Achievement Gap Patterns of Grade 8 American Indian and Alaska Native Students in Reading and Math

Department of Education Institute of Education Sciences (IES)

This Issues & Answers report, prepared as a cross-educational laboratory initiative among the Northwest Regional Educational Laboratory, McREL's REL Central, and several other regional laboratories, compares gaps in performance on state achievement tests between grade 8 American Indian and Alaska Native students and all other grade 8 students in 26 states serving large populations of American Indian and Alaska Native students. The report finds that, from 2003−2004 to 2006−2007 in reading and math, the majority of states with four years of continuous data saw an increase in proficiency and either a decrease in performance deficit or an increase in performance lead compared with all other students.
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One-to-one computing programs only as effective as their teachers

eSchool News

Students who participate in one-to-one computing programs improve engagement and achievement but only under the instruction of effective teachers, found a group of studies published in the Journal of Technology, Learning, and Assessment. The studies measured program implementation outcomes at five schools over three years and found the success of programs varied widely, depending on the level of the the teacher's commitment and ability to adapt their practices to make the best use of the technology.   

Who needs charters when you have 'private public schools'?

Fordham Institute

A new report from the Fordham Institute examines the phenomenon of "private public schools," schools where low-income pupils make up less than five percent of the student body. More than 1.7 million American children at the elementary, middle, and high school levels attend these 2,817 schools across the United States; in fact, nationwide, more children attend "private public schools" than attend charters. Institute President Chester E. Finn finds it "hypocritical if not discriminatory" that elected officials say nothing about this fact yet oppose charters, vouchers, and other school choice programs that would give needy children the opportunity to get a comparable education. 

Mind the (other) gap! The growing excellence gap in K-12 education

Center for Evaluation and Education Policy

This report, released on February 4, explores whether the focus on "minimum competency" among all students, as mandated by No Child Left Behind, has had the effect of increasing an "excellence gap" at the highest levels of academic performance. The authors examine recent literature, trends in National Assessment on Educational Progress (NAEP) scores, and state accountability assessments of excellence gaps, concluding that an excellence gap exists among "the economically disadvantaged, English language learners, and historically underprivileged minorities." The authors make several policy recommendations, noting that ignoring this gap may have a long-term negative effect on American economic competitiveness.

Comprehensive School Reform: Meta-Analytic Evidence of Black-White Achievement Gap Narrowing

Education Policy Analysis Archives

This meta-analysis, conducted by Kevin M. Gorey of the University of Windsor in Canada, examines the effects of comprehensive school reform (CSR) programs on the achievement of Black and White students. After synthesizing 34 studies, the author found that the Black-White achievement gap narrowed significantly among students in CSR schools, compared to students in non-CSR schools. Futhermore, the gap was substantially decreased or eliminated among elementary and middle school students. The author suggests that well-supported, evidence-based reform programs could eliminate the achievement gap across the board.

Solution Tree Annual Conference on Standards and Assessment

Solution Tree
April 14-16, 2010
Las Vegas, Nevada

This conference offers a range of assessment strategies and the time to explore, network, and discover the tools that will work best for you. This event will help you find direction and return home with practical ideas for making your assessments timely, precise, and instrumental to maximizing your instructional time.
Join McREL's President & CEO, Timothy Waters, in a keynote presentation as he explores what our schools would look like if we treated every student failure as a catastrophic event and outlines how to ensure that every student who enters our system leaves it with a full range of post-secondary and life opportunities.

Balanced Leadership for Optimizing and Transforming Districts and Schools Workshop

May 6-7
Lincolnshire, Illinois

Solution Tree will sponsor a two-day workshop, Balanced Leadership for Optimizing and Transforming Districts and Schools, in Lincolnshire, Ill., on May 6−7. Join McREL President and CEO Tim Waters and McREL consultants Jim Eck and Greg Cameron to learn more about McREL's research on school- and district-level leadership responsibilities that are associated with higher levels of student achievement and how to apply those practices in making school systems more reliable. 

Designing Effective Science Instruction Institute

March 17
Philadelphia, Pennsylvania

The National Science Teachers Association will sponsor Designing Effective Science Instruction: Developing Student Understanding Through Classroom Inquiry, Discourse and Sense-Making on March 17 in Philadelphia. Designing Effective Science Instruction is a professional development program designed to improve teachers' planning and delivery of effective lessons to diverse student populations. This daylong session, presented by McREL consultants Anne Tweed and Bj Stone, focuses on using inquiry, discourse and sense-making activities to improve student understanding of science concepts. Participants will recieve a manual that describes six strategies for engaging and motivating science students.  

Leadership Bootcamp 2010

June 26
Denver, Colorado

A panel of leadership experts, including McREL's Howard Pitler and Elizabeth Hubbell, will be on hand for Leadership Bootcamp 2010 on June 26 in Denver. The daylong event, sponsored by Technology in Education (TIE) Colorado and the International Society for Technology in Education (ISTE), is designed to help school leaders develop a working plan for improving digital communication and collaboration practices in their schools or districts. The event will precede the ISTE 2010 Conference and includes a kick-off event the evening of June 25.

ASCD 2010 Annual Conference

March 6-8
San Antonio, Texas

The ASCD 2010 Annual Conference, Critical Transformations, will be held March 6−8 at the Henry B. Gonzales Convention Center in San Antonio, Texas. The Conference will include more than 180 sessions on topics including the impact of globalization on education, 21st century learning skills, leadership, standards-based education, and teaching and learning in the digital age. Featured speakers include Geoffrey Canada, founder of the Harlem Children's Zone.

The Balanced Leadership® program and leadership, practice, and learning

Texas A&M University College of Education & Human Development
January 7, 2010

Researchers from Texas A&M University and the University of Michigan are currently evaluating the effectiveness of McREL's Balanced Leadership program. The study will look for a connection between principals' participation in the Balanced Leadership program and student achievement gains.