This case study of a community's corporal punishment task force illustrates impediments to applying educational research in local policy making. Because the nature of empirical research is not well understood, scientific knowledge can be distorted or ignored. For scholarship to serve society, scholars must confront impediments to accurate…

In 1993-94, Ohio implemented an interdistrict open-enrollment policy, allowing student transfers only to adjacent districts. Districts can be open or closed, but cannot prevent transfers. A 1994 survey found that open districts were small, rural, racially homogeneous districts with declining enrollment. Closed districts were suburban, with…

Developed a zero-to-five index of the strength of accountability in 50 states based on the use of high stakes testing to sanction and reward schools and analyzed whether that index is related to student gains on the National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP) mathematics test in 1996-2000. Findings show that students in high accountability…

Analyzed the impact of high-stakes testing in Chicago, Illinois, on student achievement in grades targeted for promotional decisions using data from the school system for grades 3, 6, and 8. Findings show that student achievement increased substantially following the introduction of high stakes tests in Chicago, especially at grades 6 and 8. (SLD)

Compared foreign-born and native minority community college entrants in terms of credits earned, the likelihood of transfer to a 4-year program and the probability of degree completion. Results for 26,575 students in the 1990 cohort and descriptive statistics for 25,173 students from 1997 show that nativity, race, and ethnicity were all related to…

Describes a comprehensive evaluative framework that draws on a larger range of goals that have been posed for education in a democratic and free society. Tradeoffs are made among criteria that include: (1) freedom of choice; (2) productive efficiency; (3) equity; and (4) social cohesion. (SLD)

Discusses reasons randomized experiments in educational research have been so rare and appraises alternatives to experiments that educational evaluators prefer. These alternatives are found wanting whenever a high standard is needed for justifying causal conclusions. (SLD)

Studied possible effects of small classes on achievement using data from Project STAR, a 4-year, large-scale randomized experiment on the effects of class size. There were unambiguous positive effects of small classes on achievement, but no evidence for differentially larger effects of small classes for lower achieving students. (SLD)

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,…

Identified key elements of the "theory of action" embodied in reconstitution reforms and examined them in light of findings from a 2-year study in 3 schools. Evidence suggests that the theory of action in such reforms may be seriously flawed, as dominant patterns of implementation ran counter to the major premises of the policy. (SLD)

Used an Internet-based tool about a city's choice schools to study parental preferences about school choice revealed through information search patterns and compared these findings with the literature, largely based on telephone interviews. Findings suggest that unfettered choice may lead to undesirable outcomes in the distribution of students and…

Compared student composition in market-oriented charter schools, nonmarket-oriented charter schools, and traditional public schools in Washington, D.C. (30 charter schools; 147 traditional schools). Found little evidence that market-oriented schools focus on an elite clientele, but they are less likely than the other two types of schools to serve…

Developed an empirical strategy for studying broad-based educational change using quantitative methods and an extensive database consisting of state policy indicators and data on schools and classrooms from states participating in the National Assessment of Educational Progress. Results of a Rasch analysis indicate that patterns of state policy…

Studied the stability of accountability scores and gains for schools using fourth-grade reading results for schools (samples from 757 to 802 schools) in Colorado for 4 years of administration of the Colorado Student Assessment Program. Year-to-year changes were found to be quite unstable, resulting in a near zero correlation of the school gains…

Used data on New York state teachers to determine how much variation in the average attributes of teachers exists across schools, identify schools with the least qualified teachers, assess changes in the distribution over time, and determine how the distribution of teachers is affected by attrition, transfer, and the matches between teachers and…