Although rearranging school organizational features is a popular school reform, little research exists to inform policymakers about how grade spans affect achievement. This article examines how grade spans and the school transitions that students make between fourth and eighth grade shape student performance in eighth grade. The authors estimate…

Since its inception as part of the 1965 "Elementary and Secondary Education Act" (ESEA), Title I has provided the largest amount of federal funding aimed at improving the academic achievement of poor children. In this paper, we examine the impact of Title I on school spending and school performance, using New York City public school…

Although the No Child Left Behind Act was intended to help "all students meet high academic standards," it is focused on subgroups of low-achieving students. The authors analyze the possible impact of the legislation's requirement for performance reporting by racial subgroup in light of the considerable racial segregation in U.S.…

This paper analyzes the distribution of resources and performance across 840 New York City elementary and middle schools. It presents empirical evidence on input and output of equity of expenditures, teacher resources, and academic achievement. Historically, researchers have studied interdistrict distributions, but given the large number of pupils…

This report describes the demographic characteristics and educational experiences of immigrant students in New York City's elementary and middle schools. Immigrants comprise a substantial share of the elementary and middle school student body. Far more immigrant than native-born students are limited English proficient (LEP) and Asian, and far…

This report describes demographic characteristics and educational experiences of New York City's elementary and middle school students by English language proficiency and home language. It compares the characteristics and achievement of students who are limited English proficiency (LEP), most of whom: live in homes where a language other than…

This study examined the role of school sub-city districts in determining the performance and efficacy of their member schools. A total of 846 low- and high-performing schools and sub-city districts were identified using a 3-year panel of data (1997-99) on New York City elementary and middle schools. These data were used to examine the differences…

This study examines the academic performance of students in New York City's elementary and middle schools, investigating variations across grades and schools and documenting differences in student and teacher characteristics and the pattern and level of expenditure between low, middle, and high performing schools. The study reports averages of…