Recent years have seen increased attention to the high school-college transition. Students are enrolling in college in record numbers, yet they are also taking increasing numbers of remedial courses. How to measure and report on academic readiness for college is an important policy issue receiving attention from the National Assessment Governing…

Recent years have seen the convergence of two major policy streams in U.S. K-12 education: standards/accountability and teacher quality reforms. Work in these areas has led to the creation of multiple measures of teacher quality, including measures of their instructional alignment to standards/assessments, observational and student survey measures…

Examines extent to which all 50 states implemented performance assessment in making professional licensure decisions as of 2001-02; considers differences among various types of assessments and different uses thereof. Describes three challenges to low state implementation of performance-based licensure: costs; need to ensure validity, reliability,…

State content standards are the backbone of the standards-based reform movement. Content standards provide teachers with a set of guidelines for what students are expected to know and be able to do, defining the intended curriculum. And although the current 50-state system of education gives each state the task of setting content standards, there…

Examined the effects of professional development on teachers' instruction using a purposeful sample of about 207 teachers across 5 states for 1996-1999. Professional development focused on specific instructional practices increased teachers' use of those practices in the classroom, and specific features, such as active learning opportunities,…

Supports William Clune's focus on outputs, rather than inputs and procedures. However, national and state standard setting and systemic reform would foster more school improvement and educational equity than the single-school approach. Focus on outcomes allows considerable local curricular discretion. Schools should be held accountable for student…

Data from 882 high school students in 48 mathematics classes demonstrate that student achievement is significantly lower in general-track classes than in college-preparatory classes, with achievement in transition classes (classes in California and New York bridging the gap between elementary and college-preparatory mathematics) falling between…

A system of school process indicators is needed to provide descriptions of educational opportunity, monitor reform, and explain student outputs. A model of school process is proposed, against which problems of definition, measurement, and sampling are identified. Criteria of importance, validity, and cost are considered. (TJH)

An analysis is provided of whether good teaching of worthwhile content to all students is better promoted by standard-setting initiatives or through leaving teachers alone. Alternative courses of action are reviewed that might make external standard-setting activities matters of persuasion, not issues of compliance. (SLD)

The influence of curriculum control policies on sense of autonomy and job satisfaction was studied for 195 high school mathematics and social studies teachers in California, Florida, and New York. Teachers reported high personal control over content and pedagogy, and there was little evidence that constraints affected efficacy or satisfaction.…