A recent article by Stuebing, Barth, Cirino, Francis and Fletcher critiqued the findings of Camilli, Vargas, and Yurecko (2003) and Camilli, Wolfe, and Smith (2006). With a methodological argument, they attempted to resolve the conflict between these studies and the original report Teaching Children to Read (National Reading Panel, 2000). In…

Issues related to student, teacher, and school accountability have been at the forefront of current educational policy initiatives. Recently, the state of Massachusetts has become a focal point in debate regarding the efficacy of highstakes accountability models based on an ostensibly large gain at 10th grade. This paper uses an IRT method for…

Examined the findings of the "Teaching Children To Read" study of the National Reading Panel and the procedures of the study. Meta-analytic techniques found that the methodology and procedures were not adequate. Findings suggest that phonics, as an aspect of the complex reading process, should not be over-emphasized. (SLD)

Analyzes the findings of J. Greene and data from Florida and suggests that the strong effects (significant improvement on test scores in schools threatened by vouchers) noted by Greene may actually be due in large part to sample selection, regression to the mean, and problems related to the aggregation of test score results. (Author/SLD)

Surveyed 245 New Jersey teachers to provide a baseline for examining how the introduction of state standards and assessments affects the teaching of mathematics and science in fourth grade. Changes in the delivery of professional development have not yet resulted in substantial changes in instructional practice. (SLD)

Places the 1992-1996 gain in mathematics scores from Texas on the National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP) from fourth to eighth grades, asserting that the so-called miracle in Texas looks much like the median elsewhere. Texas ranks 17th among the 35 states and 2 districts with NAEP scores for the period, but Texas is no worse than most…