Gail Sunderman - Academia.edu (original) (raw)
Papers by Gail Sunderman
Summarizes results of studies on three questions: 1) Do sanctions-driven accountability systems p... more Summarizes results of studies on three questions: 1) Do sanctions-driven accountability systems produce the intended results in NCLB and other attempts? 2) Is it practical and can it be implemented? 3) Is it valued and legitimate
Choice Reviews Online, Sep 1, 2008
Acknowledgments About the Editor About the Contributors Introduction Part I. NCLB and Accountabil... more Acknowledgments About the Editor About the Contributors Introduction Part I. NCLB and Accountability 1. The Pending Reauthorization of NCLB: An Opportunity to Rethink the Basic Strategy - Daniel Koretz 2. Toward a More Effective Definition of Adequate Yearly Progress - Robert L. Linn 3. Beyond Standardization in School Accountability - Mindy L. Kornhaber 4. Promises and Pitfalls: Implications of No Child Left Behind for Defining, Assessing, and Serving English Language Learners - Michael J. Kieffer, Nonie K. Lesaux, Catherine E. Snow Part II. Evidence on How NCLB Is Working 5. Tracking Achievement Gaps and Assessing the Impact of NCLB on the Gaps: An In-Depth Look Into National and State Reading and Math Outcome Trends - Jaekyung Lee 6. Evidence on Education Under NCLB (and How Florida Boosted NAEP Scores and Reduced the Race Gap) - Walter M. Haney Part III. State Capacity to Implement NCLB 7. Interstate Inequality in Educational Opportunity - Goodwin Liu 8. Massive Responsibilities and Limited Resources: The State Response - Gail L. Sunderman, Gary Orfield 9. Low-Performing Schools Programs and State Capacity Requirements: Meeting the NCLB Educational Goals - Heinrich Mintrop Part IV. NCLB: Impact on School Reform and Effects on Minority Students and Schools 10. No Child Left Behind and High School Reform - Linda Darling-Hammond 11. No Child Left Behind and Continuous School Improvement - Willis D. Hawley 12. No Child Left Behind and Reforming the Nation's Lowest-Performing High Schools: Help, Hindrance, or Unrealized Potential? - Robert Balfanz, Nettie Legters 13. Reforming High Schools to Reduce Dropout Rates - Russell W. Rumberger Conclusion - Gail L. Sunderman Index
This publication is provided free of cost to NEPC's readers, who may make non-commercial use of i... more This publication is provided free of cost to NEPC's readers, who may make non-commercial use of it as long as NEPC and its author(s) are credited as the source.
Dual enrollment programs offer students the opportunity to enroll in college courses while still ... more Dual enrollment programs offer students the opportunity to enroll in college courses while still enrolled in secondary school. Traditionally, dual enrollment programs have appealed to high-performing college-bound students; however, today there is growing interest in encouraging access to dual enrollment programs for a broader range of students. Increasingly, policymakers are endorsing dual enrollment as a strategy to promote college readiness, increase postsecondary enrollment, and even decrease the cost of college (Cowan & Goldhaber, 2015; Karp, 2012; Struhl & Vargas, 2012). By offering students the opportunity to gain college-level experience while in high school, dual enrollment programs are seen as a strategy for giving high school students a “jump start” on postsecondary education and for improving their performance in college.
Highlights differences in various between-state ratings of school performance and NCLB\u27s adequ... more Highlights differences in various between-state ratings of school performance and NCLB\u27s adequate yearly progress (AYP) results; highlights equity issues uncovered and makes recommendations to overcome them
This paper focuses on the first-year implementation of the choice provisions of the No Child Left... more This paper focuses on the first-year implementation of the choice provisions of the No Child Left Behind (NCLB) Act in Buffalo, New
Proceedings of the Human Factors and Ergonomics Society Annual Meeting, 2021
In this follow-up panel, we discuss what we have learned over the last year about responding to a... more In this follow-up panel, we discuss what we have learned over the last year about responding to an epidemic or pandemic that has demonstrated a level of transmission unprecedented in the modern era. Two medical doctors that have worked on the front of this pandemic share their experiences transitioning from the “sharp end” of the response. Decisions about how to mitigate hazards have occurred at the personal, institutional, and health policy levels, in real-time, with frequent adaptation, and often in advance of concrete evidence. Over the course of the pandemic, hospital systems revised existing protocols to manage perceived risks in real time using emerging information from other centers. With the introduction of vaccines, there is a new type of risk perception. Is the vaccine perceived to be safe? Is there a disparity in perception among different population groups? That said, analyses are also complicated by emerging viral mutations with unclear implications. What factors increa...
Encyclopedia ofthe Social and Cultural Foundations of Education
A recent report offers a how-to guide for reform advocates interested in removing communities’ de... more A recent report offers a how-to guide for reform advocates interested in removing communities’ democratic control over their schools. The report explains how these reformers can influence states to use the Every Student Succeeds Act (ESSA) Title I school improvement funds to support a specific set of reforms: charter schools, state-initiated turnarounds, and appointment of an individual with plenipotentiary authority over districts or schools. While the report acknowledges that the research evidence on the effectiveness of these reforms as school improvement strategies is limited, it uses a few exceptional cases to explain how advocates seeking to influence the development of state ESSA plans can advance them anyway. As this review explains, support for the effectiveness of these approaches is simply too limited to present them as promising school improvement strategies. The report omits research that evaluates the models relative to other school reform initiatives, and it fails to ...
Reviews the changes allowed since 2001 to the states in NCLB\u27s rules for implementation
Summarizes results of studies on three questions: 1) Do sanctions-driven accountability systems p... more Summarizes results of studies on three questions: 1) Do sanctions-driven accountability systems produce the intended results in NCLB and other attempts? 2) Is it practical and can it be implemented? 3) Is it valued and legitimate
Increasing awareness of the vital developmental implications of the care and education of young c... more Increasing awareness of the vital developmental implications of the care and education of young children has led to efforts in Maryland to advance early childhood care and education (ECCE). To that end, Maryland has consolidated ECCE services into one division of the Maryland State Department of Education (MSDE) and developed a number of innovative programs. These programs include a child care credentialing and rating system, increased availability of public prekindergarten, an early childhood comprehensive readiness assessment system, and provision of mental health services in early childhood settings. As of 2015, Maryland ranks 14 th and 13 th in access to preschool for three and four year olds, respectively, and 17 th in spending. Additionally, in 2010 and 2014, Maryland successfully competed for federal funding awards to expand preschool programming.
Abstract: This paper focuses on the first-year implementation of the choice provisions of the No ... more Abstract: This paper focuses on the first-year implementation of the choice provisions of the No Child Left Behind (NCLB) Act in Buffalo, New York, DeKalb County, Georgia, and Richmond, Virginia. After an analysis of the assumptions underlying school choice and the ...
Educational Policy, 2001
This article examines interactions between the policy environment and schools as institutions to ... more This article examines interactions between the policy environment and schools as institutions to understand how eight middle and high schools in California responded to demands to improve student reading. The authors argue that school-level reading programs were shaped by the broader institutional environment: institutional norms that govern conceptions of appropriate roles and responsibilities, technical components of the middle and high school curriculum, and the limitations posed by resource constraints. The authors consider the state curriculum policy an impetus for schools to focus on reading development but insufficient to overcome these other important constraints. At the same time, the authors contend that the organization and allocation of resources to support instruction made important contributions to reading development. This article uses data from case studies of eight middle and high schools located in six school districts in California.
This brief investigates whether closing schools and transferring students for the purpose of reme... more This brief investigates whether closing schools and transferring students for the purpose of remedying low performance is an option educational decision makers should pursue. The logic of closing schools in response to low student performance goes like this: By closing low-performing schools and sending students to better-performing ones, student achievement will improve. The new, higher-performing schools will give transfer students access to higher-quality peer and teacher networks, which in turn will have a beneficial effect on academic outcomes. The threat of closure may motivate low-performing schools (and their districts) to improve in order to preempt school closure. To investigate this logic, we draw on an evidence base that consists of peer-reviewed research studies and well-researched policy reports, but relatively few of these exist for school closures. We ask: 1. How often do school closings occur and for what reasons? 2. What is the impact on students of closing schools for reasons of performance? 3. What is the impact of closing schools on the public school system in which closure has taken place? 4. What is the impact of school closures on students of various ethnic and socioeconomic backgrounds, and on local communities and neighborhoods? Recommendations The relatively limited evidence base suggests that school closures are not a promising strategy for remedying low student performance. • Even though school closures have dramatically increased, jurisdictions largely shun the option of "closure and transfer" in the context of the federal School Improvement Grant (SIG) program. Policy and district actors should treat the infrequency of this turnaround option as a caution. • School closures have at best weak and decidedly mixed benefits; at worst they have detrimental repercussions for students if districts do not ensure that seats at higher-performing schools are available for transfer students. In districts where such assignments are in short or uncertain supply, "closure and transfer" is a decidedly undesirable option.
Summarizes results of studies on three questions: 1) Do sanctions-driven accountability systems p... more Summarizes results of studies on three questions: 1) Do sanctions-driven accountability systems produce the intended results in NCLB and other attempts? 2) Is it practical and can it be implemented? 3) Is it valued and legitimate
Choice Reviews Online, Sep 1, 2008
Acknowledgments About the Editor About the Contributors Introduction Part I. NCLB and Accountabil... more Acknowledgments About the Editor About the Contributors Introduction Part I. NCLB and Accountability 1. The Pending Reauthorization of NCLB: An Opportunity to Rethink the Basic Strategy - Daniel Koretz 2. Toward a More Effective Definition of Adequate Yearly Progress - Robert L. Linn 3. Beyond Standardization in School Accountability - Mindy L. Kornhaber 4. Promises and Pitfalls: Implications of No Child Left Behind for Defining, Assessing, and Serving English Language Learners - Michael J. Kieffer, Nonie K. Lesaux, Catherine E. Snow Part II. Evidence on How NCLB Is Working 5. Tracking Achievement Gaps and Assessing the Impact of NCLB on the Gaps: An In-Depth Look Into National and State Reading and Math Outcome Trends - Jaekyung Lee 6. Evidence on Education Under NCLB (and How Florida Boosted NAEP Scores and Reduced the Race Gap) - Walter M. Haney Part III. State Capacity to Implement NCLB 7. Interstate Inequality in Educational Opportunity - Goodwin Liu 8. Massive Responsibilities and Limited Resources: The State Response - Gail L. Sunderman, Gary Orfield 9. Low-Performing Schools Programs and State Capacity Requirements: Meeting the NCLB Educational Goals - Heinrich Mintrop Part IV. NCLB: Impact on School Reform and Effects on Minority Students and Schools 10. No Child Left Behind and High School Reform - Linda Darling-Hammond 11. No Child Left Behind and Continuous School Improvement - Willis D. Hawley 12. No Child Left Behind and Reforming the Nation's Lowest-Performing High Schools: Help, Hindrance, or Unrealized Potential? - Robert Balfanz, Nettie Legters 13. Reforming High Schools to Reduce Dropout Rates - Russell W. Rumberger Conclusion - Gail L. Sunderman Index
This publication is provided free of cost to NEPC's readers, who may make non-commercial use of i... more This publication is provided free of cost to NEPC's readers, who may make non-commercial use of it as long as NEPC and its author(s) are credited as the source.
Dual enrollment programs offer students the opportunity to enroll in college courses while still ... more Dual enrollment programs offer students the opportunity to enroll in college courses while still enrolled in secondary school. Traditionally, dual enrollment programs have appealed to high-performing college-bound students; however, today there is growing interest in encouraging access to dual enrollment programs for a broader range of students. Increasingly, policymakers are endorsing dual enrollment as a strategy to promote college readiness, increase postsecondary enrollment, and even decrease the cost of college (Cowan & Goldhaber, 2015; Karp, 2012; Struhl & Vargas, 2012). By offering students the opportunity to gain college-level experience while in high school, dual enrollment programs are seen as a strategy for giving high school students a “jump start” on postsecondary education and for improving their performance in college.
Highlights differences in various between-state ratings of school performance and NCLB\u27s adequ... more Highlights differences in various between-state ratings of school performance and NCLB\u27s adequate yearly progress (AYP) results; highlights equity issues uncovered and makes recommendations to overcome them
This paper focuses on the first-year implementation of the choice provisions of the No Child Left... more This paper focuses on the first-year implementation of the choice provisions of the No Child Left Behind (NCLB) Act in Buffalo, New
Proceedings of the Human Factors and Ergonomics Society Annual Meeting, 2021
In this follow-up panel, we discuss what we have learned over the last year about responding to a... more In this follow-up panel, we discuss what we have learned over the last year about responding to an epidemic or pandemic that has demonstrated a level of transmission unprecedented in the modern era. Two medical doctors that have worked on the front of this pandemic share their experiences transitioning from the “sharp end” of the response. Decisions about how to mitigate hazards have occurred at the personal, institutional, and health policy levels, in real-time, with frequent adaptation, and often in advance of concrete evidence. Over the course of the pandemic, hospital systems revised existing protocols to manage perceived risks in real time using emerging information from other centers. With the introduction of vaccines, there is a new type of risk perception. Is the vaccine perceived to be safe? Is there a disparity in perception among different population groups? That said, analyses are also complicated by emerging viral mutations with unclear implications. What factors increa...
Encyclopedia ofthe Social and Cultural Foundations of Education
A recent report offers a how-to guide for reform advocates interested in removing communities’ de... more A recent report offers a how-to guide for reform advocates interested in removing communities’ democratic control over their schools. The report explains how these reformers can influence states to use the Every Student Succeeds Act (ESSA) Title I school improvement funds to support a specific set of reforms: charter schools, state-initiated turnarounds, and appointment of an individual with plenipotentiary authority over districts or schools. While the report acknowledges that the research evidence on the effectiveness of these reforms as school improvement strategies is limited, it uses a few exceptional cases to explain how advocates seeking to influence the development of state ESSA plans can advance them anyway. As this review explains, support for the effectiveness of these approaches is simply too limited to present them as promising school improvement strategies. The report omits research that evaluates the models relative to other school reform initiatives, and it fails to ...
Reviews the changes allowed since 2001 to the states in NCLB\u27s rules for implementation
Summarizes results of studies on three questions: 1) Do sanctions-driven accountability systems p... more Summarizes results of studies on three questions: 1) Do sanctions-driven accountability systems produce the intended results in NCLB and other attempts? 2) Is it practical and can it be implemented? 3) Is it valued and legitimate
Increasing awareness of the vital developmental implications of the care and education of young c... more Increasing awareness of the vital developmental implications of the care and education of young children has led to efforts in Maryland to advance early childhood care and education (ECCE). To that end, Maryland has consolidated ECCE services into one division of the Maryland State Department of Education (MSDE) and developed a number of innovative programs. These programs include a child care credentialing and rating system, increased availability of public prekindergarten, an early childhood comprehensive readiness assessment system, and provision of mental health services in early childhood settings. As of 2015, Maryland ranks 14 th and 13 th in access to preschool for three and four year olds, respectively, and 17 th in spending. Additionally, in 2010 and 2014, Maryland successfully competed for federal funding awards to expand preschool programming.
Abstract: This paper focuses on the first-year implementation of the choice provisions of the No ... more Abstract: This paper focuses on the first-year implementation of the choice provisions of the No Child Left Behind (NCLB) Act in Buffalo, New York, DeKalb County, Georgia, and Richmond, Virginia. After an analysis of the assumptions underlying school choice and the ...
Educational Policy, 2001
This article examines interactions between the policy environment and schools as institutions to ... more This article examines interactions between the policy environment and schools as institutions to understand how eight middle and high schools in California responded to demands to improve student reading. The authors argue that school-level reading programs were shaped by the broader institutional environment: institutional norms that govern conceptions of appropriate roles and responsibilities, technical components of the middle and high school curriculum, and the limitations posed by resource constraints. The authors consider the state curriculum policy an impetus for schools to focus on reading development but insufficient to overcome these other important constraints. At the same time, the authors contend that the organization and allocation of resources to support instruction made important contributions to reading development. This article uses data from case studies of eight middle and high schools located in six school districts in California.
This brief investigates whether closing schools and transferring students for the purpose of reme... more This brief investigates whether closing schools and transferring students for the purpose of remedying low performance is an option educational decision makers should pursue. The logic of closing schools in response to low student performance goes like this: By closing low-performing schools and sending students to better-performing ones, student achievement will improve. The new, higher-performing schools will give transfer students access to higher-quality peer and teacher networks, which in turn will have a beneficial effect on academic outcomes. The threat of closure may motivate low-performing schools (and their districts) to improve in order to preempt school closure. To investigate this logic, we draw on an evidence base that consists of peer-reviewed research studies and well-researched policy reports, but relatively few of these exist for school closures. We ask: 1. How often do school closings occur and for what reasons? 2. What is the impact on students of closing schools for reasons of performance? 3. What is the impact of closing schools on the public school system in which closure has taken place? 4. What is the impact of school closures on students of various ethnic and socioeconomic backgrounds, and on local communities and neighborhoods? Recommendations The relatively limited evidence base suggests that school closures are not a promising strategy for remedying low student performance. • Even though school closures have dramatically increased, jurisdictions largely shun the option of "closure and transfer" in the context of the federal School Improvement Grant (SIG) program. Policy and district actors should treat the infrequency of this turnaround option as a caution. • School closures have at best weak and decidedly mixed benefits; at worst they have detrimental repercussions for students if districts do not ensure that seats at higher-performing schools are available for transfer students. In districts where such assignments are in short or uncertain supply, "closure and transfer" is a decidedly undesirable option.