This report summarizes the evidence on measures of student achievement growth used in teacher evaluation that do not rely on traditional annual state assessments, and that instead use commercially available assessments, locally developed common assessments, and teacher-developed student learning...

This report summarizes the evidence on measures of student achievement growth used in teacher evaluation that do not rely on traditional annual state assessments, and that instead use commercially available assessments, locally developed common assessments, and teacher-developed student learning...

This report describes the value-added models (VAMs) created for the Pittsburgh Public Schools and the Pittsburgh Federation of Teachers. Pittsburgh's VAMs use not only state assessments but also course-specific assessments, student attendance, and course completion rates, aiming to produce...

This report describes the value-added models (VAMs) created for the Pittsburgh Public Schools and the Pittsburgh Federation of Teachers. Pittsburgh's VAMs use not only state assessments but also course-specific assessments, student attendance, and course completion rates, aiming to produce...

The federal Parent Loans for Undergraduate Students (PLUS) program provides loans to parents of dependent undergraduate students to help pay for education expenses. To bring the standards in line with those used by banks, the U.S. Department of Education tightened the credit standards for PLUS...

Although charter schools are growing in number, debate continues about whether they provide a better education than traditional public schools. The report examines charter schools in Chicago, Denver, Milwaukee, Philadelphia, San Diego, and the states of Florida, Ohio, and Texas, using...

A quasi-experimental analysis of data from the Pittsburgh Public Schools finds no difference in the effects of two elementary-level math programs—Everyday Mathematics and Harcourt Math—on student achievement. The absence of a difference in achievement effects may be related to the...

Previous charter school research has shown mixed results for student achievement, which could be the consequence of different policy environments or methodological approaches with differing assumptions across studies. This analysis discusses these approaches and assumptions and estimates effects...