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At least 16 states have limited exclusionary discipline for elementary age students, but little is known about the effects of these policies on discipline rates and disproportionality. This paper tests whether a limit on exclusionary discipline in grades K-5 in Arkansas impacted the likelihood of suspension and expulsion overall, for different student subgroups, and in different types of schools. Using a comparative interrupted time series approach, we find the policy - which included exceptions that could be interpreted subjectively - reduced the risk of suspension or expulsion in grades K-5, but that students who are not Black, students without disabilities, and more economically advantaged students experienced larger reductions in suspension and expulsion risk. Implications and limitations are discussed.

There is a lack of research examining the use of curriculum-based measurements (CBMs) with special populations, particularly English Language Learners (ELLs). The current study used an alternating treatments single-case design with five Latinx ELL students to examine scores across three math fluency CBM modalities. One-minute probes using either traditional paper-pencil, iPad with a stylus, and iPad with a keyboard were alternated, with students taking two assessments per day. Visual analysis of time-series graphs suggested that most students answered more questions correctly on paper-pencil probes compared to either iPad modalities; scores on iPad with stylus were higher than iPad with keyboard for all students. Non-overlap of all pairs effect sizes indicated small to large differences between probe modalities. All students preferred the traditional paper-pencil probes to either iPad modality. Discussion focuses on the implications for educators using CBMs of different modalities for ELL students.

This paper reports the outcomes of an experimental evaluation of "Direct Instruction Spoken English" ("DISE"), an English language curriculum that focuses on developing English speaking, listening, and comprehension skills in English Learners (ELs). Twenty-nine middle schools in three states were randomly assigned to teach "DISE" Level 1 or their typical English language development program. Treatment teachers received two days of training and taught daily lessons. Project staff assessed 746 sixth and seventh-grade students with a proximal measure of English language proficiency and distal measures of language and oral reading fluency. Analyses of oral English language suggested differences between intervention conditions favored the "DISE" condition for students who began with lower English language proficiency and accumulated when taught over two years. Differences between intervention conditions were not observed after only one year of instruction and for students with advanced levels of English language proficiency. The findings suggest that an evidence-based English oral language program that included frequent teacher demonstrations and opportunities for students to practice speaking English may improve English oral language skills for middle school students. [For the corresponding grantee submission, see ED618654.]

The present paper examines if developmental pathways for students at risk for academic failure can be improved through social and emotional learning (SEL). Specifically, we test this hypothesis by accounting for shifts in student engagement, a highly studied and malleable construct often inclusive of SEL interventions, as the pathway by which to impact student achievement outcomes. Using longitudinal data from a randomized control trial, we identified students at risk for school failure (n = 318) within a larger sample of fifth graders (N = 1,352). Multigroup path model revealed that participation in RULER significantly impacted the relationship between student engagement and conduct behaviors for at risk students: students who experienced RULER demonstrated increased engagement a year later (at sixth grade) and improved conduct the following year (in seventh grade). The potential for and limitations of SEL programs on developmental trajectories for students at risk for school failure are discussed.

In this paper, we note the contrasting positions occupied by social and financial capital in state and federal education policy and compare their relative impacts on student learning. To make such a comparison, we analyzed data from a representative sample of Michigan's elementary schools using multilevel structural equation modeling to examine the relationships among social capital, instructional expenditures, and student achievement. We found that the level of social capital characterizing schools was not a function of instructional expenditures. We also found that both social and financial capital had a positive and significant relationship with reading and mathematics student achievement. However, the effect of social capital was three and five times larger than that of financial capital on mathematics and reading, respectively. We discuss the implications of these findings for education policy and programs that might improve student learning by strengthening social relationships.

Examined the extent to which schools that received Title I funds for schoolwide programs implemented the plans they developed when requesting funds. Results from 10 urban elementary schools show that schools implemented some plan components but did not generally implement instructional innovations included in the plans. (SLD)

Reports results from an initial evaluation of a project to develop and implement a whole-school approach to prevention and intervention in early literacy based on a design similar to "Success for All." Early implementation and outcomes from the first year of implementation in the Victoria (Australia) schools are reported. (SLD)

In a series of reforms started in 1998 and formalized with the 2000 introduction of the Blueprint for Student Success, the San Diego Unified School District (SDUSD) implemented a wide-ranging series of reforms designed to boost the literacy skills of students. This article provides an overview of the reforms, assesses the contributions made by the articles in this special issue of "JESPAR," and highlights complementarities between this research and related quantitative research. Overall, the evidence suggests that the model of professional development in the 8th largest district in the nation took root and led to tangible changes in the classroom. Achievement analyses by Betts (2005), Betts, Zau, and King (2005), and Betts, Zau, and Koedel (2008) have suggested that the reading achievement of students improved in the lower grades as a result of the reforms, but dipped somewhat in high school. This article concludes with thoughts on the political and financial challenges to sustaining such reforms and the practical difficulties of evaluating their impact. (Contains 1 figure and 3 footnotes.)

Addresses the issue of Title I student assessment for at-risk students and the possible funding ramifications if Title I schools reduce the frequency and coverage of their assessments. It argues that continued Congressional funding of Title I programs will be difficult if sufficient assessments cannot reveal positive impact. (GR)

Previous research has documented a substantial decline of standardized test scores of children from low-income backgrounds, relative to more advantaged peers, in later elementary grades, the so-called “fourth-grade slump.” This article examines changes in reading achievement from first to fifth grade for students in a large urban school system with a high proportion of students from economically deprived backgrounds. Students received first-grade reading instruction from Direct Instruction (DI), Open Court, or a mixture of reading curricula. Results indicate that students in schools using DI had significantly greater gains in both reading vocabulary and comprehension than students in the two other settings and that their average levels of achievement in fifth grade were above the national norms, thus countering the fourth-grade slump. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

One of the greatest challenges to comprehensive school reform (CSR) is sustaining reform over a period long enough to produce substantial effects. This article highlights the importance of studying sustainability as well as the importance of being clear about what is being sustained, distinguishing between a sustained reform relationship and sustained implementation of a reform. This study examined a sample of 395 urban, disadvantaged, low-achieving elementary and middle schools using CSR in 2001–2002 and found that nearly 1/3 of these CSR schools ended their relationships with their model developers by the end of 2003–2004. However, the remaining 2/3 of schools successfully sustained a reform relationship for more than 3 years—in some cases for more than a decade. The results of Analysis 1 indicate that 11 risk factors for discontinuing a reform relationship operate in combination to dispose schools toward dropping their CSR affiliation. Analysis 2 shows that although dropping a CSR model affiliation is significantly related to decreases in implementation fidelity, the magnitude of the decrease is relatively small. In many urban, disadvantaged, low-achieving schools, the influence of CSR models can live beyond the formal discontinuation of the reform relationship. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study examined whether culture mediated teachers' reported classroom behaviors. Teachers were asked to complete a questionnaire with items that depicted a traditional classroom behavior or activity performed under specific cultural orientations. Reports of culture-based classroom behaviors were ascertained as a function of teacher cultural group and classroom cultural practice type. Classroom cultural practice was measured through a scale developed to assess typical classroom activities carried out in fundamental culture-specific manners. After teachers initially responded to how often they endorsed the culture-based classroom practices, an inference was made of the degree to which teachers maintained classroom behaviors specific to either individualistic, competitive, communal, or vervistic cultural orientations. Because teachers' practices are believed to be guided by mainstream European cultural values, it was predicted that they would report higher levels of such classroom practices. Patterns of relationships among the endorsement levels of the reported classroom behaviors were also examined. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Components of the School Renaissance® program, including Accelerated Reader and Reading Renaissance, have been implemented in more than 65,000 schools in the United States. Despite the program's popularity, there have been no published, well-controlled evaluations of its effectiveness. This randomized field experiment was designed to gauge program impacts on the reading achievement of 978 urban students in Grades 3 to 6. Schools and teachers within schools volunteered to participate in the study, with the foreknowledge that teachers would be randomly assigned to either implement School Renaissance or serve as controls. A 3-level hierarchical linear model was used to estimate the impact of the program on student reading growth trajectories on the STAR Reading test. Students in School Renaissance classrooms exhibited significantly higher growth rates than those in control classrooms, with effect size estimates ranging from +0.07 to +0.34 across grades. Quality of program implementation did not predict student achievement growth but was correlated with a reduction in the negative effect of learning disability status. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This research examined the effectiveness in an urban school district of 2 of the most widely used Comprehensive School Reform (CSR) programs—Direct Instruction (DI), implemented in 9 district elementary schools, and Success for All (SFA), implemented in 2 elementary schools. In examining impacts on student achievement and school change outcomes (e.g., teacher buy-in, school climate), a mixed-method research design was employed, encompassing both quantitative and qualitative analyses. Student achievement results on the reading sections of the Ohio Proficiency Test and the Stanford Achievement Test showed that both DI and SFA schools performed comparably to other district schools after statistically adjusting for school and student variables. Qualitative measures indicated generally positive support for both models by teachers, principals, and parents. However, in the case of DI, findings indicated weaknesses in implementation due largely to uncertainties involving school versus district roles and inadequate training. Results are discussed with regard to the influences of contextual and implementation variables on judging CSR model effectiveness in general and for specific schools and districts. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Many attempts at educational reform, among them No Child Left Behind and a recent Philadelphia effort, assume that the quality of the educational programs being offered by schools can be inferred from the achievements of the children who attend them. This article explores the reasonableness of this assumption for Philadelphia public schools by following a cohort of students for 3 years after the completion of est grade, when most students would conclude 4th grade. It examines the rates of school-to-school mobility and exit from schools. Using a family of hierarchical models, it explores how est-grade report card marks predict the odds and character of within-district school-to-school transfers, and the odds of student exits from the public schools. The analyses then examine the effects of two est-grade school-community variables, a poverty index and a performance index, on the mobility of students. The study found high mobility prevalent in most schools. Moreover, combinations of student and school-community variables typically associated with the need for school improvement were present at schools with the highest mobility rates. The article concludes that a policy of inferring the success of school-based educational endeavors from school-level statistics can often be invalid in urban school districts due to student mobility, with the risk of error likely to be the greatest al the schools where reform is most needed and No Child Left Behind sanctions are most likely. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study reports the additive effect Consistency Management & Cooperative Discipline (CMCD; Freiberg, Stein, & Huang, 1995) had on a constructivist mathematics program in 3 of 7 Chapter I elementary schools. Specifically, Grades 4, 5, and 6 students of teachers skilled in both CMCD and constructivist mathematics in 3 elementary schools had higher achievement gains than students from 4 schools with only the constructivist mathematics program. These 7 elementary schools constitute a geographic feeder pattern in a large urban city in the southwest United States. Analysis of the state-mandated mathematics subtest showed an effect size gain of ES + .33 for both math and CMCD programs compared to only the mathematics program. This is consistent with other studies utilizing CMCD and has important implications for necessary classroom organizations for constructivist curriculums. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Focuses on the efforts to bridge the gap between early childhood education and high-quality schooling in the elementary years in the United States. Status of children's literacy experiences; Failure of the government to give full child development, health and parent services; Objectives of elementary schools with primary-grade programs.

Merritt Elementary Extended School has created a foundation for educational progress and student success that is based on adult collaboration and on a nurturing and developmentally sound approach to student learning. Parents, teachers, and staff focus their work around collaborative teams that recognize the value, knowledge, and contributions of all the school's stakeholders. The evolution of Merritt into a community of caring and involved people has enabled it to maximize the potential of both its students and its staff. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]