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Assessment & Accountability
Sifting Through the Mississippi Evidence
Publication Date
July 14, 2026
Authors
Gregory Camilli, Professor Emeritus at Rutgers University
Research Areas
Assessment & Accountability; Early Childhood; Curriculum & Instruction
Publication Type
Think Twice
Summary
New review uses Progressive Policy Institute report as starting point to try to better understand the impact of literacy reforms and other factors that may have influenced the state's NAEP fourth-grade reading scores.
Review of Beyond Race: What Really Drives Wisconsin's Achievement Gap
Publication Date
May 12, 2026
Authors
Will Flanders; Jaekyung Lee, University at Buffalo
Research Areas
Equity & Civil Rights; Assessment & Accountability; Curriculum & Instruction
Publication Type
Think Twice
Summary
A recent report from the Wisconsin Institute for Law and Liberty (WILL) highlights stark achievement gaps between White and Black students in Wisconsin, particularly in elementary-level English language arts and reading. While the report deserves credit for bringing attention to this important issue, its analysis is incomplete and misleading.
The Cycle of Disinvestment in Public Schools: How Public School Criticism Drives Policy and Disinvestment
Publication Date
March 3, 2026
Authors
Huriya Jabbar, Huriya Jabbar and Daniel Espinoza of the University of Southern California; Daniel Espinoza, University of Southern California
Research Areas
Equity & Civil Rights; School Funding; Assessment & Accountability; School Choice & Vouchers
Publication Type
Policy Brief
Summary
Critiques of public education have intensified in recent years. While public schools do indeed have real areas in need of growth and improvement, many of today’s attacks are generated and amplified by organizations seeking to manufacture crises. These narratives often ignore counterevidence, and they use deceptive language to portray the system as broadly failing, even hopeless. To examine these destructive critiques, Huriya Jabbar and Daniel Espinoza of the University of Southern California authored a policy brief, The Cycle of Disinvestment in Public Schools: How Public School Criticism Drives Policy and Disinvestment, released today by NEPC. The brief identifies five core narratives used to portray a failing education system: claims of underachievement, inefficiency, inequality, lack of school choice, and indoctrination.
Review of Outmatched: Special Education Can't Solve Problems Rooted in the Education Delivery System
Publication Date
January 22, 2026
Authors
Ashley Jochim and Alexander Kurz; Federico Waitoller, University of Illinois Chicago
Research Areas
Governance & Public Education; School Choice & Vouchers; School Funding; Assessment & Accountability
Publication Type
Think Twice
Summary
While special education in the United States has advanced civil rights and educational equity, persistent concerns about inequity, labeling, and segregation remain. A recent Center on Reinventing Public Education (CRPE) report proposes a dramatic restructuring of special education, arguing that rising identification rates and persistent achievement gaps stem from a general education system built for uniformity rather than diversity.
Review of A State-Level Perspective on School Spending and Educational Outcomes
Publication Date
December 11, 2025
Authors
Sarah Reber and Gabriela Goodman; Mark Weber, Rutgers University
Research Areas
School Funding; Assessment & Accountability
Publication Type
Think Twice
Summary
A large and growing body of high-quality research shows that increased school funding positively affects student outcomes. Yet, as compared to the effect of school funding reported in an authoritative meta-analysis, a new Brookings Institution report examining this relationship finds a much smaller (although still positive) effect.
Review of Let's Get Ready! Educating All Americans for Success
Publication Date
October 14, 2025
Authors
Ryan Pfleger
Research Areas
Assessment & Accountability; Curriculum & Instruction; School Funding; General / Needs Review; School Choice & Vouchers
Publication Type
Think Twice
Summary
In late July, the National Governors Association released a report urging states to transform schools into stronger drivers of economic competitiveness. The report recommends that governors build public dashboards to track outcomes, align schools with workforce needs, and evaluate programs based on graduates' earnings potential.
Fit for Purpose? How Today’s Commercial Digital Platforms Subvert Key Goals of Public Education
Publication Date
September 25, 2025
Authors
Faith Boninger, University of Colorado Boulder; T. Philip Nichols, Baylor University
Research Areas
Technology & AI; Equity & Civil Rights; Governance & Public Education; Assessment & Accountability
Publication Type
Policy Brief
Summary
A new policy brief, Fit for Purpose? How Today's Commercial Digital Platforms Subvert Key Goals of Public Education, by Faith Boninger of the University of Colorado Boulder and T. Philip Nichols of Baylor University, reviews research examining key pedagogical, logistical, and ethical implications of ed tech platforms for schools. The brief's analysis of these implications leads to recommendations for teachers, school leaders, and policymakers on how to govern its use.
Review of Apples to Apples: The Definitive Look at School Test Scores in Milwaukee and Wisconsin for 2024
Publication Date
June 10, 2025
Authors
Will Flanders; Benjamin Shear, University of Colorado Boulder
Research Areas
Charter Schools; School Choice & Vouchers; School Funding; Assessment & Accountability
Publication Type
Think Twice
Summary
A recent report from the Wisconsin Institute for Law & Liberty (WILL) examines publicly available test score data from Spring 2024 in Wisconsin to investigate the relative effectiveness and cost of school choice programs.
Review of Testing Theories of Why: Four Keys to Interpreting US Student Achievement Trends
Publication Date
April 24, 2025
Authors
Nat Malkus; Chris Domaleski, National Center for the Improvement of Educational Assessment
Research Areas
Assessment & Accountability; Governance & Public Education; School Funding
Publication Type
Think Twice
Summary
A recent American Enterprise Institute report does a good job of identifying and describing long-term trends in student performance using national and international assessment data. However, a review finds that the report then falls short in its attempts to analyze and understand the factors driving these trends.
Review of Making the Grade: Accounting for Course Selection in High School Transcripts with Item Response Theory
Publication Date
March 25, 2025
Authors
Kenneth A. Shores and Sanford R. Student; Michael Russell, Boston College
Research Areas
Assessment & Accountability; Equity & Civil Rights; General / Needs Review; School Funding
Publication Type
Think Twice
Summary
The role of standardized test scores in college admissions is evolving, with many institutions shifting away from the SAT and ACT. In their absence, high school GPA has become the primary indicator of college readiness, though it doesn't account for course difficulty. A new Annenberg Institute report introduces "Transcript Strength," a measure designed to adjust GPA based on course rigor. While promising, the report acknowledges the approach requires further research and development.
Let's Stop Asking Whether Teachers Are Professionals. Let's Ask What Kinds of Professionals We Want Teachers to Be
Publication Date
March 11, 2025
Authors
Emilie Mitescu Reagan, Claremont Graduate University; A. Lin Goodwin, Boston College
Research Areas
Assessment & Accountability; Equity & Civil Rights; Governance & Public Education; Teacher Workforce
Publication Type
Policy Brief
Summary
A professionalized teaching workforce is key to strong educational opportunities, improved student outcomes, and broader societal benefits. However, recent policies aimed at improving teacher quality have had unintended consequences-eroding teacher autonomy, increasing workload, standardizing curriculum and assessment, and fostering public distrust. In NEPC's new policy brief, Let's Stop Asking Whether Teachers Are Professionals. Let's Ask What Kinds of Professionals We Want Teachers to Be, authors Emilie Mitescu Reagan of Claremont Graduate University and A. Lin Goodwin of Boston College examine the ongoing evolution of teachers' professional status. The brief explores how educators can navigate the constantly shifting societal perceptions of their profession.
Review of Think Again: Are Education Programs for High Achievers Inherently Inequitable?
Publication Date
February 4, 2025
Authors
Brandon L. Wright; Margaret Thornton, Rowan University
Research Areas
Equity & Civil Rights; Assessment & Accountability
Publication Type
Think Twice
Summary
A recent Fordham Institute report analyzes several perceived threats to educational opportunities for students who score well on standardized tests and class grades. It contends that these threats come from those who are overly concerned about "equity" and who seek to undermine programs designed for these high-achieving students.
Review of School Segregation on School Report Cards: Who Are We Grading Anyway?
Publication Date
December 10, 2024
Authors
Jay Carter and Leonardo Restrepo; James Noonan, Salem State University
Research Areas
Assessment & Accountability; Equity & Civil Rights; Governance & Public Education
Publication Type
Think Twice
Summary
A recent Urban Institute report examines proposed legislation in North Carolina that would add a "proportionality score" to the state accountability system, measuring how closely a school’s racial demographics match those of the surrounding county. James Noonan of Salem State University reviewed School Segregation on School Report Cards: Who Are We Grading Anyway? and found it to be logical but somewhat under-explained.
Review of Searching for the Tipping Point: Scaling up Public School Choice Spurs Citywide Gains
Publication Date
December 3, 2024
Authors
Tressa Pankovits; David R. Garcia, Arizona State University
Research Areas
Charter Schools; Equity & Civil Rights; Assessment & Accountability; School Choice & Vouchers
Publication Type
Think Twice
Summary
A recent Progressive Policy Institute report purports to examine the impact of charter schools on the achievement of students who remain enrolled in district-run public schools. Based on the data in the report, however, it shows only a weak relationship between the presence of charter schools and increases in achievement for all students, which contradicts the report's claims.
Review of Reassessing ESSA Implementation: An Equity Analysis of School Accountability Systems
Publication Date
November 20, 2024
Authors
Nicholas Munyan-Penney, Abigail Jones, and Shayna Levitan; Derek Gottlieb, University of Northern Colorado
Research Areas
Assessment & Accountability; Equity & Civil Rights
Publication Type
Think Twice
Summary
EdTrust recently published a report using what it calls an "equity analysis" to critique states' accountability plans, recommending several steps states might take to improve their systems. But a new review explains how that report rehashes old arguments for the original No Child Left Behind Act (NCLB).
Review of Pennsylvania's Education Tax Credit Scholarships: How EITC Serves Children and Families in the Commonwealth
Publication Date
November 12, 2024
Authors
Rachel Langan; Bruce Baker, University of Miami
Research Areas
School Choice & Vouchers; School Funding; Assessment & Accountability
Publication Type
Think Twice
Summary
A recent Commonwealth Foundation report praises Pennsylvania's tax credit scholarship programs, which create private-school vouchers funded through tax-credited donations. The report argues in favor of the programs' expansion, but it has at least three major shortcomings.
Review of Systemwide and Intervention-Specific Effects of Denver Public Schools' Portfolio District Strategy on Individual Student Achievement
Publication Date
November 7, 2024
Authors
Parker Baxter, Anna Nicotera, David Stuit, Margot Plotz, Todd Ely, and Paul Teske; Robert Shand, American University
Research Areas
School Choice & Vouchers; Governance & Public Education; Assessment & Accountability
Publication Type
Think Twice
Summary
A recent report from the Center for Education Policy Analysis at the University of Colorado Denver attempts to assess the effect of a "portfolio district strategy" on student performance in the Denver Public Schools. As was the case with its 2022 predecessor (reviewed here), advocates for portfolio reforms have trumpeted the new study as showing that this "portfolio" package of reforms has a positive and large impact on student outcomes. The review, however, concludes that the study lacks the ability to so definitively link Denver's improved outcomes to these particular reforms.
Review of The Broken Pipeline: Advanced Education Policies at the Local Level
Publication Date
July 18, 2024
Authors
Adam Tyner; Eunice S. Han, University of Utah
Research Areas
Governance & Public Education; Assessment & Accountability
Publication Type
Think Twice
Summary
A recent Thomas B. Fordham Institute report describes current policies and practices at the district level across the U.S. that are designed to provide what the report calls advanced and gifted education. A review of the report determines, however, that its conclusions and policy suggestions lack validity.
Review of Spark & Sustain: How All the World's School Systems Can Improve Learning at Scale
Publication Date
June 13, 2024
Authors
Jake Bryant, Felipe Child, Ezgi Demirdag, Emma Dorn, Stephen Hall, Kartik Jayaram, Charag Krishnan, Cheryl Lim, Emmy Liss, Kemi Onabanjo, Frédéric Panier, Juan Rebolledo, Jimmy Sarakatsannis, Doug; Clara Fontdevila, University of Glasgow; Antoni Verger, Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona; and Adrián Zancajo, Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona
Research Areas
Governance & Public Education; Technology & AI; School Choice & Vouchers; Assessment & Accountability
Publication Type
Think Twice
Summary
McKinsey & Company released a new global report on education that provides guidelines for policy reforms and governance strategies offered as promoting significant and sustained improvement in students’ learning outcomes. A review of the report, however, identified weaknesses likely to compromise the robustness of its conclusions.
Review of Public Education at a Crossroads: A Comprehensive Look at K-12 Resources and Outcomes
Publication Date
April 9, 2024
Authors
Aaron Garth Smith, Christian Barnard, and Jordan Campbell; Clive Belfield, City University of New York
Research Areas
School Funding; Assessment & Accountability
Publication Type
Think Twice
Summary
A growing and persuasive body of research has established the causal relationship between school funding and academic outcomes. The reality that money matters is not in serious dispute. But a new report from the Reason Foundation uses some superficial comparisons to try again to muddy the waters.
Review of From Surviving to Thriving: K-12 Choice and Opportunity for Rural Texas Students and Teachers
Publication Date
December 7, 2023
Authors
Matthew Ladner and Jason Bedrick; Amanda Potterton of the University of Kentucky, Annah Rogers of the University of West Alabama, and Jeanne Powers of Arizona State University
Research Areas
Charter Schools; School Choice & Vouchers; Assessment & Accountability
Publication Type
Think Twice
Summary
The Heritage Foundation recently published a report that claims increased competition has improved academic achievement in Arizona's rural public schools and that similar policies will be good for rural Texas. However, a review finds several flaws in the report's reasoning and methodology.
Review of Small Class Sizes for Improving Student Achievement in Primary and Secondary Schools: A Systematic Review
Publication Date
November 21, 2023
Authors
Trine Filges, Christoffer Scavenius Sonne-Schmidt, and Bjørn Christian Viinholt Nielsen; Clive Belfield, Queens College, City University of New York
Research Areas
Equity & Civil Rights; Assessment & Accountability
Publication Type
Think Twice
Summary
A 2018 report from Campbell Collaboration, analyzing research literature estimating the impact of class size reduction on reading and math achievement, has recently been gaining renewed attention, thanks in part to a Washington Post piece by Michael Bloomberg.
Review of As a Matter of Fact: National Charter School Study III 2023
Publication Date
September 7, 2023
Authors
Margaret E. Raymond, James L. Woodworth, Won Fy Lee, and Sally Bachofer; Joseph J. Ferrare University of Washington Bothell
Research Areas
Assessment & Accountability; School Funding; Charter Schools
Publication Type
Think Twice
Summary
In a recent report, the Center for Research on Education Outcomes (CREDO) examined charter school students' year-to-year test score growth over four years, and across 31 states. The report shows very small differences favoring charter schools and has been repeatedly trumpeted by charter school advocates as having policy significance-as weighing in favor of charter school expansion.
The Effects of High-Performing, High-Turnover Teachers on Long-Run Student Achievement: Evidence From Teach for America
Publication Date
March 14, 2023
Authors
Virginia S. Lovison; Emilie Mitescu Reagan, Claremont Graduate University
Research Areas
Assessment & Accountability; Teacher Workforce
Publication Type
Think Twice
Summary
A recent paper published by the Annenberg Institute at Brown University presents findings from a study examining Teach for America (TFA) teacher turnover and teachers’ contributions to fourth through eighth grade student achievement.
Review of The Economic Cost of the Pandemic: State by State
Publication Date
March 7, 2023
Authors
Eric A. Hanushek; Clive Belfield, Queens College, City University of New York
Research Areas
School Funding; Governance & Public Education; Equity & Civil Rights; School Choice & Vouchers; Assessment & Accountability; Technology & AI
Publication Type
Think Twice
Summary
A recent Hoover Institution report by Eric Hanushek presents a calculation of the future learning-related economic burden resulting from the COVID-19 pandemic. It projects a large and persistent economic loss by using a set of assumptions about the link between reduced student achievement levels and earnings, but in doing so fails to consider several factors.
Review of K-12 Without Borders: Public School Students, Families, and Teachers Shut In by Education Boundaries
Publication Date
March 2, 2023
Authors
Martin F. Lueken and Michael Q. McShane; Christopher Lubienski, Indiana University; T. Jameson Brewer, University of North Georgia
Research Areas
Equity & Civil Rights; Assessment & Accountability; School Choice & Vouchers
Publication Type
Think Twice
Summary
A recent report from the directors of EdChoice, published by the Manhattan Institute, oversimplifies important equity issues as problems of school zone boundaries.
Review of The Ohio EdChoice Program’s Impact on School District Enrollments, Finances, and Academics
Publication Date
February 21, 2023
Authors
Stéphane Lavertu and John J. Gregg; Joshua Cowen, Michigan State University
Research Areas
School Choice & Vouchers; School Funding; Equity & Civil Rights; Assessment & Accountability
Publication Type
Think Twice
Summary
A recent report from the Thomas B. Fordham Institute considers the impacts of vouchers as related to competition in Ohio public schools, increased racial segregation, and local district financial resources. It presents these three issues as the chief concerns of voucher critics and finds few harmful impacts.
Review of #StudentsFirst: Empowering Parents to Help Students Regain Lost Learning
Publication Date
November 22, 2022
Authors
Greg R. Lawson; David S. Knight, University of Washington
Research Areas
School Choice & Vouchers; School Funding; Assessment & Accountability
Publication Type
Think Twice
Summary
A new Buckeye Institute report recommends sweeping K-12 policy reforms in response to COVID-19 academic disruptions and what the report asserts to be declining confidence in public schools. However, a review of the report criticizes the analysis and cautions against its policy recommendations.
A Civil Rights Framework for the Reauthorization of ESEA
Publication Date
October 11, 2022
Authors
Elizabeth DeBray, University of Georgia; Kara S. Finnigan, University of Michigan; Janel George, Georgetown University Law Center; and Janelle Scott, University of California-Berkeley.
Research Areas
Equity & Civil Rights; Assessment & Accountability; School Funding
Publication Type
Policy Brief
Summary
Brief presents a framework for federal policymakers to ground the law in an evidence-based, equitable, and ecological approach centered on sustained educational equality of opportunity.
State Accountability Rating Systems: A Review of School Report Cards as Indicators of School Quality
Publication Date
June 22, 2022
Authors
Gail L. Sunderman, University of Maryland
Research Areas
Assessment & Accountability; Equity & Civil Rights
Publication Type
Policy Brief
Summary
The federal Every Student Succeeds Act of 2015 provided states with slightly more flexibility in the design of their school accountability systems. However, while states may take different approaches to measuring and reporting school performance, they have consistently chosen approaches of public reporting that collapse multiple school performance indicators into a summative rating. In a new NEPC policy brief, State Accountability Rating Systems: A Review of School Report Cards as Indicators of School Quality, Gail L. Sunderman, co-founder and former director of the Maryland Equity Project at the University of Maryland, discusses the difficulties that arise when state's school report cards use this summative-rating approach.
Review of Priced Out of Public Schools: District Lines, Housing Access, and Inequitable Educational Options
Publication Date
March 1, 2022
Authors
Alex Spurrier, Sara Hodges, and Jennifer O'Neal Schiess; Erica Frankenberg, Penn State
Research Areas
Assessment & Accountability
Publication Type
Think Twice
Summary
A recent report from the Bellwether Education Partners, Priced Out of Public Schools: District Lines, Housing Access, and Inequitable Educational Options, attempts to examine the availability of low-income rental units in school districts to understand whether districts in the largest 200 metropolitan areas are accessible to families in poverty. The report finds nearly 500 examples of borders between two starkly different types of districts: those that are the most and least "accessible" based on the cost of rental housing. It designates these borders between these districts as barriers. After describing the problem, the report recommends a combination of education policy solutions, including expanding school choice, and affordable housing opportunities.
Review of Ohio's Lost Einsteins: The Inequitable Outcomes of Early High Achievers
Publication Date
December 2, 2021
Authors
Scott Imberman; Eunice Han, Yongmei Ni, University of Utah
Research Areas
Assessment & Accountability
Publication Type
Think Twice
Summary
A recent Thomas B. Fordham Institute report examines the achievement growth of Ohio's "early high achievers," some of whom are identified as gifted and talented (GT). Its conclusion-which was examined in a new review-was that closing the "gifted identification gap" can help to close the "excellence gap."
Education Freedom and Student Achievement: Is More School Choice Associated with Higher State-Level Performance on the NAEP?
Publication Date
June 15, 2021
Authors
Patrick J. Wolf, Jay P. Greene, Matthew Ladner, and James D. Paul; T. Jameson Brewer, University of North Georgia; Joel Malin, Miami University
Research Areas
Governance & Public Education; School Choice & Vouchers; Assessment & Accountability
Publication Type
Think Twice
Summary
A recent brief from the School Choice Demonstration Project at the University of Arkansas is being used by voucher advocates to argue that increasing school choice can spur broad test score improvements.
The (Mis)Treatment and (Non)Education of Unaccompanied Immigrant Children in the United States
Publication Date
March 8, 2021
Authors
Ruth M. López, University of Houston
Research Areas
Assessment & Accountability; General / Needs Review; Equity & Civil Rights
Publication Type
Policy Brief
Summary
Beginning in 2014, an increasing number of children from northern Central American countries (El Salvador, Guatemala, and Honduras) and Mexico, fleeing violence and poverty in their countries, have arrived and been apprehended at the U.S. border. Many of these children are unaccompanied or became so upon separation from a parent or another adult. NEPC is releasing today a policy brief addressing the education of these unaccompanied immigrant children (UICs), including their experiences prior to, during, and after apprehension at the border. The (Mis)Treatment and (Non)Education of Unaccompanied Immigrant Children in the United States is authored by University of Houston assistant professor Ruth M. López.
Review of School Accountability-Past, Present, and Future: Findings and Recommendations for State and District Policymakers
Publication Date
February 9, 2021
Authors
Chester E. Finn, Jr.; Gail L. Sunderman, Maryland Equity Project
Research Areas
Assessment & Accountability; Governance & Public Education
Publication Type
Think Twice
Summary
A recent report from the Hoover Institution's Education Success Initiative argues that state and federal officials should retain what it calls "results-based" accountability systems that use standardized assessments of students followed by consequences for not meeting performance goals. But it does not provide the evidence needed to support that contention.
Review of Student Assessment During COVID-19
Publication Date
October 29, 2020
Authors
Laura Jimenez; Gene V Glass, San José State University, William J. Mathis, University of Colorado Boulder
Research Areas
Assessment & Accountability; Technology & AI
Publication Type
Think Twice
Summary
Student Assessment During COVID-19, a recent report from the Center for American Progress (CAP), argues that there should be no waivers of the federally mandated administration of standardized tests in spring 2021.In its report, CAP sides with the Department of Education’s policy of denying requests for waivers, and it calls for additional assessments that “capture multiple aspects of student well-being, including social-emotional needs, engagement, and conditions for learning” as well as supplementary gathering of student information.
Review of Unleashing Educational Opportunity: The Untapped Potential of Expanded Tax Credit Scholarships
Publication Date
October 22, 2020
Authors
Corey DeAngelis; Bruce Baker, Rutgers University
Research Areas
Charter Schools; School Choice & Vouchers; School Funding; Assessment & Accountability
Publication Type
Think Twice
Summary
A Commonwealth Foundation report argues that expanding a program that uses tax credits to create vouchers for private schooling can lead to large economic gains for the state of Pennsylvania. Such gains would result from two purported benefits: increased lifetime earnings for those attending private schools on vouchers, and reduced social costs associated with crime.
Review of: Making Next Year Count: Equity in School Accountability
Publication Date
October 15, 2020
Authors
Alex Spurrier, Chad Aldeman, Jennifer O'Neal Schiess, and Andrew J. Rotherham; Edward J. Fuller, Penn State University
Research Areas
Assessment & Accountability; Technology & AI
Publication Type
Think Twice
Summary
The series correctly concludes that state accountability systems have not improved student achievement or closed achievement gaps over the last decade. Despite this conclusion, however, the series puzzlingly insists that state testing and accountability systems must be reinstated in 2020-21 and must focus on schools with the lowest performance levels.
Big Claims, Little Evidence, Lots of Money: The Reality Behind the Summit Learning Program and the Push to Adopt Digital Personalized Learning Programs
Publication Date
June 25, 2020
Authors
Faith Boninger, Alex Molnar, and Christopher Saldaña, University of Colorado Boulder
Research Areas
Assessment & Accountability; School Choice & Vouchers; Technology & AI
Publication Type
Policy Brief
Summary
Despite a lack of evidence that it is effective, the Summit Learning Program, propelled by a flood of Silicon Valley money, continues to spread.
Review of Comparing Ed Reforms: Assessing the Experimental Research on Nine K-12 Education Reforms
Publication Date
May 26, 2020
Authors
Paul DiPerna; Bruce D. Baker, Rutgers University
Research Areas
Charter Schools; Equity & Civil Rights; Assessment & Accountability; Early Childhood; Governance & Public Education; School Choice & Vouchers
Publication Type
Think Twice
Summary
A recent report from EdChoice, working with Hanover Research, identifies and reviews studies that use Randomized Control Trials (RCTs) to determine student achievement or educational attainment outcomes of nine broad "education reform" areas.
Review of A Roadmap to Fix Arizona School Finance: Steering the Grand Canyon State Toward Fairness and Innovation in K-12 Education
Publication Date
April 14, 2020
Authors
Christian Barnard; David R. Garcia, Arizona State University
Research Areas
Assessment & Accountability; School Funding
Publication Type
Think Twice
Summary
The report begins by describing how Arizona's lowest-income school districts receive less funding from state and local sources than higher-income school districts. As is the case in many states, Arizona's school districts with lower property wealth have higher tax rates and generate less revenue than higher property wealth school districts. The report then sets forth the 16 far-ranging policy recommendations that its author argues will improve the "transparency, equity, and effectiveness of Arizona's school finance system. . ." Collectively, these recommendations would amount to a fundamental overhaul of Arizona's school finance system.
Review of Measuring Student Poverty: Developing Accurate Counts for School Funding, Accountability, and Research
Publication Date
March 3, 2020
Authors
Erica Greenberg, Kristin Blagg, and Macy Rainer; Michael Harwell of the University of Minnesota
Research Areas
Assessment & Accountability
Publication Type
Think Twice
Summary
A recent Urban Institute report highlights how legislative changes have led to the steady decline of the usefulness, as a measure of student poverty, of participation in the free- and reduced-price lunch (FRPL) program. The Community Eligibility Provision (CEP) of the federal Healthy, Hunger-Free Kids Act mandates that schools enrolled in CEP have at least 40% of their students eligible for a free or reduced-price lunch in the year before enrolling. CEP schools provide free breakfasts and lunches to all students regardless of any given student’s household income or enrollment in safety net programs. Thus FRPL participation is 100% in a school and can no longer be sensibly used as a poverty measure.
The Starts and Stumbles of Restorative Justice in Education: Where Do We Go from Here?
Publication Date
January 14, 2020
Authors
Anne Gregory, Ph.D., Rutgers University, Katherine R. Evans, Ph.D., Eastern Mennonite University
Research Areas
Assessment & Accountability; Equity & Civil Rights; School Climate & Student Support
Publication Type
Policy Brief
Summary
Schools are implementing Restorative Justice in Education (RJE) initiatives across the United States, often to reduce the use of out-of-school suspension, which is known to increase the risk for dropout and arrest. Many RJE initiatives also aim to strengthen social and emotional competencies, reduce gender and racial disparities in discipline, and increase access to equitable and supportive environments for students from marginalized groups. Yet whether these benefits emerge depends on whether the reforms are well implemented.
Report on Academic Progress Is a Worthwhile Conversation Starter
Publication Date
November 26, 2019
Authors
Michael J. Petrilli; Jaekyung Lee, University at Buffalo, SUNY
Research Areas
Assessment & Accountability; Governance & Public Education; Equity & Civil Rights
Publication Type
Think Twice
Summary
The Fordham Institute recently released a report highlighting the academic progress of Black and Hispanic groups over the past two decades at the elementary school level on the NAEP exam. From this, the report offers the major claim, based on its author’s eyeball test, that the academic progress of students of color is attributable “mostly” to poverty reduction. The report, however, also acknowledges that correlation is not causation and calls for systematic statistical analysis to test the author’s proposition.
Report About Charters Being a "Rising Tide" Sinks Under Weight of Flawed Data
Publication Date
November 14, 2019
Authors
David Griffith; Yongmei Ni, University of Utah
Research Areas
Charter Schools; General / Needs Review; Assessment & Accountability
Publication Type
Think Twice
Summary
A recent report from the Thomas B. Fordham Institute examines whether average achievement in a school district increases as the "market share" of charter schools rises. The report argues that there is a positive competition effect.
The Effects of Means Tested Private School Choice Programs on College Enrollment and Graduation
Publication Date
October 16, 2019
Authors
T. Jameson Brewer, University of North Georgia
Research Areas
School Choice & Vouchers; Assessment & Accountability
Publication Type
Think Twice
Summary
A recent Urban Institute report brings together certain findings from studies of three school voucher programs. The report concludes that students using vouchers to attend private schools sometimes have higher rates of college enrollment and completion than their public school counterparts.
Multiple Shortcomings Mar Report Ranking Michigan High Schools
Publication Date
April 30, 2019
Authors
Faith Boninger, Alex Molnar, and Christopher M. Saldaña, of the University of Colorado Boulder
Research Areas
Governance & Public Education; Assessment & Accountability
Publication Type
Policy Brief
Summary
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The Michigan Context and Performance Report Card: High Schools 2018
Publication Date
April 18, 2019
Authors
Ben DeGrow and Ronald Klinger; John T. Yun of Michigan State University
Research Areas
Governance & Public Education; Assessment & Accountability
Publication Type
Think Twice
Summary
A recent report from Mackinac Center for Public Policy seeks to measure and publicize high school performance by ranking schools according to their test scores after attempting controlling for students’ “economic status.”
Education System Alignment for 21st Century Skills: Focus on Assessment
Publication Date
April 2, 2019
Authors
Lorrie Shepard, of the University of Colorado Boulder
Research Areas
Governance & Public Education; Curriculum & Instruction; Assessment & Accountability
Publication Type
Think Twice
Summary
A report from the Brookings Institution uses international examples to make the case for the importance of “21st century skills” as goals for education systems. It focuses specifically on the development of new assessment methods as a primary means to help countries integrate these 21st century skills – such as critical thinking, problem solving, collaboration, and communication – into curricular reforms.
Everything You Know About State Education Rankings Is Wrong/Fixing the Currently Biased State K-12 Education Rankings
Publication Date
November 27, 2018
Authors
Stan J. Liebowitz and Matthew L. Kelly; Bruce D. Baker, Rutgers University
Research Areas
Governance & Public Education; School Funding; Assessment & Accountability
Publication Type
Think Twice
Summary
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Systems for Success: Thinking Beyond Access to AP
Publication Date
September 25, 2018
Authors
Ashley Griffin and Davis Dixon; Beth C. Rubin
Research Areas
Assessment & Accountability
Publication Type
Think Twice
Summary
Systems for Success contends that a variety of interventions help promote student access and success in AP, including teacher support and development, analysis of class composition, careful scheduling, and provision of during- and after-school academic support for students.
Do Impacts on Test Scores Even Matter?
Publication Date
May 3, 2018
Authors
Collin Hitt, Michael Q. McShane, and Patrick J. Wolf; Chris Lubienski, Indiana University; & T. Jameson Brewer, University of North Georgia
Research Areas
Assessment & Accountability
Publication Type
Think Twice
Summary
A recent American Enterprise Institute (AEI) report attempted to examine the impact of student achievement scores on longer-term school-related attainment outcomes. The report suggested that less attention be given to test score comparisons between traditional public schools and school choice models (e.g., charters and school vouchers). A new academic review out today investigates the consistency of the claims made and the evidence used for the report.
Charter Schools and the Achievement Gap
Publication Date
April 10, 2018
Authors
Sarah Cohodes, Teachers College, Columbia University; A. Chris Torres, Michigan State University; & Joanne Golann, Vanderbilt University.
Research Areas
Charter Schools; Assessment & Accountability
Publication Type
Think Twice
Summary
A recent report published by the Future of Children, a collaboration of the Brookings Institution and Princeton University, recommended the expansion of intensive school discipline practices to drive academic results. Despite charter schools performing no better than traditional public schools on average, the report found “no-excuses” charter schools demonstrate promising results. The report advanced that the practices should be expanded within and outside the charter school sector.
The Academic and Behavioral Consequences of Discipline Policy Reform: Evidence from Philadelphia
Publication Date
February 15, 2018
Authors
Matthew P. Steinberg and Johanna Lacoe; Yolanda Anyon, University of Denver; and Kathryn E. Wiley, University of California San Diego.
Research Areas
Curriculum & Instruction; Assessment & Accountability
Publication Type
Think Twice
Summary
A report from the Fordham Institute attempted to investigate the impact of a student discipline reform in the School District of Philadelphia (SDP). The report concluded that the reform was a failure. The reform in question eliminated suspensions for certain low-level school misbehaviors. The Fordham report in question looked at district out-of-school suspension rates for students, academic and behavioral outcomes, and racial disparities in suspensions.
Renewing our Cities: A Case Study on School Choice’s Role in Urban Renewal / CPR Scholarships: Using Private School Choice to Attack Concentrated Poverty, Crime, and Unemployment
Publication Date
June 20, 2017
Authors
David Harrison, and Jing Zhao, Bartley Danielsen, David Harrison, and Jing Zhao; Jennifer Jellison Holme and Emily Germain, University of Texas Austin
Research Areas
Assessment & Accountability; School Choice & Vouchers
Publication Type
Think Twice
Summary
EdChoice and the American Enterprise Institute (AEI) released reports suggesting that expanded school choice would promote economic development in economically distressed urban areas. The EdChoice report was a case study on the relocation decisions of families in an urban charter school, while the AEI report calls for a voucher-like program to spur economic development by luring higher income families into neighborhoods. While the EdChoice report is an empirical paper, the AEI report only consists of a hypothetical proposal for a voucher program aimed at promoting economic development in high-poverty neighborhoods.
Community Schools: An Evidence-Based Strategy for Equitable School Improvement
Publication Date
June 5, 2017
Authors
Jeannie Oakes, National Education Policy Center and the Learning Policy Institute; Anna Maier, LPI; and Julia Daniel, NEPC.
Research Areas
Assessment & Accountability; Community Schools; Governance & Public Education
Publication Type
Policy Brief
Summary
A new policy brief, co-produced by the National Education Policy Center (NEPC) and the Learning Policy Institute (LPI), explores the research on community schools. Community schools represent a partnership and school improvement strategy to integrate resources provided by community agencies and local government for improved student learning, stronger families, and healthier communities. According to the authors, community schools are strongly supported by research, and can be a particularly important strategy for transforming high-poverty schools. Further research on community schools and the conditions required for successful implementation is needed.
Understanding a Vicious Cycle: Do Out-of-School Suspensions Impact Student Test Scores?
Publication Date
June 1, 2017
Authors
Kaitlin P. Anderson, Gary W. Ritter, & Gema Zamarro; Brea L. Perry, Indiana University; and Daniel Losen, director of the Center for Civil Rights Remedies initiative at the Civil Rights Project at UCLA
Research Areas
Assessment & Accountability; Teacher Workforce
Publication Type
Think Twice
Summary
The Department of Education Reform at the University of Arkansas released a recent working paper on the association between out-of-school suspensions and student test scores. The paper concluded that punishment works, and that out-of-school suspension had a positive relationship to math and language arts test scores. However, an academic review of the paper finds multiple methodological and validity concerns, which limit the claims made.
School Closure as a Strategy to Remedy Low Performance
Publication Date
May 18, 2017
Authors
Gail L. Sunderman, University of Maryland; Erin Coghlan, University of California Berkeley; and Rick Mintrop, University of California Berkeley.
Research Areas
General / Needs Review; Governance & Public Education; Assessment & Accountability
Publication Type
Policy Brief
Summary
Closing a “low-performing” school and sending students to a “better-performing” one has been offered as a school improvement strategy, which the logic suggests will motivate schools to improve. A new policy brief released today investigates whether closing schools is an option that policymakers should pursue. According to the brief, the limited evidence base suggests that school closures are not a promising strategy for remedying low performance. The authors write, “School closures have at best weak and decidedly mixed benefits; at worst they have detrimental repercussions for students if districts do not ensure that seats at higher-performing schools are available for transfer students.”
Supplemental Education Services under NCLB: Emerging Evidence and Policy Issues
Publication Date
May 1, 2017
Authors
Patricia Burch, Ph.D., University of Wisconsin-Madison
Research Areas
Assessment & Accountability
Publication Type
Policy Brief
Summary
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High Stakes for High Achievers / High Stakes for High Schoolers
Publication Date
January 26, 2017
Authors
Michael J. Petrilli, David Griffith, Brandon L. Wright, and Audrey Kim / Michael J. Petrilli, David Griffith, and Brandon L. Wright; Beth C. Rubin, Rutgers University
Research Areas
Assessment & Accountability
Publication Type
Think Twice
Summary
Two recent think tank reports from the Thomas B. Fordham Institute called into question the impact of accountability systems on “high achievers.” The reports claimed that states have failed to address the needs of higher-scoring students, and that state accountability systems should be redesigned under the Every Student Succeeds Act (ESSA) with those students in mind.
Measuring School Turnaround Success
Publication Date
July 20, 2016
Authors
Cassie Lutterloh, Jeanette P. Cornier, & Bryan C. Hassel; Tina Trujillo, University of California Berkeley; and Marialena Rivera, Texas State University
Research Areas
Assessment & Accountability; Governance & Public Education
Publication Type
Think Twice
Summary
A report produced by Public Impact for WestEd’s Center on School Turnaround asserted that because there is a lack of a shared definition of school turnaround success for states and districts, it is difficult for school districts to learn from one another. The report claimed to provide a model for defining school turnaround success. The report bases its model framework for determining turnaround success on three school-level measures: (1) proficiency in reading and math on state assessments; (2) growth in reading and math on state assessments; and (3) graduate rate (for high schools).
Research-Based Options for Education Policymaking – Does Money Matter?
Publication Date
June 16, 2016
Authors
William J. Mathis, University of Colorado Boulder
Research Areas
Assessment & Accountability; Governance & Public Education
Publication Type
Policy Brief
Summary
In Does Money Matter?, William J. Mathis, University of Colorado Boulder, discusses why money matters in education. He concludes that despite claims to the contrary, adequate and equitable funding is necessary for schools to improve their performance – especially schools serving children living in poverty.
Research-Based Options for Education Policymaking – The Purpose of Education: Truing the Balance Wheel
Publication Date
June 2, 2016
Authors
William J. Mathis, University of Colorado Boulder
Research Areas
Governance & Public Education; Assessment & Accountability; Equity & Civil Rights
Publication Type
Policy Brief
Summary
In The Purpose of Education: Truing the Balance Wheel, William J. Mathis, University of Colorado Boulder, discusses what it would take for Horace Mann’s ideal of education as the “great equalizer of the conditions of men” to become a reality. Mann proclaimed that education was the bedrock of democracy and that it had the potential to serve as a “balance wheel of social machinery.” Mathis recommends that in order to true the balance wheel (as Mann desired), both in-school and out-of-school factors need to be addressed.
Research-Based Options for Education Policymaking – Housing Policy
Publication Date
May 24, 2016
Authors
Kevin G. Welner and William J. Mathis, University of Colorado Boulder
Research Areas
Assessment & Accountability; Governance & Public Education
Publication Type
Policy Brief
Summary
Because educational opportunities and life chances are inextricably tied to family wealth and housing advantages, Kevin Welner and William Mathis call for a comprehensive, cohesive approach to address societal inequities. In Housing Policy, the authors recommend that multiple approaches can and should be implemented as a united set of mutually supportive initiatives. In their recommendations, the authors suggest that housing integration policies that address housing supply and affordability can be beneficial.
2016 Brown Center Report on American Education — Part II: Tracking and Advanced Placement
Publication Date
April 26, 2016
Authors
Tom Loveless; Marshall Jean, University of Chicago
Research Areas
Assessment & Accountability
Publication Type
Think Twice
Summary
Based on the logic that states with more tracking tend to have more students passing AP exams in high school, a recent report from the Brown Center on Education Policy at the Brookings Institution claimed that tracking in eighth grade would promote greater equity. The Brown Center report, authored by Tom Loveless, used state-level data from the NAEP to describe a positive association between tracking in eighth grade and larger percentages of high-scoring AP test takers. Based on the findings, the author claims that tracking is beneficial for high-achieving students.
Research-Based Options for Education Policymaking – Do Choice Policies Segregate Schools?
Publication Date
March 31, 2016
Authors
William Mathis and Kevin Welner, University of Colorado Boulder
Research Areas
Governance & Public Education; Assessment & Accountability; Equity & Civil Rights; School Choice & Vouchers
Publication Type
Policy Brief
Summary
Despite advocates advancing the notion that integration can be promoted by increased school choice, a new brief considers the research evidence of those policies. The concise brief concludes that while choice policies may be designed and implemented in ways intended to advance integration; the result has been increased stratification. The National Education Policy Center published the brief with funding from the Great Lakes Center for Education Research and Practice.
SchoolGrades.org
Publication Date
March 10, 2016
Authors
Jacob L. Vigdor and Josh B. McGee; Jaime L. Del Razo, Annenberg Institute for School Reform & Brown University
Research Areas
Governance & Public Education; Assessment & Accountability
Publication Type
Think Twice
Summary
The Manhattan Institute for Policy Research launched a website, SchoolGrades.org, which aimed to provide a means to compare how well America’s schools prepare students in core subjects. The website attempts to evaluate and assign letter grades to schools using reading and math test scores. The website claims that the school grades found on the site allow parents to compare local schools against schools in other countries using a four-step process.
The Integration Anomaly: Comparing the Effects of K-12 Education Delivery Models on Segregation in Schools
Publication Date
January 5, 2016
Authors
Benjamin Scafidi; Genevieve Siegel-Hawley, Virginia Commonwealth University; & Erica Frankenberg, Penn State University
Research Areas
Assessment & Accountability; Equity & Civil Rights
Publication Type
Think Twice
Summary
A report from the Friedman Foundation for Educational Choice claimed that universal school choice offers a solution to increasing school segregation. The report argued that competition unleashed by unrestricted school choice would promote integration. The report suggested that housing integration has not been an effective way to pursue school integration, and it concludes with recommendations for how to structure school choice to achieve integration.
Diverse Housing, Diverse Schooling: How Policy Can Stabilize Racial Demographic Change in Cities and Suburbs
Publication Date
December 15, 2015
Authors
Amy Stuart Wells, Teachers College Columbia University
Research Areas
Assessment & Accountability; Equity & Civil Rights
Publication Type
Policy Brief
Summary
Throughout history, a child’s zip code has determined their educational opportunities, due to the tight relationship between racially segregated and unequal housing and schools. Research has revealed that racial inequality in American housing and schools is sustained by an iterative relationship between intangible and tangible factors in the housing-school choice process. According to a brief by Amy Stuart Wells, Teachers College, the nation may now have the ideal opportunity to address this housing-school nexus.
Research-Based Options for Education Policymaking - School Accountability, Multiple Measures and Inspectorates in a Post-NCLB World
Publication Date
October 25, 2015
Authors
William Mathis, University of Colorado Boulder
Research Areas
Assessment & Accountability; Governance & Public Education
Publication Type
Policy Brief
Summary
First brief in a series of concise publications considers alternative accountability approaches: As a part of a new series of briefs being released beginning today by the National Education Policy Center with funding from the Great Lakes Center for Education Research and Practice, William J. Mathis, University of Colorado Boulder, discusses the efficacy of three types of school evaluation approaches: (1) test based accountability; (2) multiple measures; and (3) school self-evaluations plus inspectorates.
School Closures and Student Achievement: An Analysis of Ohio’s Urban District and Charter Schools
Publication Date
June 16, 2015
Authors
Deven Carleson and Stéphane Lavertu; Ben Kirshner, University of Colorado Boulder; and Matthew Gaertner, Pearson
Research Areas
Charter Schools; Assessment & Accountability; General / Needs Review
Publication Type
Think Twice
Summary
This report from the Thomas B. Fordham Institute investigated school closures in Ohio for urban district and charter schools. The report found that test scores of displaced district students showed greater gains in math and reading relative to students from non-closed schools and that displaced charter students showed gains in math but not reading. Among the findings of the report, closed schools were attended by greater percentages of African American students from low-income families. Additionally, the report noted that displaced students performed better if they transferred to schools with higher levels of performance.
ESEA Reauthorization: How Can We Build upon No Child Left Behind’s Progress for Students with Disabilities in a Reauthorized ESEA
Publication Date
June 8, 2015
Authors
Chelsea Straus; Edward Fierros & Katherine Cosner, Villanova University
Research Areas
Assessment & Accountability; School Funding
Publication Type
Think Twice
Summary
A report from the Center for American Progress (CAP) links benchmarks for inclusion in state testing and stringent accountability with improved educational outcomes for students with disabilities. While noting that causal claims could not be made, the report then proceeded to try to convince readers of exactly such claims. The report compared 2000 to 2013 NAEP test scores along with NCES national-level data and found increased test scores, decreased dropout rates, and increased graduation rates for students with disabilities, as well as improved outcomes for Black and Hispanic students with disabilities.
Student Mobility: Causes, Consequences, Solutions
Publication Date
June 1, 2015
Authors
Russell W. Rumberger, UC Santa Barbara
Research Areas
Assessment & Accountability
Publication Type
Policy Brief
Summary
This brief explores the causes and consequences of student mobility, a widespread, and often-unheralded, problem facing American schools. According to the brief, written by Russell W. Rumberger, professor of education in the Gervirtz Graduate School of Education at the University of California Santa Barbara, student mobility can negatively impact student achievement on test scores, high school graduation prospects, and even student behavior. Multiple moves and those accompanied by family disruptions produce more severe impacts. To reduce the negative impacts of student mobility, Rumberger recommends: (1) School officials should strive to reduce mobility by raising overall school quality; (2) School officials should give students and parents sufficient and timely information to make informed school transfer decisions; (3) Personnel in schools receiving transfers can prepare materials and activities before students arrive; and (4) State officials should collect and report school and district mobility rates.
Urban Charter School Study
Publication Date
April 27, 2015
Authors
Andrew Maul, University of California Santa Barbara
Research Areas
Charter Schools; Assessment & Accountability
Publication Type
Think Twice
Summary
A recent report from the Center for Research on Education Outcomes (CREDO) at Stanford University attempted to investigate whether charter schools generate better outcomes than traditional public schools (TPS) in urban environments. The report, part of a series of reports on the performance of charter schools relative to TPS, asserts charter schools in urban environments provide a slightly greater test score advantage than those in non-urban environments. The report utilizes a methodological approach similar to previous reports from CREDO, and finds that students in urban charter schools were estimated to score approximately 0.055 standard deviations higher on math tests and 0.039 standard deviations higher on reading tests than their peers in urban TPSs.
Why School Report Cards Merit a Failing Grade
Publication Date
January 26, 2015
Authors
Kenneth R. Howe and Kevin Murray, University of Colorado Boulder
Research Areas
Governance & Public Education; Assessment & Accountability
Publication Type
Policy Brief
Summary
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The Economic Benefits of Closing Education Achievement Gaps
Publication Date
December 4, 2014
Authors
Robert Lynch and Patrick Oakford; Clive Belfield, Queens College, City University of New York (CUNY)
Research Areas
Assessment & Accountability
Publication Type
Think Twice
Summary
This report from the Center for American Progress (CAP) claimed that closing racial and ethnic achievement gaps would have substantial economic benefits, including raising incomes and the size of the economy. The gains would result from higher levels of student achievement and specifically from higher achievement by minority students. The report estimates that if Black and Hispanic high school math scores converged to equal those of white high school students, the size of the U.S. economy would increase by $20 trillion. Additionally, federal and state/local tax revenues would increase as a result.
Virtual Schooling and Student Learning: Evidence from the Florida Virtual School
Publication Date
October 28, 2014
Authors
Matthew M. Chingos and Guido Schwerdt; Michael K. Barbour, Sacred Heart University
Research Areas
Assessment & Accountability; Technology & AI
Publication Type
Think Twice
Summary
A recently released paper from the Harvard Kennedy School attempted to compare the performance of students at the Florida Virtual School (FLVS) to students in traditional brick-and-mortar schools. The paper concluded that FLVS students performed about the same or somewhat better on state tests and at a lower cost.
A Meta-Analysis of the Literature on the Effect of Charter Schools on Student Achievement
Publication Date
September 30, 2014
Authors
Julian R. Betts & Y. Emily Tang; Francesca López, University of Arizona
Research Areas
Charter Schools; Assessment & Accountability
Publication Type
Think Twice
Summary
A report from the Center on Reinventing Public Education (CRPE) attempted to examine whether charter schools have a positive effect on student achievement. The report reviewed 52 studies selected by the authors and found charters to be serving students well, particularly in math. The CRPE report is an update of prior reports that examine the achievement of charter schools as compared to traditional public schools.
The Efficiency Index
Publication Date
September 23, 2014
Authors
Peter Dolton, Oliver Marcenaro-Gutierrez, and Adam Still; Clive Belfield, Queens College, City University of New York
Research Areas
Assessment & Accountability; Governance & Public Education
Publication Type
Think Twice
Summary
This report, supported by the Organisation for Economic Co-Operation and Development (OECD), measured efficiency based on test scores, and resource use analyzed in terms of teachers wages and pupil-teacher ratios. It looked at costs for teachers and educational outcomes, and did not consider socioeconomic differences.
The Effect of Co-locations on Student Achievement in NYC Public Schools
Publication Date
April 15, 2014
Authors
Marcus A. Winters; Tina Trujillo and Marialena Rivera, UC-Berkeley
Research Areas
Charter Schools; Governance & Public Education; Assessment & Accountability
Publication Type
Think Twice
Summary
The report from the Manhattan Institute investigated the effect of colocations of charter schools and traditional public schools on a narrow range of standardized test scores. It focused on students' test scores and looked at fourth through eighth grade ELA and math standardized assessment gains. Colocation was not found to have a significant impact on students' test scores.
Measuring the Impacts of Teachers I (NBER No. 19423) & II (NBER No. 19424)
Publication Date
April 10, 2014
Authors
Raj Chetty, John N. Friedman, and Jonah E. Rockoff (both papers); Moshe Adler, Columbia University & Empire State College, SUNY
Research Areas
Assessment & Accountability; Teacher Workforce
Publication Type
Think Twice
Summary
This NBER working paper - split in two parts - studied the impact of teachers on long-term outcomes using value-added scores. The reports addressed a key question: Are teachers' impacts on students' test scores ("value added") a good measure of their quality? Economists Raj Chetty, John Friedman, & Jonah Rockoff claim in a two-part paper that higher value-added scores for teachers lead to greater economic success for their students later in life. The paper drew widespread media and politicians' attention, including the president's.
A Legal Lever for Enhancing Productivity
Publication Date
February 27, 2014
Authors
Elizabeth Ettema, Krishanu Sengupta, and Sandy Kress; Clive Belfield, Queens College, City University of New York
Research Areas
Assessment & Accountability; Governance & Public Education
Publication Type
Think Twice
Summary
This report examines the extent to which the Texas education system is efficient. Using a five-factor definition of efficiency, the authors argue that in key areas – teacher training, teacher evaluation, teacher pay-setting, and use of instructional materials – the Texas education system is unlikely to be efficient or cannot demonstrate efficiency.
Transfer Incentives for High-Performing Teachers: Final Results from a Multisite Randomized Experiment
Publication Date
January 28, 2014
Authors
Steven Glazerman, Ali Protik, Bing-ru Teh, Julie Bruch, and Jeffery Max; Donald Gratz, Curry College
Research Areas
Assessment & Accountability; Teacher Workforce
Publication Type
Think Twice
Summary
The Teacher Transfer Initiative (TTI) actively encouraged 1,500 "high-performing" elementary teachers in 10 urban school districts to transfer to low-performing schools in return for a total stipend of $20,000 distributed over two years. The teachers were all identified as having students who were in the top 20 percent in their districts, based on a value-added measure of standardized test scores. The assumption was that better teachers would get better results on standardized tests wherever they teach.
School Choice and School Performance in the New York City Public Schools: Will the Past be Prologue?
Publication Date
November 19, 2013
Authors
Grover J. “Russ” Whitehurst and Sarah Whitfield; Patricia Burch, University of Southern California
Research Areas
School Choice & Vouchers; Assessment & Accountability
Publication Type
Think Twice
Summary
Whitehurst and Whitfield attempt to use aggregate findings to make the case that expansion of school choice and school competition in NYC schools is a major factor in increased graduation rates and enhanced performance on state tests of academic achievement. The authors’ recommendations also include calls for more general improvements in instruction, teacher quality, and accountability systems.
Model Legislative Language for Comprehensive Assessment and Accountability
Publication Date
October 22, 2013
Authors
Andy Hargreaves, Boston College Henry Braun, Boston College
Research Areas
Assessment & Accountability; Governance & Public Education; Teacher Workforce
Publication Type
Policy Brief
Summary
In a report released today, Andy Hargreaves and Henry Braun of Boston College describe how data-driven accountability initiatives have created “perverse” incentives for educators. The legislative brief highlights the flawed use of DDIA in much, though not all, of the U.S. education system. To restore focus on improvement, schools should consider systematic reforms that capture the full range of learning and assess educational values holistically, instead of relying on narrow metrics to define success that punish teachers and students. The brief includes twelve recommendations for establishing more effective systems and processes of Data-Driven or Evidence-Informed Improvement and Accountability. Model legislation by attorney Kathy Gebhardt accompanies Data-Driven Improvement and Accountability.
Were all those standardized tests for nothing? The lessons of No Child Left Behind
Publication Date
August 27, 2013
Authors
Bruce Fuller, University of California Berkeley
Research Areas
Assessment & Accountability
Publication Type
Think Twice
Summary
The report, from a noted conservative think tank, attempts to isolate the effects of NCLB’s threat of sanctions on underperforming schools. The authors infer that federal pressure and punishment are promising policy avenues.
Weighted Student funding for California
Publication Date
June 18, 2013
Authors
Dr. Bruce D. Baker, Rutgers University
Research Areas
Assessment & Accountability; School Funding
Publication Type
Think Twice
Summary
The Reason Foundation, a Libertarian think tank, recently issued a brief on California Gov. Jerry Brown’s school finance reform plan, which endorses Brown’s proposal and then uses it to advance its own ideas for reducing the role of school districts and for giving school principals greater autonomy over spending.
Middle Class or Middle of the Pack: What can we learn when benchmarking U.S. schools against the world’s best
Publication Date
June 4, 2013
Authors
Martin Carnoy, Stanford University
Research Areas
Assessment & Accountability; Governance & Public Education
Publication Type
Think Twice
Summary
America Achieves report calls for additional international testing. The authors of the report consider recent PISA results a "wake up call to America’s middle class" and contend in response that U.S. high schools should start taking part in a new international test that is to compare the academic knowledge and skills of 15-year-olds- around the world.
Research-Based Options for Education Policymaking — Moving Beyond Tracking
Publication Date
May 30, 2013
Authors
William Mathis, University of Colorado-Boulder
Research Areas
Assessment & Accountability; Governance & Public Education; Curriculum & Instruction
Publication Type
Policy Brief
Summary
Dr. William Mathis, managing director of the National Education Policy Center, summarizes current relevant findings in education policy research. Despite incontrovertible evidence demonstrating the harms of ability grouping, resistance to the elimination of tracking in schools remains strong. The latest in a series of two- and three-page briefs summarizing current relevant findings in education policy research reviews the evidence for and against “tracking” students through school – that is, assigning students to particular classes, curricula and courses of study by their perceived ability.
Report Card on American Education: Ranking State K-12 Performance, Progress, and Reform (18th edition)
Publication Date
May 9, 2013
Authors
Christopher Lubienski, University of Illinois T. Jameson Brewer, University of Illinois
Research Areas
Governance & Public Education; Assessment & Accountability
Publication Type
Think Twice
Summary
The 18th edition of the American Legislative Exchange Council’s (ALEC) Report Card draws on ratings from market-orientated advocacy groups to grade states in areas such as allowances for charter schools, availability of vouchers, and permissiveness for homeschoolers.
KIPP Middle Schools: Impacts on Achievement and Other Outcomes
Publication Date
April 30, 2013
Authors
Gregory Camilli, University of Colorado Boulder
Research Areas
Charter Schools; Assessment & Accountability
Publication Type
Think Twice
Summary
A recent study from Mathematica Policy Research (MPR) suggests that KIPP (Knowledge Is Power Program) charter middle schools may actually boost test-score growth by as much as eight months to eleven months over a three year period.
Mayoral Governance and Student Achievement: How Mayor-Led Districts are Improving School and Student Performance
Publication Date
April 23, 2013
Authors
Katrina E. Bulkley, Montclair State University
Research Areas
Governance & Public Education; Assessment & Accountability
Publication Type
Think Twice
Summary
A recent report from the Center for American Progress claims that mayor-led districts may use resources more strategically and that mayor-controlled districts have seen increases in student achievement. The report also states that moving to a mayoral-controlled district can also help spur innovation and advancement.
Does Sorting Students Improve Scores? An Analysis of Class Composition
Publication Date
April 2, 2013
Authors
Dr. Carol Corbett Burris, South Side High School Katherine Allison, University of Colorado Boulder
Research Areas
Assessment & Accountability; Governance & Public Education
Publication Type
Think Twice
Summary
Despite the vast majority of research into tracking or ability grouping of students, a recently released report from the National Bureau of Economic Research (NBER) purports that sorting students by ability improves outcomes for low-achieving and high-achieving students alike.
State Policy Report Card
Publication Date
February 20, 2013
Authors
Sherman Dorn, University of South Florida Ken Libby, University of Colorado Boulder
Research Areas
Assessment & Accountability; Governance & Public Education
Publication Type
Think Twice
Summary
This report assigned letter grades to states based on its preferred policies regarding school choice, defined contribution pension programs, private vouchers, test-based accountability and centralized control of public schools.
Two Culminating Reports From The MET Project
Publication Date
January 31, 2013
Authors
Jesse Rothstein, University of California Berkeley William Mathis, University of Colorado Boulder
Research Areas
Assessment & Accountability; Teacher Workforce
Publication Type
Think Twice
Summary
The Measures of Effective Teaching Project (MET) is an ambitious, multi-year study of thousands of teachers in six school districts. This review is of two of the final research papers dealing with the impact of student assignment on teacher evaluations and how teacher evaluation measures are best combined.
Failure is Not an Option: How Principals, Teachers, Students, and Parents from Ohio’s High-Achieving, High Poverty Schools Explain Their Success
Publication Date
January 15, 2013
Authors
Mark Paige, UMass Dartmouth
Research Areas
Assessment & Accountability
Publication Type
Think Twice
Summary
The report attempts to explain how principals, teachers, students, and parents sustain effective practices and what helps them to weather tough times. The report was compiled through interviews with nine high-achieving, high-poverty schools in Ohio and offers a description of key attributes and possible recommendations.
Our Immense Achievement Gap: Embracing Proven Remedies While Avoiding a Race-Based Recipe for Disaster
Publication Date
March 29, 2012
Authors
Susan Eaton, Harvard University
Research Areas
Assessment & Accountability
Publication Type
Think Twice
Summary
This report claims that desegregation has failed and criticizes efforts to reduce concentrated poverty and achieve racial and socioeconomic integration in schools and housing in Minnesota.
Review of The Long-Term Impact of Teachers: Teacher Value-Added and Student Outcomes in Adulthood
Publication Date
February 16, 2012
Authors
Dale Ballou, Vanderbilt University
Research Areas
Governance & Public Education; Teacher Workforce; Assessment & Accountability
Publication Type
Think Twice
Summary
This report concludes that teachers whose students show high gains on standardized test scores continue to have a positive impact on the students later in the form of reduced teenage pregnancy rates, increased college attendance and increased future earnings. Ballou's review acknowledges that the report is impressive in many ways, but that important tests for bias were omitted and it failed to account for external factors which could impact test scores such as good parenting.
What's Trust Got to Do With It? A Communications and Engagement Guide for School Leaders Tackling the Problem of Persistently Failing Schools
Publication Date
February 7, 2012
Authors
William J. Mathis, University of Colorado-Boulder
Research Areas
Assessment & Accountability; Governance & Public Education
Publication Type
Think Twice
Summary
This report offers strategies for building public and parental support for federal school turnaround strategies.
Organizing Schools to Improve Student Achievement: Start Times, Grade Configurations, and Teacher Assignments
Publication Date
November 29, 2011
Authors
Patrick J. McEwan, Wellesley College
Research Areas
Assessment & Accountability
Publication Type
Think Twice
Summary
This report examines three school organizational reforms – moving from middle schools to K-8 schools, delaying the start time of high school classes and increasing teacher specialization by grade and subject.
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