Heather L. Schwartz

Improving accountability through expanded measures of performance

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to examine how test‐based accountability has influenced school and district practices and explore how states and districts might consider creating expanded systems of measures to address the shortcomings of traditional accountability. It provides research‐based guidance for entities that are developing or adopting new measures of school performance.Design/methodology/approach – The study relies on literature review, consultation with expert advisers, review of state and district documentation, and semi‐structured interviews with staff at state and local education agencies and research institutions.Findings – The research shows mixed effects of test‐based accountability on student achievement and demonstrates that teachers and administrators change their practices in ways that respond to the incentives provided by the system. The review of state and district measurement systems shows widespread use of additional measures of constructs, such as school climate and colle...

Health implications of social networks for children living in public housing.

This study sought to examine whether: (1) the health composition of the social networks of children living in subsidized housing within market rate developments (among higher-income neighbors) differs from the social network composition of children living in public housing developments (among lower-income neighbors); and (2) childrens social network composition is associated with childrens own health. We found no significant differences in the health characteristics of the social networks of children living in these different types of public housing. However, social network composition was significantly associated with several aspects of childrens own health, suggesting the potential importance of social networks for the health of vulnerable populations.

School practices to promote social distancing in K-12 schools: review of influenza pandemic policies and practices

BackgroundDuring an evolving influenza pandemic, community mitigation strategies, such as social distancing, can slow down virus transmission in schools and surrounding communities. To date, research on school practices to promote social distancing in primary and secondary schools has focused on prolonged school closure, with little attention paid to the identification and feasibility of other more sustainable interventions. To develop a list and typology of school practices that have been proposed and/or implemented in an influenza pandemic and to uncover any barriers identified, lessons learned from their use, and documented impacts.MethodsWe conducted a review of the peer-reviewed and grey literature on social distancing interventions in schools other than school closure. We also collected state government guidance documents directed to local education agencies or schools to assess state policies regarding social distancing. We collected standardized information from each document using an abstraction form and generated descriptive statistics on common plan elements.ResultsThe document review revealed limited literature on school practices to promote social distancing, as well as limited incorporation of school practices to promote social distancing into state government guidance documents. Among the 38 states that had guidance documents that met inclusion criteria, fewer than half (42%) mentioned a single school practice to promote social distancing, and none provided any substantive detail about the policies or practices needed to enact them. The most frequently identified school practices were cancelling or postponing after-school activities, canceling classes or activities with a high rate of mixing/contact that occur within the school day, and reducing mixing during transport.ConclusionLittle information is available to schools to develop policies and procedures on social distancing. Additional research and guidance are needed to assess the feasibility and effectiveness of school practices to promote social distancing.

Study Suggests: Kids Who Attend More Thrive More

Excerpted from Learning from Summer: Effects of Voluntary Summer Learning Programs on Low-Income Urban Youth, Catherine H. Augustine et al., RAND Corporation, RR-1557, 2016. The RAND Corporation is a research organization that develops solutions to public policy challenges to help make communities throughout the world safer and more secure, healthier and more prosperous. RAND is nonprofit, nonpartisan, and committed to the public interest. www.rand.org/t/RR1557 These findings are correlational but very likely due to the summer learning programs. The differences in the performance between the “high attenders” and the control group are the equivalent of about 20%–25% of a year’s learning in language arts and math at this age. These benefits persisted throughout the 5th-grade school year. Kids with high attendance performed better in math and reading after two summers compared with students in the control group, who were not invited to participate in the programs.

Can Technology Make Schools Safer

A project of the RAND Corporation, the Police Executive Research Forum, RTI International, and the University of Denver Th is brief describes work done in RAND Justice, Infrastructure, and Environment and documented in e Role of Technology in Improving K–12 School Safety, by Heather L. Schwartz, Rajeev Ramchand, Dionne Barnes-Proby, Sean Grant, Brian A. Jackson, Kristin J. Leuschner, Mauri Matsuda, and Jessica Saunders, RR-1488-NIJ (available at www.rand.org/t/RR1488), 2016. To view this brief online, visit www.rand.org/t/RB9922. Th e RAND Corporation is a research organization that develops solutions to public policy challenges to help make communities throughout the world safer and more secure, healthier and more prosperous. RAND is nonprofi t, nonpartisan, and committed to the public interest. RAND’s publications do not necessarily refl ect the opinions of its research clients and sponsors. R® is a registered trademark.