Teachers tend to leave schools where they feel ineffective. At the same time, it's harder to be effective in schools with the lowest levels of student performance, schools that are most in need of effective teaching. There is a pressing need to improve the quality of instruction in urban schools to reduce long-standing inequities in educational…

"Education Matters" is the monthly newsletter of the Association of American Educators (AAE), an organization dedicated to advancing the American teaching profession through personal growth, professional development, teacher advocacy and protection. This issue of the newsletter includes: (1) 21st Century Retro: For All the Emphasis on…

As the largest and fastest growing racial/ethnic group in the country, Latinos' educational success is a national priority. In the Los Angeles Unified School district, the country's largest, high school graduating rates for Latinos hover at near 40%. Examining this institutional and societal tragedy through the school-to-prison pipeline…

Through combining the methodology of portraiture with the epistemological stance of youth participatory action research, this article positions Latino/a youth as experts with their encounters with the school-to-prison pipeline. This article examines what it's like to live within the tight and probational spaces of criminal justice-based…

"Education Matters" is the monthly newsletter of the Association of American Educators (AAE), an organization dedicated to advancing the American teaching profession through personal growth, professional development, teacher advocacy and protection. This issue of the newsletter includes: (1) Johnny Can Write...If We Challenge Him (Bill Rhatican);…

"Education Matters" is the monthly newsletter of the Association of American Educators (AAE), an organization dedicated to advancing the American teaching profession through personal growth, professional development, teacher advocacy and protection. This issue of the newsletter includes: (1) Leading Students to New Heights: Dr. Bill Proser Gets…

"Education Matters" is the monthly newsletter of the Association of American Educators (AAE), an organization dedicated to advancing the American teaching profession through personal growth, professional development, teacher advocacy and protection. This issue of the newsletter includes: (1) Supreme Court Hears Union Coercion Case; What I Observed…

One of the most pressing problems in the United States is improving student academic performance, especially the nation's burgeoning Latina/o student population. There is a dearth of research on variables associated with student achievement in Latina/o majority schools in urban districts. As the majority of Latina/o students are segregated into…

Analyzes the complexity of attracting well-qualified teachers to struggling urban schools in impoverished neighborhoods, focusing on the impact of teacher quality on student achievement, the evidence that teachers regularly migrate out of low-performing schools, and the potential solution that lies in offering incentives to well-qualified teachers…

Asserts that monetary incentives will not induce teachers to take on difficult jobs in impoverished urban schools. New York City's Extended Time Schools have an extra 40 minutes each school day to be used for small group instruction and professional development. This initiative is turning around the toughest schools with the most challenging…

Describes the work of one educator and advocate for children's rights in Hyderabad, India, who founded a system of community-run schools in the slums to offer access to education to all children in the area, none of whom had previously attended school. The schools are funded by government sources and the community. Parent empowerment and community…

Describes two programs from "Blueprints for Violence Prevention," a publication of the Center for the Study and Prevention of Violence (University of Colorado): Bullying Prevention and Promoting Alternative Thinking Strategies. These programs help school-age children understand and deal with their feelings. Includes resources for dealing with…

Describes Project STAR, the Tennessee class-size study, from the research design through study findings. Data collection for STAR students will continue through 1999, but early findings suggest that small class size in the early years of school continues to have beneficial impacts through the high school years. (SLD)

Describes the effects the privately-funded Horizon Scholarship program, a tuition-voucher program, has on a poor urban school district in San Antonio (Texas). The program reduces funding to the public schools as fewer students attend and it often leaves the most needy students in the public schools. (SLD)

Describes a bookstore established for and run by students at an elementary school in New York City. Students are paid for work as cashiers and store personnel with certificates for free books. An editor's note describes the growth of the program, which now buys in volume and supplies many schools around the country. (SLD)