The introduction of performance-based state funding of higher education can be traced to the late 1970s which eliminated bonuses, and replaced regular state funding in part or completely, with funding tied to achievement of state-defined performance goals, which often include student outcomes, like graduation and retention rates. In this article,…

Pressure from external stakeholders increasingly requires higher education institutions to provide concrete evidence of student learning. As such, assessment of student learning has become a significant part of the process of determining institutional quality. This article describes an example of one of university's response to the call for…

This study reports on the process and outcomes of schoolwide action research by nine schools in their first year as Network members. The participants were a blend of urban, suburban, small town, and rural schools in Central Texas. Focal points of the case studies and cross-case comparison included: (1) how the schools organized for action…

Given the importance of preparing administrators who can lead school improvement efforts, the purpose of this article is to explore ways in which the knowledge and skills about leadership for school improvement obtained in preparation programs can be transferred to the workplace. The author begins by examining the concept of transfer, particularly…

The purpose of this article is to explore the effects of an alternative, transformative andragogy, i.e., the art and science of helping others to learn, designed to be responsive to the challenges of preparing educational leaders committed to social justice and equity. Three aspects of Mezirow's (1990) Transformative Learning Theory, which in…

The purpose of this study was twofold. The immediate objective was to collect survey data from students, both before and after program delivery, to assess the effectiveness of the field-responsive curriculum developed for this cohort. The second purpose was to pilot an approach to program evaluation on a tightly controlled basis to begin the…

This article shares one educational leadership program's experiences with the use of student portfolios to assist in assessment of the program's effectiveness in preparing aspiring school principals. The authors begin with a discussion of market pressures for program reforms, which include the use of student portfolios for student assessment.…