Schools

Starting with the 2014-15 academic year, North Carolina’s Opportunity Scholarship Act will offer a $4,200 voucher to pay for low-income children in public schools to attend private schools. The legislation, which the N.C. General Assembly passed in July 2013, captures two contentious topics in the state: school choice and the idea of using public dollars […]

Since 2012-2013 test results were released Nov. 7 there has been a flurry of publicity about the Common Core standards. The Charlotte Observer has had strong coverage of the topic, as has the News & Observer of Raleigh. (Example: “Common Core essential to student growth,” a commentary by Superintendents Heath Morrison of Charlotte-Mecklenburg Schools and […]

Jody Pressley, project leader for the Transportation Information Management System, is featured in the November issue of School Bus Fleet magazine as one of “14 Phenomenal Women in School Transportation.” TIMS is a collaboration among the UNC Charlotte Urban Institute, where Pressley works, the N.C. Department of Public Instruction and the Institute for Transportation Research […]

As summer vacation winds to an end, many families anxiously await the first day of school – the end of their struggle to provide babysitters, activities and camps to curb bored kids’ mischief. But from educators’ perspective, beginning a new school year can mean a daunting task of overcoming the “summer slide.” Educators and researchers […]

In 2007, Shamrock Gardens Elementary in east Charlotte was showing big improvements, and after years of being listed as a school that could be taken over by the state for low performance, it was close to coming off that list. Then suddenly test scores plummeted (see first graph below). What happened? A new principal? New […]

Early in my teaching career I realized how easy it would be to cheat on standardized tests. I realized this by accident, due to my lack of a poker face. The day after a big end-of-unit assessment, a parent of a third-grade student told me her son had gone home upset, because he knew he […]

Nationwide, schools of concentrated poverty have poor academic outcomes and limited educational opportunities.[1] Our local schools are no different.[2][3] Education reform is a priority across the political spectrum and throughout the community. But are we basing our reform efforts on accumulated evidence or simply on stories that tug on our emotions? The students pictured above […]

Last year’s high school dropouts will cost North Carolina an estimated $4.4 billion in lost income, taxes and productivity over the students’ lifetimes, according to a recent Alliance for Excellent Education report.[1] Although most people understand that education level affects income, it may come as a surprise just how much of a difference a high […]

As part of United Way’s Collective Impact Initiative for Children & Youth, The Larry King Center of the Council for Children’s Rights conducted a comprehensive review of dropout prevention programs. This summary table presents information about research-informed dropout interventions and practices being put into action across the country. The following information is included for each […]

As part of United Way’s Collective Impact Initiative for Children & Youth, The Larry King Center of the Council for Children’s Rights conducted a comprehensive literature review of factors that influence school dropout and graduation rates. This annotated bibliography is one of three products from this research and presents more than 40 peer-reviewed journal articles […]