The State Education Standard
Vol. 3, No. 1
Winter 2002

Feature Articles:
Closing the Achievement Gap: State Policy Levers

by Kati Haycock
A look at the key lessons research and experience have taught us about the achievement gap, as well as five policy levers state leaders can use to help close the gap.
 

The Case of the Failed Diversity Rule

by Karen Evans Stout and Byron Stevens
A cautionary tale about how the Minnesota State Board of Education's attempt to pass a new diversity rule not only failed, but led to the board's demise.

 

Embracing Diversity: One School District's Efforts to Address the Changing Face of America's School Children

by Libia S. Gil and Dennis Doyle
As California's Chula Vista Elementary District became increasingly diverse, school leaders instituted a comprehensive strategic plan that balances shared responsibility and diverse educational approaches with non-negotiable goals for student achievement.

 

Diversity and the Structure of Public Education

by Stacy Scott
The author, a former member of the Massachusetts State Board of Education, contends that our specialized, industrial model for schooling, as represented by special education and pull-out programs, has kept the system from fostering the flexibility, innovation, and individualization of learning that is needed to both address diversity and improve performance
 

Reforming Education Policies for English Learners Means Better Schools for All

by Virginia P. Collier and Wayne P. Thomas
The authors believe the results from their own and other research point the way to the most effective ways to bring English language learners into the mainstream.

Test Results after Proposition 227: Another View

by Jorge Amselle and Amy C. Allison
Excerpts from a report by the Read Institute, which maintains that California achievement scores show that structured English immersion classes are a success.

 

Stop the School Bus: I Want to Get Off!

by Gerald N. Tirozzi
The executive director of the National Association of Secondary School Principals believes it's time to end the onslaught of school reforms du jour in favor of a comprehensive vision of restructuring schools that cuts across all grade levels.

Departments:
Editor's Note

Executive Summary
by NASBE Executive Director Brenda Welburn

Washington Notebook
Surveying the federal education scene

Judicial Review
by Kevin McDowell
Accommodating without Endorsing: Recognizing Religious Diversity in Public Schools

The Policy Wonk
by Virginia Roach
The art of state education policymaking