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This "Fifth-Year Report" from the Evaluation of the Comprehensive School Reform Program Implementation and Outcomes (ECSRIO) is the final report on the outcomes of the federally funded Comprehensive School Reform (CSR) program. It presents findings about the relationship between participation in the U.S. Department of Education's Comprehensive School Reform program in 2002 and subsequent student achievement five years later. This report follows the study's "Third-Year Report" (ED504179) which presented findings as of 2005 and was published in 2008. The "Fifth-Year Report" examines the CSR program throughout the country and its relationship with gains in student achievement as of 2007. The CSR program was established as a demonstration program in 1998 and authorized as a full program in 2002 as part of the "No Child Left Behind Act" ("NCLB"). It is one approach to help low-performing K-12 public schools meet state performance standards. The CSR program emphasizes two major concepts. First, the approach mandates that school reform should be comprehensive in nature, strengthening all aspects of school operations--curriculum, instruction, professional development, parental involvement and school organization. Second, the CSR approach should involve the use of "scientifically based research models"--that is, models with evidence of effectiveness in multiple settings. In 2001, the U.S. Department of Education contracted with WestEd and COSMOS Corporation to conduct a five-year study of the CSR program; ECSRIO, which involved a survey of 500 CSR schools and 500 comparison schools; case studies of 30 sites; and analyses of student achievement in all schools receiving CSR funding in 2002. This report presents the fifth-year findings of this study.

This document provides an overview of the "Guide To Improving the National Education Data System," the first publication of the newly created National Forum on Education Statistics. The 36 recommendations for improving the nation's elementary and secondary education statistics system that are outlined in the Guide are summarized. This national education data agenda is the product of a broad-based consensus building process that brought together representatives of State and Federal education agencies and other organizations with an interest in education data. The Guide's examination of national data in four major domains (background and demographics, education resources, school processes, and student outcomes) is described. For each domain, the guide discusses the potential importance of the data for policy purposes, the nature and limitations of current collection practices, and potential strategies for improvement; and it summarizes specific recommendations for data improvement. Five figures supplement the text. (SLD)

This report represents a first step in a voluntary cooperative effort among Federal and State governments and education associations to: identify the most critical needs for education policy information; assess the present capacity of the national statistical system to address these needs; and provide broad direction for system improvements. Thirty-six specific statistical recommendations are presented that are intended to provide a context for subsequent investigations of resource needs, feasibility, costs, burdens, and benefits associated with implementing the national education data agenda and the development of a strategic plan to improve the data system. The guide examines the nature and adequacy of national data in four major domains: (1) background and demographics; (2) education resources; (3) school processes; and (4) student outcomes. For each domain, the guide discusses the importance of the data for policy purposes, the nature and limitations of current collections and reports, potential strategies for improvement, and specific data improvement recommendations. This guide was developed by using a broad-based consensus building process by members of the National Forum on Education Statistics. Six figures supplement the text. A 67-item list of references is included. (SLD)