More Efficient High Schools in Maine: Emerging Student-Centered Learning Communities

More Efficient High Schools in Maine: Emerging Student-Centered Learning Communities explores whether schools can be high performing, efficient, and student-centered at the same time. Seven of Maine’s high schools were selected for the study, of which five were classified as “more efficient” by exhibiting higher student academic performance and a higher return on spending. Findings… Read More ›

Getting Down to Dollars and Cents: What Do School Districts Spend to Deliver Student-Centered Learning?

This report provides a critical foundation for the delivery of student-centered learning by exploring three questions: How is student-centered learning delivered? What resources are needed to implement student-centered learning? How does district spending on student-centered learning compare with spending on traditional schools? Findings show that the implementation of student-centered approaches can be tailored and affordable… Read More ›

Making Mastery Work

Making Mastery Work: A Close-Up View of Competency Education focuses on the experiences of New England schools that are ahead of the curve in implementing rigorous, competency-based models of education. At these schools, learning happens at different times in a variety of settings, and progress is demonstrated by mastery of content, not merely grade promotion.… Read More ›

Steps toward Valuing Education

This interactive, multimedia report summarizes the results of a quantitative experiment on the effects of values, or specific reframing tools, on the issues of skills and learning, learning time, and assessment. Source Organization: FrameWorks Institute VISIT THE RESOURCE

Leadership in Action: What are Professional Learning Communities?

This issue brief from the New England Secondary School Consortium’s Leadership in Action series outlines why professional learning communities may be the most effective, affordable, and sustainable school improvement strategy around. Source Organization: New England Secondary School Consortium (NESSC) Visit the Resource

Student-Centered Schools: Closing the Opportunity Gap Research Brief

Student-Centered Schools: Closing the Opportunity Gap documents the practices and outcomes of four urban high schools that, through student-centered approaches, are preparing their students for success in college, career, and life by providing them with the building blocks of knowledge and skills they will need as adults. Source Organization: SCOPE VISIT THE RESOURCE

Student-Centered Learning: Life Academy of Health and Bioscience

At Life Academy of Health and Biosciences (Life Academy) in Oakland, California, student voice and choice drives every decision: what and how to teach, what structure will equip students and teachers to know and believe in each other, and how to bring out the best in students. At Life Academy, 99% of the student population… Read More ›

Quality Performance Assessment: Harnessing the Power of Teacher and Student Learning

Standardized testing is just one form of assessment available to districts and schools. To generate a robust portrait of students’ achievement, policymakers and educators should consider quality performance assessments that measure mastery rather than memorization. This 2012 report offers a definition for performance assessment and details examples of schools using these systems. The authors provide… Read More ›

Cracking the Code: Synchronizing Policy and Practice for Performance-Based Learning

This 2011 report offers recommendations for education leaders and state policymakers operating within time and resource restrictions to work toward competency-based models of learning. Time and resources shouldn’t prohibit states from implementing student-centered, performance-based learning policies. Source Organization: iNACOL Visit the Resource

Integrating Education Technology with Student-Centered Learning

This executive summary provides a look at the potential that education technology offers and the steps needed to better understand when education technology is most effective in student-centered learning and for whom. While education technology can serve as a powerful education tool, it cannot drive reform on its own. To be widely adopted, education technology must… Read More ›