Quality Counts report

This annual report digs into test scores, high school graduation rates, and other data that focus on the student achievement in public K-12 schools. In addition, the report analyzes a wealth of socioeconomic and educational data that chart the trajectory toward success in each of the states and for the nation as a whole.
Quality counts 2018: Report and rankings. (2018). Bethesda, MD: Education Week.
https://www.edweek.org/ew/collections/quality-counts-2018-state-grades/index.html?cmp=eml-eb-sr-qualitycounts18-09062018&M=58598435&U=1673093

School funding impact study

In most PISA-participating countries and economies, the average socio-economic background of students who attend privately managed schools is more advantaged than that of those who attend public schools. Yet in some countries, there is little difference in the socio-economic profiles between public and private schools. Why? An analysis of PISA results finds that while the prevalence of privately managed schools in a country is not related to socio-economic stratification within a school system, the level of public funding to privately managed schools is: the higher the proportion of public funding allocated to privately managed schools, the smaller the socio-economic divide between publicly and privately managed schools. This report also shows that those countries with narrow socio-economic stratification in their education systems not only maximize equity and social cohesion, but also perform well in the PISA survey.
OECD. (2012). Public and private schools: How management and funding relate to their socio-economic profile. Paris: OECD.
http://www.oecdbookshop.org/oecd/display.asp?sf1=identifiers&st1=982012061P1&LANG=EN

Parents' attitudes about public schools

Americans Value Digital Learning in Schools
The 2011 PDK/Gallup Poll of the Public's Attitudes Toward the Public Schools found that 91 percent of Americans and 95 percent of parents polled indicated that students need access to computer technology and the internet to ensure academic success. At the same time, researchers also found that most Americans believe schools already have the computer technology needed for education as 74 percent said schools should invest in more technology, compared to 82 percent in 2000. The report also found that Americans are open to instruction over the Internet if it offers students a higher quality experience than having an educator present in the classroom.
Bushaw, W., & Lopez, S. (2011). Betting on teachers. Phi Delta Kappa and Gallup.
http://www.pdkintl.org/poll/docs/pdkpoll43_2011.pdf.

Early Grade Retention and Student Success Study

Early Grade Retention and Student Success: Evidence From Los Angeles


Analyzes risk factors of retention through third grade in the L.A. Unified School District, including age, gender, race/ethnicity, family income, and English learner status; retention's effectiveness in improving grade-level skills; and educators' views.

Public Policy Institute of California, Cannon, Jill S.; Stephen Lipscomb, March 2011, PDF link here

Eight characteristics of effective school boards: At a glance

Eight characteristics of effective school boards: At a glance

1. Effective school boards commit to a vision of high expectations for student achievement and quality instruction and define clear goals toward that vision.
2. Effective school boards have strong shared beliefs and values about what is possible for students and their ability to learn, and of the system and its ability to teach all children at high levels.
3. Effective school boards are accountability driven, spending less time on operational issues and more time focused on policies to improve student achievement.
4. Effective school boards have a collaborative relationship with staff and the community and establish a strong communications structure to inform and engage both internal and external stakeholders in setting and achieving district goals.
5. Effective school boards are data savvy: they embrace and monitor data, even when the information is negative, and use it to drive continuous improvement.
6. Effective school boards align and sustain resources, such as professional development, to meet district goals. According to researchers effective boards saw a responsibility to maintain high standards even in the midst of budget challenges.
7. Effective school boards lead as a united team with the superintendent, each from their respective roles, with strong collaboration and mutual trust.
8. Effective school boards take part in team development and training, sometimes with their superintendents, to build shared knowledge, values and commitments for their improvement efforts.

Center for Public Education, 2011, http://www.centerforpubliceducation.org/Main-Menu/Public-education/Eight-characteristics-of-effective-school-boards/default.aspx

e-learning growth in preK-12 schools

Electronic learning in the country's preK-12 schools is growing at a faster rate than e-learning in other sectors, according to a report that shows schools will spend $4.9 billion on "self-paced" learning tools by 2015. The growth is largely the result of an increase in virtual schools and tight school budgets that left many searching for more affordable learning options. The percentage of preK-12 students attending physical classrooms is expected to drop by 4.2% by 2015 as more students begin learning online.
Ambient Insight, 2011, T.H.E. Journal, PreK-12 Dominates Growth in E-Learning

Survey schools need faster broadband

More than half of school and library respondents in a recent Federal Communications Commission (FCC) e-Rate survey say they provide some form of wireless internet access for school employees and students, but almost 80 percent of those same respondents said their broadband connections are inadequate. Fifty-five percent of those who said their broadband connections are inadequate said that slow connection speed was the deciding factor in that decision. Ten percent of survey respondents have broadband speeds of 100 Mbps or faster, and more than half (55 percent) have broadband speeds greater than 3 Mbps. More than half of school districts surveyed (60 percent) use a fiber optic connection, and 66 percent of respondents offer wireless internet access for staff, students, or library patrons.

Federal Communications Commission, 2011, Survey: Schools need faster broadband speeds

report evaluates district productivity

A new report evaluates the productivity of nearly every major school district in the United States. The report, which defines “productivity” as achievement produced relative to a district’s educational spending, found that low productivity costs the national system as much as $175 billion a year. The study found that many school districts could boost student achievement without increasing spending if they used their money more productively. Low productivity costs the nation’s school system as much as $175 billion a year. Without controls on how additional school dollars are spent, more education spending will not automatically improve student outcomes, the study said.
Center for American Progress, 2011, Return on Educational Investment: a district-by-district of U.S. educational productivity

technology needs of teachers and students report

Few people will be surprised to learn of research that shows K-12 institutions throughout the United States have become heavily dependent on technology, and that this dependency continues to increase with each passing year. What may surprise even the most jaded among us, however, is that, given that many view this a "good" dependency with a wealth of immediate and long-term benefits for teachers, students, and staff, we're doing an inadequate job of feeding the habit.

At the FETC 2011 show a national research report on digital media usage among educators entitled "Deepening Commitment: Teachers Increasingly Rely on Media and Technology." The report is based on a survey conducted in August 2010 of 1,401 preK-12 teachers from various regions and demographics throughout the United States. Its primary conclusions are: Teachers are, owing to both interest and circumstance, increasing their use and knowledge of technology in the classroom; and U.S. schools provide an insufficient capacity of computing devices and technology infrastructure to support teachers' Internet-based instruction needs.

PBS and Grunwald Assoociates, 2011,Transforming Education through Technology, Report Shows U.S. Schools Can't Meet Technology Demands of Teachers, Students

Low-performing schools study

Failing schools are rarely improved or closed
Schools that struggle to meet standards rarely improve and rarely are being closed, according to a new study that shows only 1% of schools said to be failing in 2003-04 exceeded state standards five years later. The study examined failing elementary and middle schools in 10 states, and found that more than 90% of such schools remained in the bottom quartile of schools after five years.
Thomas B. Fordham Institute and Basis Policy Research. (2010). Are bad schools immortal?
http://www.edexcellence.net/publications-issues/publications/are-bad-schools-immortal.html

Perspectives on Education poll

Civic Index Reveals Public Views on Education

A national poll shed new light on the public's views on school progress,
politicians' commitment to education, and the strength of
community commitment to helping improve education. The online Civic Index measures public attitudes toward education and assesses ten categories of community support
determined by the public and experts to be critical factors outside the
school to support and sustain quality public schools. The poll reveals
that even when other issues seem at the forefront of news, Americans
still care deeply about education.
Public Education Network. (2008). Civic index for quality public education.
http://civicindex4education.org

At-risk school study

School leaders must link arms to create a different model for turning around the worst-performing schools, including a "protected space" free from many traditional rules. The report envisions a broad-based and highly cooperative system of rapid school improvement. States and districts would form small, specialized units to supervise and coordinate the work of locally based “lead” turnaround specialists, who would partner with a range of providers to supply an integrated array of services to schools.
Mass Insight Education and Research Institute. (2007). The turnaround challenge. Boston: Mass Insight Education and Research Institute. http://www.massinsight.org/micontent/trnresources.aspx

Parents and performance study

Study: Parents make the difference in performance
Poor students who attend private and parochial schools scored about the same as their peers at urban public schools, according to a study released today. This study suggests that parental participation and other family characteristics account for differences in performance among poor students.
Wenglinsky, H. (2007). Are Private High Schools Better Academically Than Public High Schools? Washington, DC: Center on Education Policy. www.cep-dc.org