Strengthening the Nation by Improving the Educational Outcomes of Children of Color
Author: Lynch, Robert G.
Date: 2014-11-00
Type: Reports - Research
Subjects: Achievement Gap,Economic Impact,African American Students,Hispanic American Students,White Students,Racial Differences,Equal Education,Social Change,Demography,Global Approach,Competition,Outcomes of Education,Minority Group Students,Public Policy,Educational Policy,Human Capital,Educational Attainment,Scores,Simulation

Our nation is currently experiencing growing levels of income and wealth inequality, which are contributing to longstanding racial and ethnic gaps in education outcomes and other areas. This report quantifies the economic benefits of closing one of the most harmful racial and ethnic gaps: the educational achievement gap that exists between black and Hispanic children and native-born white children. The report reviews data on growing inequality, demographic changes, and intensifying global economic competition; it describes factors that cause educational achievement gaps, and offers public policies that could help close them. Even from a very narrow budgetary perspective, the tax revenue gains this study forecasts suggest that investments to close racial and ethnic achievement gaps could amply pay for themselves in the long run. Contains endnotes. [This report was produced under Progress 2050: New Ideas for a Diverse America, a project within the Center for American Progress.]
ESEA Waivers and Teacher-Evaluation Plans: State Oversight of District-Designed Teacher-Evaluation Systems
Author: Pennington, Kaitlin
Date: 2014-05-00
Type: Reports - Evaluative
Subjects: Federal Legislation,Educational Legislation,Elementary Secondary Education,Teacher Evaluation,Compliance (Legal),State Standards,Accountability,School Districts,Case Studies,Program Implementation,Federal Programs,Federal Aid,State Departments of Education

In 2011, President Barack Obama and Secretary of Education Arne Duncan provided states with an opportunity for flexibility from certain requirements under the Elementary and Secondary Education Act, or ESEA, currently known as the No Child Left Behind, or NCLB, Act. A total of 43 states; Washington, D.C.; Puerto Rico; and eight districts in California that are part of the California Office to Reform Education, or CORE--have since received waivers from the U.S. Department of Education. This report uses detailed case studies to look closely at four states--Indiana, Maryland, Missouri, and Ohio--and the unique structures each has put in place to keep track of locally developed teacher-evaluation systems. The U.S. Department of Education waivers were created in response to the almost unanimous agreement that No Child Left Behind is broken. Elementary and Secondary Education Act waivers provide an opportunity for states and districts to move past an outdated system of teacher evaluation given the constraints of NCLB. When it comes to teacher-evaluation implementation, what becomes immediately clear from examining ESEA waivers is that the devil is in the details. It is one thing to have a good plan; it's another thing for that plan to be implemented with fidelity, particularly given the enormous demand on the capacity of state and local educational systems. While the speed with which states and districts have revamped or created new teacher-evaluation systems has been impressive, these systems may not be fully and successfully implemented for years. To ensure that teacher-evaluation systems are set up for the long run, states should start with the evaluation plans outlined in ESEA waiver applications and then consider the following key takeaways related to teacher-evaluation implementation from the early-adopter states profiled in this report: (1) Develop a clear idea of what successful implementation of teacher evaluation looks like; (2) Commit to continuous improvement; (3) Build capacity at the local level; (4) Create clear communication cycles around data with state departments of education and school districts; and (5) Develop systemic relationships between state and district leaders. State and locally developed timelines for the implementation of teacher-evaluation systems make it challenging for the U.S. Department of Education, states, districts, and education advocacy groups to track how districts' evaluation systems are progressing. However, the ESEA waivers have provided an opportunity for states and districts to take more control of reform efforts at the local level and have greater influence over the process.
Teachers Unions and Management Partnerships: How Working Together Improves Student Achievement
Author: Rubinstein, Saul A.
Date: 2014-03-00
Type: Reports - Research
Subjects: Unions,Partnerships in Education,Employer Employee Relationship,Cooperative Programs,Public Schools,Educational Change,Teacher Administrator Relationship,Academic Achievement,Social Networks,Network Analysis,Student Improvement,Interprofessional Relationship,School Districts

For more than a decade, the debate over public school reform has created friction between teachers unions, administrators, school boards, parents, policymakers, and other stakeholders in public education and has fueled disagreements over how to improve the quality of teaching and learning for children. While many factors make consensus elusive when it comes to school reform, a key obstacle to finding agreement around educational improvements and bringing such improvements to fruition is ideological policy divisions. Yet within some districts and schools, union leaders and school administrators have found an alternate path to reform--one that is based on building strong relationships that facilitate collaboration among educators and is focused on teaching quality and educational improvement for students. This report explores the impact of school-level, union-management, institutional partnerships on teacher collaboration and student performance. Moreover, it offers strong evidence for this alternative direction to the policy debate on public school reform by analyzing the role of union-management relations in educational quality. This latest study finds that: (1) Formal partnerships help improve student performance; (2) Partnerships lead to more extensive communication between teachers; (3) More extensive communication improves student performance; and (4) Partnership leads to more frequent and informal communication between union representatives and principals. This report targets school-level union-management partnerships as potential catalysts for professional collaboration in public schools. Furthermore, this research sheds light on the impact that school-level union-management partnerships and teacher collaboration can have on student performance.