Benjamin Michael Superfine
- Published in print:
- 2008
- Published Online:
- January 2009
- ISBN:
- 9780195337488
- eISBN:
- 9780199868667
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780195337488.003.0001
- Subject:
- Law, Constitutional and Administrative Law
This introductory chapter provides an overview of the structure and main argument of the book, and situates the book at the nexus of two converging trends: the courts' increasing role in education ...
More
This introductory chapter provides an overview of the structure and main argument of the book, and situates the book at the nexus of two converging trends: the courts' increasing role in education policy and the spread of standards-based reform and accountability policies. It discusses the basic methodology underlying the analyses in the book and argues that an approach sensitive to legal rules and principles, the underlying education policy landscape, and the institutional characteristics of various governmental entities is needed for an examination of how courts have addressed standards-based reform. The chapter also discusses the courts' historical role in education policy and evidence about the effectiveness of judicial action in this field.Less
This introductory chapter provides an overview of the structure and main argument of the book, and situates the book at the nexus of two converging trends: the courts' increasing role in education policy and the spread of standards-based reform and accountability policies. It discusses the basic methodology underlying the analyses in the book and argues that an approach sensitive to legal rules and principles, the underlying education policy landscape, and the institutional characteristics of various governmental entities is needed for an examination of how courts have addressed standards-based reform. The chapter also discusses the courts' historical role in education policy and evidence about the effectiveness of judicial action in this field.
Benjamin Michael Superfine
- Published in print:
- 2008
- Published Online:
- January 2009
- ISBN:
- 9780195337488
- eISBN:
- 9780199868667
- Item type:
- book
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780195337488.001.0001
- Subject:
- Law, Constitutional and Administrative Law
Since the Supreme Court decided Brown v. Board of Education in 1954, the courts have become an increasingly important force in education policy. This book examines the recent convergence of the ...
More
Since the Supreme Court decided Brown v. Board of Education in 1954, the courts have become an increasingly important force in education policy. This book examines the recent convergence of the courts' growing role in education and the standards-based reform movement, which is one of the most important forces in education policy today. This book argues that the courts have thus far addressed standards-based reform and related accountability policies in an ineffective and sometimes problematic fashion, but that there may be a more effective role for the courts to assume. The courts have examined standards-based reform through a variety of legal frameworks, including those traditionally used in the context of high-stakes testing cases and school finance reform litigation, and in cases directly addressing the legality of No Child Left Behind. Relaying on insights from educational and legal research, this book examines and critiques the major areas in which courts have addressed standards-based reform and the ways in which the courts have employed these frameworks. This book specifically highlights how well the courts are positioned — given the law, their institutional characteristics, and standards-based reform policies themselves — to craft effective rulings in cases involving standards-based reforms. Building on this analysis, this book outlines a broad approach that the courts could take to address standard-based reform policies more effectively in the future.Less
Since the Supreme Court decided Brown v. Board of Education in 1954, the courts have become an increasingly important force in education policy. This book examines the recent convergence of the courts' growing role in education and the standards-based reform movement, which is one of the most important forces in education policy today. This book argues that the courts have thus far addressed standards-based reform and related accountability policies in an ineffective and sometimes problematic fashion, but that there may be a more effective role for the courts to assume. The courts have examined standards-based reform through a variety of legal frameworks, including those traditionally used in the context of high-stakes testing cases and school finance reform litigation, and in cases directly addressing the legality of No Child Left Behind. Relaying on insights from educational and legal research, this book examines and critiques the major areas in which courts have addressed standards-based reform and the ways in which the courts have employed these frameworks. This book specifically highlights how well the courts are positioned — given the law, their institutional characteristics, and standards-based reform policies themselves — to craft effective rulings in cases involving standards-based reforms. Building on this analysis, this book outlines a broad approach that the courts could take to address standard-based reform policies more effectively in the future.
Jesse H. Rhodes
- Published in print:
- 2012
- Published Online:
- August 2016
- ISBN:
- 9780801449710
- eISBN:
- 9780801464195
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Cornell University Press
- DOI:
- 10.7591/cornell/9780801449710.003.0004
- Subject:
- Education, Educational Policy and Politics
This chapter focuses on the period of 1993–1994, which witnessed enactment of the Goals 2000: Educate America Act and the Improving America's Schools Act. It begins by examining states' responses to ...
More
This chapter focuses on the period of 1993–1994, which witnessed enactment of the Goals 2000: Educate America Act and the Improving America's Schools Act. It begins by examining states' responses to the standards-based education reform agenda, illustrating how the decentralized policy responses of state and local governments continued to bound that agenda. It then traces the efforts of business entrepreneurs and civil rights entrepreneurs to induce federal officials to endorse a dramatic expansion of federal leadership of standards-based school reform. After suggesting how the agenda of business entrepreneurs and civil rights entrepreneurs was molded by the structure of existing institutions and interests, it shows that this agenda nonetheless drew political sustenance from its relatively broad base of political support. The conclusion previews how the developments described in this chapter shaped the prospects for the subsequent evolution of education policymaking in the 1990s and early 2000s.Less
This chapter focuses on the period of 1993–1994, which witnessed enactment of the Goals 2000: Educate America Act and the Improving America's Schools Act. It begins by examining states' responses to the standards-based education reform agenda, illustrating how the decentralized policy responses of state and local governments continued to bound that agenda. It then traces the efforts of business entrepreneurs and civil rights entrepreneurs to induce federal officials to endorse a dramatic expansion of federal leadership of standards-based school reform. After suggesting how the agenda of business entrepreneurs and civil rights entrepreneurs was molded by the structure of existing institutions and interests, it shows that this agenda nonetheless drew political sustenance from its relatively broad base of political support. The conclusion previews how the developments described in this chapter shaped the prospects for the subsequent evolution of education policymaking in the 1990s and early 2000s.
Jesse H. Rhodes
- Published in print:
- 2012
- Published Online:
- August 2016
- ISBN:
- 9780801449710
- eISBN:
- 9780801464195
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Cornell University Press
- DOI:
- 10.7591/cornell/9780801449710.003.0005
- Subject:
- Education, Educational Policy and Politics
This chapter focuses on the period between 1995 and 2002, which was bookended by the “Republican Revolution” against big government and by the passage of the No Child Left Behind (NCLB) Act in 2002. ...
More
This chapter focuses on the period between 1995 and 2002, which was bookended by the “Republican Revolution” against big government and by the passage of the No Child Left Behind (NCLB) Act in 2002. It begins by reviewing how the so-called Republican Revolution affected the progress of standards-based reforms in Congress and the states between 1994 and 2000. It then shows how these developments shaped the ideas and advocacy of business entrepreneurs, civil rights entrepreneurs, and their allies in Congress. After tracing the various threads that contributed to the reemergence of support for federal leadership of standards-based reform, it examines the politics surrounding enactment of NCLB, both to explain why the legislation passed and understand how it accommodated existing interests and institutions. Finally, the chapter considers how enactment of NCLB set the stage for subsequent intergovernmental struggles over authority in education—in particular, how it influenced presidential candidate Barack Obama's education agenda in the 2008 election campaign.Less
This chapter focuses on the period between 1995 and 2002, which was bookended by the “Republican Revolution” against big government and by the passage of the No Child Left Behind (NCLB) Act in 2002. It begins by reviewing how the so-called Republican Revolution affected the progress of standards-based reforms in Congress and the states between 1994 and 2000. It then shows how these developments shaped the ideas and advocacy of business entrepreneurs, civil rights entrepreneurs, and their allies in Congress. After tracing the various threads that contributed to the reemergence of support for federal leadership of standards-based reform, it examines the politics surrounding enactment of NCLB, both to explain why the legislation passed and understand how it accommodated existing interests and institutions. Finally, the chapter considers how enactment of NCLB set the stage for subsequent intergovernmental struggles over authority in education—in particular, how it influenced presidential candidate Barack Obama's education agenda in the 2008 election campaign.
Jesse H. Rhodes
- Published in print:
- 2012
- Published Online:
- August 2016
- ISBN:
- 9780801449710
- eISBN:
- 9780801464195
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Cornell University Press
- DOI:
- 10.7591/cornell/9780801449710.003.0006
- Subject:
- Education, Educational Policy and Politics
This chapter focuses on the period between 2003 and 2011, which encompasses reaction against No Child Left Behind as well as the Obama administration's ambitious initiatives. It begins by describing ...
More
This chapter focuses on the period between 2003 and 2011, which encompasses reaction against No Child Left Behind as well as the Obama administration's ambitious initiatives. It begins by describing the political backlash against the No Child Left Behind (NCLB) Act, showing how it worked to limit the scope of reforms favored by business entrepreneurs, civil rights entrepreneurs, and their allies. Analyzing the agendas of business entrepreneurs, civil rights entrepreneurs, educational liberals, educational conservatives, and state leaders during the failed reauthorization of 2007–8, it argues that the proposals of business entrepreneurs and civil rights entrepreneurs anticipated many of the initiatives of the Obama administration. The chapter then discusses the Obama administration's Race to the Top initiative, illustrating how it extends the logic and principles of the NCLB in an effort to shore up standards-based reforms at the state and local levels. The final section speculates on education policy in the Obama administration in light of the 2010 elections.Less
This chapter focuses on the period between 2003 and 2011, which encompasses reaction against No Child Left Behind as well as the Obama administration's ambitious initiatives. It begins by describing the political backlash against the No Child Left Behind (NCLB) Act, showing how it worked to limit the scope of reforms favored by business entrepreneurs, civil rights entrepreneurs, and their allies. Analyzing the agendas of business entrepreneurs, civil rights entrepreneurs, educational liberals, educational conservatives, and state leaders during the failed reauthorization of 2007–8, it argues that the proposals of business entrepreneurs and civil rights entrepreneurs anticipated many of the initiatives of the Obama administration. The chapter then discusses the Obama administration's Race to the Top initiative, illustrating how it extends the logic and principles of the NCLB in an effort to shore up standards-based reforms at the state and local levels. The final section speculates on education policy in the Obama administration in light of the 2010 elections.
Donald J. Peurach
- Published in print:
- 2011
- Published Online:
- September 2011
- ISBN:
- 9780199736539
- eISBN:
- 9780199914593
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780199736539.003.0009
- Subject:
- Psychology, Developmental Psychology
The introduction identifies the central theme of the book: that of complexity as manifest in interdependencies among underperforming schools, programs of reform, the organizations that advance those ...
More
The introduction identifies the central theme of the book: that of complexity as manifest in interdependencies among underperforming schools, programs of reform, the organizations that advance those programs, and the environments in which all operate. In contrast to Herbert Simon’s “empty world hypothesis”, this complexity is framed in terms of a “full world hypothesis”. The introduction also identifies the purpose of the book: the goal of supporting education reformers in seeing, understanding, and confronting that complexity. In doing so, the introduction reviews interdependent problems that routinely undermine student achievement. It charts the rise of “systemic reform” as a logic addressing those problems, as well as “comprehensive school reform” and “standards-based reform” as policy movements embracing that logic. And it identifies the Success for All Foundation as a leading reformer with twenty years experience pursuing systemic, comprehensive, school-wide reform.Less
The introduction identifies the central theme of the book: that of complexity as manifest in interdependencies among underperforming schools, programs of reform, the organizations that advance those programs, and the environments in which all operate. In contrast to Herbert Simon’s “empty world hypothesis”, this complexity is framed in terms of a “full world hypothesis”. The introduction also identifies the purpose of the book: the goal of supporting education reformers in seeing, understanding, and confronting that complexity. In doing so, the introduction reviews interdependent problems that routinely undermine student achievement. It charts the rise of “systemic reform” as a logic addressing those problems, as well as “comprehensive school reform” and “standards-based reform” as policy movements embracing that logic. And it identifies the Success for All Foundation as a leading reformer with twenty years experience pursuing systemic, comprehensive, school-wide reform.
- Published in print:
- 2009
- Published Online:
- March 2013
- ISBN:
- 9780226706191
- eISBN:
- 9780226706184
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- University of Chicago Press
- DOI:
- 10.7208/chicago/9780226706184.003.0005
- Subject:
- Law, Family Law
Ensuring a sound basic education for all children is an affirmative mandate of most state constitutions, and this egalitarian imperative has also been adopted as the United States' paramount ...
More
Ensuring a sound basic education for all children is an affirmative mandate of most state constitutions, and this egalitarian imperative has also been adopted as the United States' paramount educational policy through the No Child Left Behind Act (NCLB) and as the explicit educational policy of virtually all of the states in the form of a major commitment to standards-based reform. A major reason some of the state courts have not consistently been able to effectuate fully successful remedies in the sound basic education cases is that they have been hamstrung by anachronistic concepts of separation of powers. A significant distinction between federal courts and state courts is that, in key areas of state responsibility like education and welfare, state constitutions incorporate “positive rights” that call for affirmative governmental action in contrast to the “negative restraints” of the federal constitution. This chapter argues that educational equity can only be realized through an effective ongoing dialogue among the three branches of government: executive branch, judicial branch, and legislative branch.Less
Ensuring a sound basic education for all children is an affirmative mandate of most state constitutions, and this egalitarian imperative has also been adopted as the United States' paramount educational policy through the No Child Left Behind Act (NCLB) and as the explicit educational policy of virtually all of the states in the form of a major commitment to standards-based reform. A major reason some of the state courts have not consistently been able to effectuate fully successful remedies in the sound basic education cases is that they have been hamstrung by anachronistic concepts of separation of powers. A significant distinction between federal courts and state courts is that, in key areas of state responsibility like education and welfare, state constitutions incorporate “positive rights” that call for affirmative governmental action in contrast to the “negative restraints” of the federal constitution. This chapter argues that educational equity can only be realized through an effective ongoing dialogue among the three branches of government: executive branch, judicial branch, and legislative branch.
Jaekyung Lee
- Published in print:
- 2016
- Published Online:
- December 2015
- ISBN:
- 9780190217648
- eISBN:
- 9780190457921
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780190217648.003.0006
- Subject:
- Psychology, Social Psychology
This chapter addresses the questions of school productivity and educational input standards in terms of accountability. How effective are input-driven educational policies in improving academic ...
More
This chapter addresses the questions of school productivity and educational input standards in terms of accountability. How effective are input-driven educational policies in improving academic growth and narrowing achievement gaps? What types of interventions are more cost-effective for disadvantaged minority students? The trends of increased public educational expenditures vis-à-vis small student achievement gains raise questions about the productivity of schooling. The average effect size of input-driven interventions, such as class size reduction and after-school tutoring was modest, whereas effects tend to be relatively larger for targeted interventions among disadvantaged, low-achieving, and younger students. Although achievement gains from early inventions tend to decay over time, they can make long-term impacts on improving students’ educational attainment and career success. The evidence supports P-16 education policies such as universal preschool and early college programs that can help fix the broken education pipeline and make for seamless educational transitions.Less
This chapter addresses the questions of school productivity and educational input standards in terms of accountability. How effective are input-driven educational policies in improving academic growth and narrowing achievement gaps? What types of interventions are more cost-effective for disadvantaged minority students? The trends of increased public educational expenditures vis-à-vis small student achievement gains raise questions about the productivity of schooling. The average effect size of input-driven interventions, such as class size reduction and after-school tutoring was modest, whereas effects tend to be relatively larger for targeted interventions among disadvantaged, low-achieving, and younger students. Although achievement gains from early inventions tend to decay over time, they can make long-term impacts on improving students’ educational attainment and career success. The evidence supports P-16 education policies such as universal preschool and early college programs that can help fix the broken education pipeline and make for seamless educational transitions.
