Jewell E. Cooper

High-Performing High Schools: Patterns of Success

What makes high schools successful in a high-stakes accountability environment? This case study used documents, interviews, and site visits to create profiles of 11 diverse North Carolina high schools with records of high performance on state assessments. Profiles were analyzed by themes or patterns of success recurring in the data. The analysis indicated five patterns of success: relationships and connections; safety nets andfamily fteling; data-directed dialogue and collaborative instruction; departments as drivers; and collaborative leadership. Implications for educational practice are provided.

Middle School Reform Through Data and Dialogue: Collaborative Evaluation with 17 Leadership Teams

This report describes a 2-year, longitudinal study of one school districts effort to link site-based, collaborative evaluation with formal, centralized program evaluation. Participants formed a research team in partnership with a local university. Team members assisted leadership teams in identifying issues for informal, site-based assessments and then used the information to monitor progress toward established goals. Participants collaborated in designing and conducting informal assessments of student achievement, school climate and safety, discipline, and parent involvement. Leadership teams used these data in developing their school improvement plans. Researchers and administrators used these data to revise the districtwide survey. At the end of the 2-year cycle, analysis of school improvement plans showed that collaborative evaluation is creating a connection between dialogue and data. These 17 middle schools are approaching school improvement in a more integrated fashion by actively involving key stakeholders (students, parents, and teachers) in the evaluation process.

Project RESTART: Preparing Nontraditional Adult Teacher Education Candidates to Become Special Education Teachers

In North Carolina, where the state must hire 10,000 teachers every year just to fill existing classrooms, highly qualified special education teachers are included in the top three areas of greatest teacher shortage, behind math and science. Such needs, which include an increase in teachers from ethnic minorities, challenge teacher educators to seek innovative methods for recruitment and retention of pools of nontraditional teacher candidates (Artiles, Trent, & Palmer, 2004; Boe, Cook, Bobbitt, & Terhanian, 1998).

An Anti-deficit Perspective on Black Female Scholar-Athletes’ Achievement Experiences at a Division I Historically White Institution (HWI)

The purpose of this study was to explore the experiences of Black female scholar-athletes at a Division I historically White institution (HWI) and identify key influences they attributed to their academic achievement and positive transitional experiences in college. A single focus group and five individual interviews were conducted with five Black female scholar-athletes enrolled at a Division I HWI. An anti-deficit achievement framework and attribution theory were incorporated to highlight key facilitators for their achievement experiences. Findings revealed participants attributed their achievement outcomes and positive college experiences to their educationally-focused family members, intrinsic motivation, academic self-efficacy, positive relationships with teammates, and unique benefits associated with being a Division I student-athlete. Implications for policy and practice are discussed.