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This study summarizes the secondary career and technical education (CTE) landscape in Oregon under its last CTE state plan, which was implemented under the federal Carl D. Perkins Career and Technical Education Act of 2006 (Perkins IV), and it provides baseline information to guide implementation of Oregon's updated state plan under Perkins V. This study is the first to examine secondary CTE participation and outcomes under Perkins IV in Oregon, and it uses data from 2007/08 through 2017/18. To examine depth of CTE experience, this study classified students into four categories: nonparticipants (secondary students who earned fewer than 0.5 CTE credits), participants (secondary students who earned 0.5 or more CTE credits in a single CTE program), concentrators (participants who earned one or more CTE credits in a single secondary CTE program; this aligns with Oregon's Perkins IV definition of a concentrator), and concentrators+ (concentrators who earned two or more CTE credits in a single secondary CTE program; this aligns with Oregon's Perkins V definition of a concentrator). This study found that the number of secondary CTE programs has increased since 2015, with the steepest increase in urban schools, and that public high schools offered, on average, three CTE programs by 2017/18. Paralleling patterns in school CTE offerings, student participation in secondary CTE programs declined from the class of 2011 to the class of 2015 and increased starting with the class of 2016. At 67 percent, the class of 2018 had the highest participation rate of all previous cohorts in the study period. Although secondary CTE participation and concentration increased overall, disparities persisted across student demographic groups (as defined by gender, economic disadvantage, special education status, and English learner status). This study also found that CTE concentrators graduated from high school in four years at higher rates than students who did not participate in CTE or those who participated but did not concentrate, controlling for other important factors. In-state employment rates in 2018 were similar for CTE concentrators and nonconcentrators for the classes of 2011 and 2012, but CTE concentrators had higher annual earnings, after adjusting for other factors associated with workforce outcomes. The study concludes with considerations and implications for CTE leaders in Oregon that will support their efforts in continuing to ensure equitable access to and outcomes in CTE programs throughout the Perkins V years.

These are the appendixes for the report, "Implementation of Career- and College-Ready Requirements for High School Graduation in Washington" (ED606463). The study looked at differences in the percentages of 2018 graduates who met the requirements and of 2018 graduates who did not across student groups (by socioeconomic status, English learner status, race/ ethnicity, and prior achievement). It also examined changes in student academic outcomes for districts that had increased total, science, fine arts, or world languages credit requirements each year between the class of 2013 and the class of 2018. The study found that the percentage of districts that had implemented all the CCR graduation requirements increased from 9 percent for the class of 2018 to 56 percent for the class of 2019. The districts that had implemented the CCR graduation requirements for the class of 2018 tended to have more teachers and more courses per student across content areas than districts that had not. About 27 percent of 2018 graduates statewide met all the requirements; gaps across student groups suggest that barriers exist for students who are eligible for the national school lunch program and students who attend schools in which more than 75 percent of students are eligible, current English learner students, students of color, and students with low scores on grade 8 state assessments. Finally, district-level increases in total, science, fine arts, or world languages credit requirements between the class of 2013 and the class of 2018 showed little impact on student academic outcomes. Three appendixes are included: (1) About the study; (2) Methods; and (3) Supporting analysis. [For the full report, see ED606463; for the study snapshot, see ED606468.]

In 2014 the Washington state legislature approved career- and college-ready (CCR) requirements for high school graduation that better align with career pathways and with admissions standards at the state's public universities than previous requirements did. The CCR requirements increased the total number of credits needed to graduate, from 20 to 24, by requiring an additional credit of laboratory science, an additional credit of fine arts, and two credits of world languages, though students can replace one fine arts credit and two world languages credits with credits in other content areas that align with their postsecondary plans. The requirements took effect for the class of 2019, though some districts implemented them earlier and others received a waiver to delay implementation until the class of 2021. State and local education leaders in Washington asked the Regional Educational Laboratory Northwest to study districts' progress in implementing the requirements for the classes of 2018 and 2019. The study looked at differences in the percentages of 2018 graduates who met the requirements and of 2018 graduates who did not across student groups (by socioeconomic status, English learner status, race/ ethnicity, and prior achievement). It also examined changes in student academic outcomes for districts that had increased total, science, fine arts, or world languages credit requirements each year between the class of 2013 and the class of 2018. The study found that the percentage of districts that had implemented all the CCR graduation requirements increased from 9 percent for the class of 2018 to 56 percent for the class of 2019. The districts that had implemented the CCR graduation requirements for the class of 2018 tended to have more teachers and more courses per student across content areas than districts that had not. About 27 percent of 2018 graduates statewide met all the requirements; gaps across student groups suggest that barriers exist for students who are eligible for the national school lunch program and students who attend schools in which more than 75 percent of students are eligible, current English learner students, students of color, and students with low scores on grade 8 state assessments. Finally, district-level increases in total, science, fine arts, or world languages credit requirements between the class of 2013 and the class of 2018 showed little impact on student academic outcomes. [For the appendixes to this report, see ED606466. For the study snapshot of this report, see ED606468.]

Many states, including Washington, are attempting to reduce teacher shortages by encouraging limited certificated teachers to become fully certificated. Before investing in further support for these teachers to seek full certification, Washington policymakers want to understand the interest of limited certificated teachers in becoming fully certificated, the barriers they face to doing so, and the supports they report needing in order to pursue full certification. This study presents the results of a statewide survey of limited certificated teachers on those topics. More than two thirds of respondents expressed interest in becoming fully certificated many in a subject area in which there is a staffing shortage. Respondents who expressed interest in becoming fully certificated identified substantial barriers to doing so, including time and financial concerns. This was true particularly for limited certificated teachers of color, who identified a broader range of supports needed to pursue full certification than White teachers did. The findings have important implications for the state's efforts to reduce teacher shortages and to increase the diversity of its teacher workforce and for designing state policies and programs to help limited certificated teachers become fully certificated. [For the appendixes, see ED600823; for the study brief, see ED600824; and for the study snapshot, see ED600825.]

Many states, including Washington, are attempting to reduce teacher shortages by encouraging limited certificated teachers to become fully certificated. Before investing in further support for these teachers to seek full certification, Washington policymakers want to understand the interest of limited certificated teachers in becoming fully certificated, the barriers they face to doing so, and the supports they report needing in order to pursue full certification. This study presents the results of a statewide survey of limited certificated teachers on those topics. More than two-thirds of respondents expressed interest in becoming fully certificated many in a subject area in which there is a staffing shortage. Respondents who expressed interest in becoming fully certificated identified substantial barriers to doing so, including time and financial concerns. This was true particularly for limited certificated teachers of color, who identified a broader range of supports needed to pursue full certification than White teachers did. The findings have important implications for the state's efforts to reduce teacher shortages and to increase the diversity of its teacher workforce and for designing state policies and programs to help limited certificated teachers become fully certificated. [For the full report, see ED600822; for the appendixes, see ED600823; and for the study snapshot, see ED600825.]

This document is designed to help school district teams engage in meaningful and productive conversations about how federal American Rescue Plan (ARP) Act funds can be used to address students' academic and social-emotional needs in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic. This document offers considerations, examples of evidence-based strategies, and supporting resources in three critical areas: (1) Addressing the academic impact of lost instructional time; (2) Conducting meaningful family and community engagement; and (3) Providing social-emotional and mental health supports.

This study was conducted at the request of education policymakers who participate in the Montana Rural Recruitment and Retention Task Force. Like many states, Montana is struggling to recruit and retain qualified educators, especially in certain subject areas and in more rural parts of the state. The purpose of this study is to provide information that will help the task force address these challenges. Task force members asked REL Northwest to examine the following questions: (1) What is the extent of educator shortages in the state in 2017/18? How do educator shortage patterns vary by characteristics of school systems?; (2) To what extent did educators stay in their position and school system, move to a different position within the school system, move to a different school system, or leave the public education system between 2016/17 and 2017/18? How do educators' decisions to stay, move, or leave school systems and/or positions vary by the characteristics of educators and school systems?; and (3) To what extent were teachers and principals in Montana employed in multiple roles within their school systems and/or within multiple school systems in 2016/17? How did patterns in holding multiple roles differ by the characteristics of school systems? To examine these questions, REL Northwest used statewide administrative data from 2016/17 and 2017/18 .Task force members were also interested in the intended mobility of educators in the following school year (2018/19), including factors associated with accepting their current position, and--for administrators--the top barriers they faced to hiring teachers. To meet this request, we examined data from an existing statewide survey of teachers, principals, and superintendents, and we provide the findings in an appendix. Task force members and other policymakers in Montana will use this information as they determine how to address the state's educator workforce challenges. Given the high percentage of schools located in rural areas in Montana, the study findings may be useful to other states with similar demographics. Educator mobility in Montana: Understanding issues of educator shortages and turnover. Key findings: (1) Educator shortages in Montana: (a) In the 2017/18 school year, district administrators in Montana reported that 62 percent of positions in shortage subject areas, such as math and science, were difficult to fill or unable to be filled; and (b) In the 2017/18 school year, rural school system administrators reported a higher percentage of positions as difficult to fill or unable to be filled, as compared to non-rural school system administrators; (2) Educator mobility and attrition in Montana: (a) In the 2017/18 school year, 86 percent of teachers and 87 percent of principals in Montana returned to the same position and school system they were working in the previous school year; (b) Among educators who did not stay in their position and school system from 2016/17 to 2017/18, more than half left the Montana public education system; (c) The percentage of teachers who stayed in their position and school system was higher in school systems with a below-average proportion of American Indian students, school systems located in non-rural areas, and school systems with higher enrollment; (d) Among teachers who moved between school systems, more teachers moved from rural to non-rural areas (29 percent) than from non-rural to rural areas (21 percent), indicating that rural school systems lost teachers to non-rural school systems from 2016/17 to 2017/18; and (e) The percentage of principals who stayed in their position and school system was higher in school systems with a below-average proportion of American Indian students, those with lower levels of poverty, those with higher enrollment, and those located in non-rural areas; and (3) Multiple educator roles: In the 2016/17 school year, 29 percent of Montana teachers and 24 percent of principals held multiple positions. This percentage was higher in school systems located in the most remote rural areas, where 36 percent of teachers and 40 percent of principals held more than one position. [This project was conducted in partnership with the Rural Recruitment and Retention Task Force, which is convened by the Montana Office of the Commissioner of Higher Education and RISE4MT (Recruiting Incredible School Educators for Montana).]

This study examines trends in educator turnover and retention, and the relationships of those trends to educator and school characteristics, during a six-year period (2012/13 to 2017/18, with 2011/12 as the base year) in Alaska. Turnover refers to educators leaving their positions, while retention refers to educators staying in their positions at schools and districts. The study also summarizes the retention strategies used by eight school districts from across the state. Regional Educational Laboratory (REL) Northwest conducted this study in response to a request from a group of school superintendents who are members of the Alaska State Policy Research Alliance, a REL Northwest partnership. The alliance brings together policymakers and education stakeholders, including the Alaska Department of Education and Early Development, the Alaska Superintendents Association, and the University of Alaska, to use research and evidence to inform state and local education policy. These stakeholders were seeking a more in-depth understanding of educator turnover and retention patterns in Alaska to inform the development and prioritization of recruitment and retention strategies by state and district policymakers. To address the stakeholders' request, the study team explored the following research questions: (1) What were the teacher, principal, and superintendent (educator) turnover rates by year in Alaska during the 2012/13 to 2017/18 school years? (2) What community, school, educator, and student characteristics are associated with educator turnover? and (3) What is the relationship between superintendent and principal turnover and teacher turnover? Key findings: (1) From 2012/13 to 2017/18, statewide turnover rates for teachers remained steady at around 22 percent. Rates for principals varied from 23 to 33 percent. Rates for superintendents fluctuated from 19 to 40 percent. Most of the teachers, principals, and superintendents who turned over were leavers, meaning they left the state or remained in the state but were no longer educators; (2) Turnover rates were higher in rural areas than in urban areas, with the highest rates in more remote schools; (3) Many teachers who changed districts moved from one rural school to another rural school; (4) Teachers and principals who were prepared outside Alaska and teachers who were in their first year in either their school or the Alaska K-12 school system were more likely to turn over the following year; (5) Lower salaries, holding more than one position, and teaching at more than one school site were related to increased teacher turnover; (6) High-poverty, high-diversity, and smaller schools were more likely to experience teacher turnover; and (7) Principal and teacher turnover were linked: Schools that experienced principal turnover also had high teacher turnover. We found no evidence that superintendent turnover was related to teacher or principal turnover. Implications: This study suggests that state and local policymakers may want to consider increasing the supply of Alaska-educated teachers; improving teacher working conditions, especially in rural schools; and equipping principals to better support teachers and leverage their input to improve educator retention. The implications of this study may also apply to rural districts and other communities that have many non-local educators.

These are the appendixes for the report "Limited Certificated Teachers in Washington: Barriers to Becoming Fully Certificated and Needed Supports." The study findings are based on analysis of responses to the Limited Certificated Teacher Survey administered in 2017 by the State of Washington Professional Educator Standards Board. The study team analyzed survey responses using descriptive statistics, calculating the percentage of respondents who answered each item. The study team also analyzed responses by race/ethnicity (teachers of color and White teachers), and differences of at least 5 percentage points between groups were classified as meaningful. Three appendixes are included in the document. [For the full report, see ED600822; for the study brief, see ED600824; and for the study snapshot, see ED600825.]

In the past few decades, the cost of college has risen significantly, while federal, state, and institutional financial aid and family income have remained stagnant or declined (Goldrick-Rab, 2018). As a result, many college students struggle to afford the full cost of college attendance and may experience basic needs insecurity, including the lack of access to healthy food, stable housing, reliable transportation, affordable child care, physical and mental health care services, the internet and technology, and other necessities they need to survive and thrive in a postsecondary academic setting. To support students' postsecondary success, ECMC Foundation launched the Basic Needs Initiative (BNI) in 2019, funding seven grantee organizations to further the development and sustainability of basic needs services at postsecondary institutions through direct service, technical assistance, and research. This evaluation report primarily draws on data collected in spring 2022, including survey data from nearly 60 postsecondary institutions who partnered with the BNI grantees and interviews with college staff members leading basic needs centers and students who accessed basic needs services at 5 postsecondary institutions. The evaluation found that the postsecondary institutions working with BNI grantees provided their students with a wide variety of basic needs services, with food assistance and emergency aid being most common. Case study findings revealed promising implementation practices, and students shared practical actions colleges can take to alleviate the stigma associated with accessing services. Moving forward, postsecondary institutions would benefit from implementation support and advocacy for basic needs services.

Education Northwest partnered with Oregon Mathematics, Engineering & Science Achievement (MESA) to measure the effect of program participation by comparing academic outcomes of two groups of students: those who participated in MESA and a matched group of peers who did not. All things that we could measure and are linked to student academic outcomes--prior achievement, federal program eligibility, and demographic characteristics--were the same or similar among individual MESA students and their matched peers. The only observable difference among data collected by the Oregon Department of Education is that one group participated in MESA, and the other did not. We found that MESA students were significantly more likely to graduate from high school than their peers. Specifically, students who participated in MESA were 3.13 times more likely to graduate from high school in four years than students who did not participate in the program. Stated another way, participating in MESA appears to increase the probability of graduating from high school in four years by 21 percentage points. We did not find any differences in how MESA interacts with graduation outcomes by students' gender, race/ethnicity, eligibility for the free or reduced-price lunch program, or English learner status. This means MESA is likely to boost the likelihood of high school graduation in four years for all students.

Oregon has invested resources to expand access to accelerated learning programs (i.e., educational experiences that allow students to earn college credit in high school), and education leaders are committed to ensuring they are sustainable, equitable, and effective. Conducted in partnership with practitioners from secondary and postsecondary systems and institutions, this REL Northwest study is intended to guide policy and practice focused on improving accelerated learning programs in Oregon. The study found that one in three Oregon public high school students participated in accelerated learning (dual credit, direct enrollment, Advanced Placement, and/or International Baccalaureate) in 2015/16. However, equity gaps remain, particularly for students who were eligible for free or reduced-price lunch, and schools with a higher percentage of students who were economically disadvantaged had lower accelerated learning participation rates. The study also found a link between accelerated learning and student outcomes: In the class of 2015, accelerated learning participants were 30 percentage points more likely to graduate from high school, 25 percentage points more likely to enroll in college, and 22 percentage points more likely to persist in college than their peers who did not take accelerated learning in high school--and findings were consistent for students of color. However, the study also found that some students experienced challenges with transferring college credits earned in high school. Specifically, 15 percent of students in the class of 2015 transferred less than half the credits they earned in high school to the Oregon public university they attended after high school. In addition, nearly 25 percent of students who earned credit from dual-credit math in high school took the same or a lower-level course at the community college or university they attended after high school. The report concludes with considerations for Oregon education leaders that will support the state's continued policy focus on using accelerated learning as a strategy to help students graduate from high school and successfully navigate the transition from high school to college.

Many school districts in the United States are facing severe teacher shortages (Bordonaro, 2017; Palmer, 2017; Seattle Pacific University, 2017; Whaley, 2017). In several states--including Idaho--the difficulty of hiring qualified candidates has expanded beyond historical high-need content areas such as special education and mathematics to include English language arts and elementary education (Cross, 2017). Several factors are contributing to these shortages, including an aging workforce, decreased enrollment in teacher preparation programs, and persistently high attrition from the profession (Goldring, Taie, & Riddles, 2014). In Idaho, schools struggling to fill vacancies increasingly hire less experienced and unlicensed teachers (Wootton, 2017). Meanwhile, local and state education agencies are exploring policies to support teacher recruitment and retention, such as a four-day school week or more robust salaries and a well-defined career ladder. Understanding how and where Idaho's teacher workforce has changed relative to the size and characteristics of its student population can inform state and local efforts to support teacher recruitment, development, and retention. To that end, this report describes statewide data from the 2011/12 through 2016/17 school years on changes in student enrollment and demographics, teacher preparation, the composition of the teacher workforce, and teacher turnover.

Lesson Study (LS) is a structured, collaborative professional development approach that gives instructors a framework for actively investigating how to improve student learning in their classrooms. Despite evidence of LS improving teacher practice and student learning in K-12 settings, there have been few documented examples of its use among instructors in higher education. The Adapting Lesson Study for Community College Mathematics Instruction project is investigating whether the model can be feasibly implemented by community college mathematics faculty and will eventually document whether and how it influences instructors' pedagogical practices and student outcomes. In this short report, we describe LS and provide a rationale for its implementation in the community college context. We then report on activities from the first year of the project and share some early observations about LS implementation that could have implications for the effectiveness and sustainability of LS in community colleges.

The Elementary and Secondary Education Act, as amended by the Every Student Succeeds Act (ESSA) in 2015, recognizes the important role educators play in improving education outcomes for students of color and students from low-income families--groups that historically have included large numbers of English learners (ELs). ESSA requires state education agencies (SEAs) to have a plan to ensure that these students are not served disproportionately by "ineffective, out-of-field, or inexperienced" teachers. One way to ensure that all students have equitable access to well-prepared, effective teachers is to establish evidence-based systems that clearly articulate the competencies a teacher must possess to be successful in educating all students to high standards and that encourage, guide, and support teachers as they work to improve their knowledge base and instructional practices. This document reports on a three-year collaboration among three organizations--the American Institutes for Research (AIR), Education Northwest, and the Council of Chief State School Officers (CCSSO) English Language Learner State Collaborative on Assessment and Student Standards (ELL SCASS). The two widely used teacher evaluation and support systems are the Danielson Group's Framework for Teaching and the Marzano Focused Teacher Evaluation Model. The goal of the collaboration was to integrate attributes that are characteristic of effective teachers of ELs (i.e., critical attributes) and exemplars of effective instructional practices (i.e., examples, resources, and exhibits) for ELs into two widely used teacher evaluation and support systems. This document begins with an overview highlighting the transformational impact that targeted, iterative, and regular observation and feedback can have on improving teaching practice. It also highlights the need to provide specialized support for teachers with ELs in their classrooms. It then turns to a description of the process that the two working groups engaged in to produce the tools and concludes with the competencies that well-prepared teachers of ELs should demonstrate.

This report summarizes findings from a 2016 study that estimated the time it takes English learner students to be reclassified as former English learner students in seven Washington state school districts. The study found that it took students who entered kindergarten as English learner students a median of 3.8 years to develop the English proficiency necessary to be reclassified as former English learner students. English learner students entering kindergarten with advanced English proficiency were more likely than those entering with lower levels of English proficiency to be reclassified in their first eight years of school, and female English learner students were more likely than male English learner students to be reclassified in their first eight years of school. Speakers of Chinese, Vietnamese, or Russian or Ukrainian (combined) were more likely than speakers of Somali or Spanish to be reclassified in their first eight years of school. This study's findings may help school districts and state education agencies set expectations for the amount of time it takes English learner students to gain English proficiency. [For the full report, see ED565624.]

Students who drop out of high school are at increased risk of a range of negative social and economic consequences, including lower earnings and poorer health. To reduce dropout rates and lessen these negative consequences, districts around the country are using early warning indicators to identify and provide supports for students at risk of dropping out. Typically, these early warning indicators include some combination of attendance, course failures, grade point average, and suspensions or expulsions. It is not clear whether these commonly used early warning indicators work equally well for English learner students. National data suggest that English learner students drop out of high school at higher rates than other students do. English learner students are a heterogeneous group that includes students born in the United States, new immigrants, and refugees, all with varying degrees of prior exposure to English and, for those not born in the United States, different education experiences prior to arrival. Some English learner students start kindergarten in this country, while others do not arrive here until they are in high school. Some English learner students may receive only two or three years of English language services, while others may receive eight or more years. Current national data do not capture the variation in dropout and graduation rates for those different types of English learner students. This study compares data for a particular group of students--those who were classified as English learner students at any point in their K-12 education (referred to as "ever-English learner students" in this report) with data for students who were never classified as English learner students (referred to as "never-English learner students"). It also compares outcomes across subgroups of the ever-English learner student population. Specifically, the study addresses how the graduation and dropout rates of different subgroups of ever-English learner students compare with one another and with those of never-English learner students. And it examines whether two early warning indicators used to predict dropping out (six or more absences in grade 9 plus at least one course failure in grade 9, and at least one suspension or expulsion in grade 9) are accurate and useful indicators for different groups of ever-English learner students compared with never-English learner students. The students in the study are from six school districts in the south King County area of Washington state. The districts are part of the Road Map Project, a cradle-to-career initiative that seeks to double the number of students on track to graduate from college or earn a career credential between 2010 and 2020. As part of the initiative, the districts have been using a common set of early warning indicators since 2011. The initiative also has a work group focused on the large number of English learner students in the region. Regional Educational Laboratory Northwest has partnered with the work group since 2012 to use data and evidence to better understand the needs and challenges of English learner students and to inform decisions about policy and practice. The study findings highlight notable differences in graduation and dropout rates among subgroups of English learner students. Key findings from the study include: (1) Students who had ever been English learners had four-year graduation rates that were 9.5 percentage points lower and dropout rates that were 0.7 percentage point higher than those of students who had never been English learners; (2) Certain subgroups of English learner students had considerably different graduation and dropout rates from those of other English learner students; relative to long-term proficient English learner students, newcomer English learner students' four-year graduation rates were 33.8 percentage points lower and their dropout rates were 5.8 percentage points higher; and (3) The Road Map Project's early warning indicators, originally developed for Seattle Public Schools, were unable to accurately identify many future dropouts, especially among newcomer English learner students. Given that the accuracy of the Road Map Project indicators varied for subgroups of English learner students and may be evidence of the need to select and validate indicators specifically for the population of interest, the Road Map Project and other states and districts may want to examine the accuracy of their own indicators for different student populations. If early warning indicators are weaker for a specific subgroup of English learner students, then teachers, counselors, and others may want to monitor the needs of that group in other ways. The following are appended: (1) Data and methodology; and (2) Supplemental results.

Oregon's postsecondary attainment goal for 2025, adopted in 2011, calls for 40 percent of Oregon adults to have a bachelor's degree or higher, 40 percent to have an associate's degree or postsecondary certificate, and the remaining 20 percent to have a high school diploma or equivalent (S. 253, Or. 2011). As in other states a central strategy for increasing postsecondary attainment in Oregon is to promote accelerated college credit options--such as Advanced Placement, International Baccalaureate, dual credit, and dual enrollment courses--that enable high school students to earn college credit. Oregon has invested heavily in the accelerated college credit strategy, with particular attention to student groups that have historically not had access to these courses. The study focuses on options offered between 2005/06 and 2012/13 through Oregon community colleges, including dual credit (in which high school students earn both high school and college credit by taking a college course at their high school) and dual enrollment (in which high school students earn both high school and college credit by taking a college course at the college campus or online), and on the characteristics of the students who enroll in these classes. The study also explores the relationship between students' participation in dual credit and later education outcomes, including high school graduation, postsecondary enrollment, and postsecondary persistence. Key findings include the following: (1) Oregon public colleges have many accelerated college credit options, but their cost, eligibility requirements, and geographic coverage vary greatly across institutions; (2) Oregon's rate of community college dual credit participation is higher than the national average; (3) Oregon students taking dual credit courses through a community college enroll and earn credit in an average of three dual credit courses during their time in high school; (4) More than 90 percent of students pass the community college dual credit courses in which they have enrolled; (5) Community college dual credit students are more likely to be White, female, high achievers, and not eligible for the federal school lunch program; (6) Male students in all racial/ethnic groups participate in community college dual credit at lower rates than female students do, and in each racial/ethnic group the gender gap in participation is similar; (7) In each racial/ethnic group students eligible for the federal school lunch program participate in community college dual credit at lower rates than students who are not eligible; (8) The rates at which students who participate in dual credit programs graduate from high school, enroll in college, and persist in the first year of college are higher than the state average; and (9) At the five community colleges examined in a dual enrollment analysis, participation in dual enrollment was low but grew over time. Dual enrollment students had lower achievement on state math and reading tests and higher rates of eligibility for the federal school lunch program than dual credit students had. Oregon stakeholders can use the study results to better understand the breadth and characteristics of accelerated college credit options in the state; dual credit programs' equity gaps--which can inform outreach efforts to students participating at lower rates, such as rural, economically disadvantaged, and racial/ethnic minority students; and data that should be reported to the state to conduct analyses that improve monitoring and evaluation of accelerated college credit programs. Nationally, this study offers an example to other states of potentially useful analyses to inform improvements to these programs. The following are appended: (1) Literature review; (2) Data and methods; (3) Detailed accelerated college credit program information; (4) Detailed results; and (5) Dual credit courses by subject.

This brief describes findings on the percentage of English learner students entering school in kindergarten in seven Washington school districts who developed the English proficiency necessary to be reclassified as former English learner students and the average time to reclassification. Eighty-five percent of English learner students who entered kindergarten between 2000/01 and 2007/08 achieved reclassification by 2012/13. It took those students an average of 3.2 years to be reclassified. Student characteristics--such as English proficiency at entry to kindergarten, gender, home language, country of birth, race/ethnicity, and special education status--were associated with reclassification. The results of this study can help school districts set realistic expectations for the time it takes English learner students to achieve English proficiency and may help state education agencies as they create new accountability targets to comply with the Every Student Succeeds Act of 2015. [For the full report, see ED558159.]

This report is a companion to a study that found that high school grade point average was a stronger predictor of performance in college-level English and math than were standardized exam scores among first-time students at the University of Alaska who enrolled directly in college-level courses. This report examines how well high school grade point average and standardized exam scores predict college grades by the urbanicity of students' hometown and timing of college entry. Among recent high school graduates from both urban and rural areas of Alaska, high school grade point average was a better predictor of college course grades than were SAT, ACT, or ACCUPLACER scores. It was a more powerful predictor of college performance among students who entered college within a year of high school graduation than among students who delayed college entry. For students who delayed college entry, high school grade point average was a better predictor than were standardized exam scores in English, but that was not always the case in math. The following is appended: Methods. [For the companion report, "Developmental Education and College Readiness at the University of Alaska. REL 2016-123," see ED565798.]

Students who take advanced courses in high school are more likely to enroll and persist in college. This report describes patterns in advanced coursetaking among three groups of students in Washington state: Spanish-speaking students, other language minority students whose primary or home language is not Spanish, and English-only speakers. This study examined four research questions: (1) How many advanced courses do Spanish-speaking students, other language minority students, and English-only speakers in Washington state take per school year, and how does this vary by English learner student status?; (2) How much does prior academic performance, as measured by grade point average and state standardized test scores from the previous school year, account for differences in advanced course enrollment across groups?; (3) How do the grades earned in advanced courses compare among Spanish-speaking students, other language minority students, and English-only speakers, and how do grades vary by English learner student status?; and (4) How does the number of advanced courses offered vary between schools with a high percentage of Spanish-speaking students and schools with a low percentage of Spanish-speaking students? It finds systemic gaps in both course enrollment and performance for Spanish-speaking students, regardless of their English learner status. Other language minority students take more advanced courses than do English-only speakers. When other language minority students become English proficient, they perform in advanced courses as well as or better than English-only speakers do. Accounting for differences in students' prior grade point average and state standardized test scores in math and reading explains most, but not all, of the gaps in advanced course enrollment and performance. The findings can help local and state policymakers improve education outcomes for Spanish-speaking students and may suggest areas for future research. Data and methods are appended.

Taking advanced high school courses (for example, honors, Advanced Placement, and dual-credit courses that offer college credits in high school) can help prepare students for postsecondary education and careers. English learner students, however, face unique obstacles to taking advanced courses because they must divide their time between acquiring English proficiency and learning academic content. This descriptive study examines patterns in advanced coursetaking among current and former English learner students and never-English learner students in Washington state. Using state data about students enrolled in Washington public schools between 2009/10 and 2012/13, this study analyzed advanced course enrollment patterns and performance among the groups of students. It finds that where students attend school and their academic preparation account for much of the difference in advanced coursetaking. Specifically, current and former English learner students take 0.5 to 1 fewer advanced courses per school year than their never-English learner peers but enroll in advanced classes at similar rates when they are similarly prepared. The study also found that, compared to never-English learner students, current and former English learner students are 40 to 50 percent less likely to complete algebra I in middle school and students who pass this course in middle school take more than twice as many upper-level math courses as students who pass algebra I in grade 9. Current, former, and never-English learner students earn similar grades in those upper-level math courses. In addition, schools with the lowest percentages of current and former English learner students offer more advanced courses than other schools, even after accounting for school characteristics such as average standardized math and reading test scores. To improve access to advanced courses, schools, districts, and state agencies could consider investigating why current and former English learner students with high grade point averages or state math test scores are not enrolling in advanced courses as often as never-English learner students. They also might address language barriers and restrictive policies that could deter otherwise qualified students from taking advanced courses and expand advanced coursetaking opportunities at schools with high percentages of English learner students. The following are appended: (1) Data and methodology; and (2) Supplemental results.

English learners and students with disabilities both need educational supports to succeed in school. However, the kinds of support these two groups of students need may be different, and not receiving appropriate supports may have negative consequences on student learning (Callahan, 2013; Scott, Boynton Hauerwas, and Brown, 2014). To provide appropriate supports, schools need to accurately identify students who are both English learners and have disabilities. Research that examines the proportion of English learners identified for special education often has contradictory findings. Depending on the population examined or the method used, English learners may be over- or underrepresented in special education compared to students who are not English learners (Morgan et al., 2015; Skiba, Artiles, Kozleski, Losen, and Harry, 2016). Either way, these students are at risk of not receiving appropriate educational supports. This study uses 2012/13 data from Washington state to compare the percentages of current and former English learners ("ever-English learners") in special education to the percentage of never-English learners in special education. It also compares the grades at which ever- and never-English learners are first identified for special education. The study further examines whether representation in and identification for special education varies by gender, home language, race and ethnicity, English learner status, and level of English proficiency. The study found that overall, ever-English learners were as likely to be in special education as never-English learners. During the 2012/13 school year in K-12 schools, 13 percent of both ever- and never-English learners were in special education. The study also found that ever-English learners were identified for special education in later grades than never-English learners. Some groups of ever-English learners were under- or overrepresented in special education or identified in later grades compared to never-English learners. (1) Girls were underrepresented in special education and identified for special education in later grades than boys, regardless of their English learner status; (2) American Indian/Alaska Native ever-English learners were overrepresented in special education and identified in earlier grades than other never- and ever-English learners; (3) English learners who spoke home languages other than Somali or Spanish were underrepresented in special education compared to never-English learners; (4) English learners who had been classified for five or more years, without attaining proficiency in English, were overrepresented in special education compared to never-English learners, and former English learners who had been proficient in English for two or more years were underrepresented in special education; and (5) English learners with beginning and intermediate English proficiency were overrepresented in special education and identified in later grades than never-English learners. Methods and Data Tables are appended.

This brief summarizes the findings from a study that surveyed principals of rural schools nationwide that were designated as in need of improvement and that used the transformation model under the federal School Improvement Grant (SIG) program. It provides information about the use of SIG funds in rural areas and is designed to help state leaders as they assist schools in implementing current SIGs, create new statewide models for SIGs, and modify current requirements for rural schools. The study was not part of the federal evaluation of the SIG program, which provides more comprehensive information about SIG schools. [For the full report, see ED565803.]

Most U.S. school districts (88 percent) offer credit recovery courses or programs for students. In rural states such as Montana, online credit recovery options are especially popular because they allow schools to serve students in remote areas throughout the year, across a range of subjects, and with few additional resources (Carver & Lewis, 2011; Oliver, Osborne, Patel, & Kleiman, 2009). Such programs offer students greater flexibility and choice, which results in more opportunities to make up classes and a greater likelihood that students will stay in school and stay on track to graduate (Oliver et al., 2009). Despite the growing popularity of online credit recovery courses, there is little research about which students take these courses or how well they perform. This report addresses this information gap by examining 2013/14 data from the Montana Digital Academy (MTDA), the only state-funded program offering online credit recovery courses in Montana. The report provides a descriptive analysis of course enrollment and passing rates. It also draws on interviews with eight district leaders and one MTDA representative to provide context for the analysis and to describe other credit recovery strategies in Montana. The report offers educators an early look at the potential of online credit recovery courses to help struggling students get back on track to graduation. It can also help state leaders compare the MTDA with other online programs and identify possible areas for investigation or improvement when designing credit recovery options. The report's key findings are: (1) More male students than female students enrolled in MTDA online credit recovery courses, and students in grades 10 and 11 made up a larger proportion of MTDA student enrollments than those in grades 9 and 12; (2) Enrollments in MTDA online credit recovery courses were higher in English language arts than in any other subject; (3) The passing rate in MTDA online credit recovery courses was 57 percent of enrollments; (4) Passing rates in MTDA online credit recovery courses were lowest in math (49 percent) and English language arts (52 percent); and (5) Passing rates were lower for students who took one MTDA online credit recovery course per semester (40 percent) than for students who took multiple courses in a semester (nearly 80 percent). Appended are: (1) Study methodology; (2) Local management; and (3) Interview protocol. [This report was written with Biraj Bisht and Rashea Hamilton.]

The five states in the Regional Educational Laboratory (REL) Northwest Region have many rural schools that have been designated as in need of improvement. And all five states had rural schools in the first cohort of federal School Improvement Grant (SIG) recipients. To address school improvement, the majority of those schools implemented the transformation model, which requires strategies related to improving instruction, ensuring high-quality staff, and engaging families and communities. REL Northwest Region state and district leaders asked REL Northwest to conduct a study examining the extent to which rural schools across the nation implemented the transformation model, the challenges they experienced, and the technical assistance they received. This report provides information about rural schools using the transformation model. REL Northwest Region leaders may be able to use this study to inform future assistance for their rural schools in need of improvement. A survey was conducted in spring 2014, after most cohort 1 grant activities were complete. The survey respondents included 135 principals (67 percent of the 201 schools surveyed) in rural schools implementing the transformation model. The most salient findings include: (1) Few rural schools fully implemented the SIG transformation model. Only 5 percent of the principals surveyed said their school had fully implemented the 12 transformation strategies that the survey examined. On average, principals said their school had fully implemented 6 of the 12 strategies; (2) More schools implemented strategies related to improving instruction than strategies related to ensuring high-quality staff or engaging families and communities. For example, 77 percent of principals reported that their school had fully implemented the use of student achievement data to inform instructional decisions, whereas 52 percent reported that their school had fully implemented staff evaluation systems that tied evaluation to student achievement, and 40 percent reported that their school had engaged families; (3) More schools reported facing implementation challenges related to ensuring high-quality staff and engaging families and communities than challenges related to improving instruction. For example, almost half (47 percent) of principals reported challenges to rewarding staff financially--a strategy related to ensuring high-quality staff --and about a third (34 percent) reported challenges to engaging families and communities. In contrast, fewer principals (26 percent) reported challenges to expanding learning time to improve instruction; (4) Almost all schools received technical assistance from at least one provider, with districts the most frequently identified provider. Most principals (93 percent) reported that their school had received technical assistance from at least one provider for at least one of the transformation strategies examined in the survey. More principals reported that their school had received this assistance from their district (91 percent) than from the state (70 percent), a university (19 percent), or another type of organization (42 percent); and (5) The more strategies for which principals reported facing challenges, the fewer strategies they reported their school had fully implemented. When principals reported challenges with three or more strategies, they also reported that their school had fully implemented an average of only 5.2 strategies. In contrast, when principals reported challenges with fewer than three strategies, they reported that their school had fully implemented an average of 7.5 strategies. The more strategies for which principals reported receiving technical assistance, the more strategies they reported that their school had fully implemented. When principals reported receiving technical assistance for more than 7 strategies, they also reported that their school had fully implemented an average of 7.2 strategies. In contrast, when principals reported receiving technical assistance for 7 or fewer strategies, they reported that their school had fully implemented an average of only 5.7 strategies. The following are appended: (1) Previous studies offer mixed findings; (2) Survey creation and administration; (3) Survey instrument; and (4) Analysis methods and additional results for the School Improvement Grant rural schools.

This study explores developmental education placement rates and how well high school grade point average and exam performance predicted performance in college-level courses among first-time students who enrolled in the University of Alaska system from fall 2008 to spring 2012. Like other colleges and universities, the University of Alaska, the state's public higher education system, is reexamining its course placement policies with the goal of lowering its developmental education placement rate (University of Alaska, 2013). The study draws on student data from the University of Alaska and a qualitative review of university placement policies from each of the three universities in the University of Alaska system for each year in the study. The four key findings are: (1) developmental education placement rates were higher in math than in English for students pursuing any type of degree. Developmental math placement rates increased as the time between students' exiting high school and entering college increased; (2) among bachelor's degree students, developmental placement rates were highest for Alaska Native students from rural areas of the state (in English) and Black students from urban areas (in math) compared with students of other racial/ethnic groups and lowest for White students from rural or urban areas compared with other groups; (3) among bachelor's degree students who enrolled in developmental education, 47 percent eventually passed college English and 23 percent eventually passed college math. In contrast, more than 60 percent of students who were placed in developmental English or math but who instead enrolled directly in college English or math passed these courses; (4) among students who enrolled directly in college-level courses, high school grade point average was a stronger predictor of performance in college English and math than were SAT, ACT, or ACCUPLACER scores. This study informs high school and college stakeholders in Alaska about which student groups at the University of Alaska have the highest developmental education placement rates and suggests which students might benefit most from college readiness resources and programs at the high school or college level. The study also shows that high school grades are better predictors of college academic performance than are standardized exams. Although this analysis is limited to students who enrolled directly in college-level courses, the findings may prompt conversations and further research among college stakeholders regarding the benefit of using additional measures to more accurately predict readiness for college coursework. The following are appended: (1) Student assessment and placement process; (2) Data and methodology; and (3) Student characteristics and detailed study results.