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Resources on CSR: Last updated: June 2004
The following resources and tools can help schools and districts with each step of the comprehensive school reform (CSR) implementation process, beginning with an initial needs assessment and working toward a continual evaluation of a CSR reform.
At Your Fingertips
MPR Associates developed this manual to help schools use readily available data, such as graduation and attendance rates, to develop strategic plans for CSR programs. (Updated 2004)
https://www.mprinc.com/ps/ayf/index.html
Data Analysis for Comprehensive School Reform
Author Victoria Bernhardt provides tools and guidance to help schools collect and analyze data to effectively plan for reform. (2004)
https://eff.csuchico.edu/books/data_analysis.php
Implementing Schoolwide Projects: An Idea Book on Planning
This U.S. Department of Education resource offers tips and guidelines for planning a successful Title I -funded program in high-poverty schools. (October 1998)
https://mirror.eschina.bnu.edu.cn/Mirror/ed.gov/www.ed.gov/
pubs/Idea_Planning/index-2.html
Building Support for Comprehensive School Improvement Programs
New American Schools compiled this list of resources, which can help schools accomplish a variety of goals, such as creating incentives for a design-based school and involving key stakeholders in providing long-term support for CSR. (1999)
https://www.newamericanschools.org/contentViewer.asp?
highlightID=8&catID;=166
Design-Based Assistance as a Cornerstone of a School Improvement Strategy
Thomas Glennan, a former researcher at the RAND Corporation, discusses the importance of design-based initiatives to improve low-performing schools.
https://www.naschools.org/uploadedfiles/Design-Based%20Assistance%20as%20a%20Cornerstone%20of%
20a%20School%20Improvement%20Strategy.pdf
National Standards for Parent/Family Involvement Programs
The Parent Teacher Association (PTA) developed these standards to aid educators in building relationships within the community through communication and collaborative decision making among various stakeholders. (1997)
https://www.pta.org/parentinvolvement/standards/index.asp
Working Together for Reliable School Reform
This study, prepared by researchers at the Center for Social Organization of Schools at Johns Hopkins University, addresses the importance of involving various stakeholders at different stages of CSR implementation. (2002)
https://www.aft.org/edissues/downloads/working.pdf
An Educators Guide to School-wide Reform
This guide, issued by the American Institutes for Research, provides independently evaluated, comparative information on the effectiveness, quality, and cost of 24 comprehensive school reform programs. (1999)
https://www.aasa.org/Reform/
Better by Design? A Consumer's Guide to School-wide Reform
The Thomas Fordham Foundation published this review of 10 comprehensive school reform models, evaluating achievement, effectiveness, and cost. (December 1999)
https://www.edexcellence.net/foundation/publication/publicaton.cfm?id=21
Catalog of School Reform Models
The Northwest Regional Labs offers this catalog, which includes a search engine, to examine 26 external reform models. The catalog analyzes various aspects of each program, including general approaches, results with students, implementation assistance, and costs. (Updated January 2004)
https://www.nwrel.org/scpd/catalog/index.shtml
Focus on the Wonder Years: Challenges Facing the American Middle School
This RAND Corporation report profiles challenges facing middle school educators and reviews evidence of effectiveness for some CSR approaches used in middle schools.
https://www.rand.org/publications/MG/MG139/MG139.pdf
Comprehensive School Reform: A Meta-Analysis
Geoffrey Borman of the University of Wisconsin-Madison and a team of researchers from Johns Hopkins University and the University of North Carolina reviews research on the achievement effects of 29 widely implemented CSR programs. The analysis also looked at how CSR components, contextual and methodological factors mediate the effects of CSR. (2002)
https://www.csos.jhu.edu/CRESPAR/techReports/Report59.pdf
Improving Low-Performing High Schools
This resource, developed by the American Federation of Teachers, addresses issues specific to high schools including how to perform an appropriate self-study, reduce incidents of violence, and gain cooperation from students. (July 1999)
https://www.aft.org/edissues/downloads/lphs.pdf
Model Provider Web Sites and Contact Information
The National Clearinghouse for Comprehensive School Reform has collected the contact information for 50 school reform providers. (Updated 2004)
https://www.goodschools.gwu.edu/csrm/contact.php
Scientifically Based Research
The North Central Regional Educational Laboratory offers a guide to understanding the six steps mandated by Title IX to accomplish the scientifically based research component of No Child Left Behind legislation. (2001)
https://www.ncrel.org/csri/tools/qkey7/science.htm
What Works Clearinghouse
Established in 2002 by the U.S. Department of Education's Institute of Education Sciences to provide educators, policymakers, researchers, and the public with a central and trusted source of scientific evidence of what works in education. The Clearinghouse is administered by the Department through a contract to a joint venture of the American Institutes for Research and the Campbell Collaboration.
www.whatworks.ed.gov
Choosing Success
Johns Hopkins University researcher Sam Stringfield provides guidance to help schools considering a CSR program analyze the program's specific objectives and research base. (1998)
https://www.aft.org/american_educator/fall98/ChoosingSuccess.pdf
Guidelines for Ensuring the Quality of National Design-Based Assistance Providers
Created by a blue-ribbon panel of school board leaders and prominent education policymakers, this manual provides guidelines, a toolkit, and a checklist to ensure the quality of a chosen school reform model and its implementation.
(2000)
https://www.naschools.org/contentViewer.asp?highlightID=48&catID;=86
Making Good Choices—A Guide for Schools and Districts
The North Central Regional Education Lab created this guide to aid in choosing the appropriate CSR program. (Updated 2004)
https://www.ncrel.org/csri/choices/makegood/title.htm
Seeing Progress: A Guide to Visiting Schools Using Promising Programs
This manual provides advice on how to conduct a school visit to initiate a "seeing is believing" test to help schools or districts choose a reform model. (2000)
https://www.aft.org/edissues/downloads/seeing.pdf
A Guide to Working With Model Providers
The U.S. Department of Education developed this manual to help schools and districts work with CSR program providers. (2000)
https://www.ed.gov/programs/compreform/model.pdf
How to Rethink Budgets to Support School Transformation
Researcher Allan Odden offers a cost-benefit analysis for a variety of CSR programs and provides tips for maximizing efficiency and minimizing expenditure on reform projects.
https://www.naschools.org/uploadedfiles/How%20to%20Rethink
%20School%20Budgets%20to%20Support%20School%20
Transformation.pdf
Implementing Schoolwide Projects: An Idea Book on Planning
This U.S. Department of Education resource offers tips and guidelines for planning a successful Title I -funded program in high-poverty schools. (October 1998)
https://mirror.eschina.bnu.edu.cn/Mirror/ed.gov/www.ed.gov/pubs
/Idea_Planning/index-2.html
Resource Reallocations
New American Schools compiled this list of links to resources and guidance on allocating resources to support comprehensive school reform.
https://www.newamericanschools.org/contentViewer.asp?
highlightID=8&catID;=171
Comprehensive School Reform: Five Lessons From the Field
This manual, created by the Education Commission of the States, reviews five lessons learned about CSR, including the importance of teachers and the state department of education in creating a successful program. (December 1999)
https://www.ecs.org/clearinghouse/16/40/1640.pdf
A Guidebook on School-wide Improvement
Offered by the Northern California Comprehensive Assistance Center, this online manual gives advice on implementation strategies for different reform models, as well as research-based methods on getting long-term results. ( 2000)
https://www.wested.org/csrd/guidebook/toc.htm
Guides and Tools for Specific Implementation Strategies
The STAR center offers general advice on CSR strategies as well as articles on implementation for specific minority groups and bilingual students. (1997-2004)
https://www.starcenter.org/products/guidesandtools.html
Making Comprehensive School Reform Work—ERIC Clearinghouse for Urban Education
In this study, Laura Desimone examines CSR reform efforts and offers lessons learned on implementation, design choice, principal leadership, politics, support from design teams, resources, and context. Desimone also makes recommendations for future CSR research. (2000)
https://iume.tc.columbia.edu/enc_archive/mono/UDS112.pdf
Evaluating for Success
The Mid-Continental Regional Educational Lab designed this detailed manual to guide educators through a thorough evaluation process, including planning, designing, and conducting the evaluation. (1999)
https://www.mcrel.org/PDF/AssessmentAccountabilityDataUse/
5993TG_EvaluatingforSuccess.pdf
Evaluating Whole-School Reform Models
This guide from the Northwest Regional Education Laboratories provides some guidelines that district and school staff can consider in choosing an approach to evaluating their school reform efforts.
https://www.nwrac.org/whole-school/
How to Evaluate Comprehensive School Reform Models
Schools or districts that have implemented a CSR program can use this guide, created by New American Schools, to design and complete an evaluation of their CSR program implementation and impact.
https://www.naschools.org/uploadedfiles/How%20to%20
Evaluate%20Comprehensive%20School%20Reform%20Models.pdf
Using Data to Improve Schools
Created by the American Association of School Administrators, this manual explores the importance of research as well as post analysis public engagement in understanding and maintaining long-term success. (2002)
https://www.aasa.org/cas/UsingDataToImproveSchools.pdf
Office of Elementary and Secondary Education
This office of the U.S. Department of Education is responsible for a number of programs, including the Comprehensive School Reform Program.
https://www.ed.gov/about/offices/list/oese/index.html?src=mr
Comprehensive Centers Network
This network, established by the US Department of Education, comprises 15 centers around the country that provide technical assistance services focused on the implementation of reform programs.
https://www.ccnetwork.org/home.html
Comprehensive School Reform Quality Initiatives
This page provides links and information about technical assistance efforts, U.S. Department of Education, for implementing CSR programs.
https://www.ed.gov/programs/qualinits/index.html
State CSR Contacts
This page provides contact information for state CSR coordinators who can provide the details of and deadline information for their state's CSR subgrant competition. https://www.ed.gov/programs/compreform/contacts.html
Education Week
This site presents a nonpartisan weekly newspaper and monthly magazine dedicated to innovations in education practice and policy. It contains background information and resources related to comprehensive school reform. (Updated daily)
https://www.edweek.org/context/topics/issuespage.cfm?id=102
Education News
Education News offers general information and links to articles about the education reform across the country. (Updated daily)
www.educationnews.org
Appalachian Educational Laboratory (AEL)
Serving Kentucky, Tennessee, Virginia, and West Virginia.
https://www.ael.org/page.htm?&pd;=abo6721&pc;=2
LAB
Serving Connecticut, Massachusetts, Maine, New Hampshire, New York, Puerto Rico, Rhode Island, Virgin Islands, and Vermont.
https://www.lab.brown.edu/topics/reform.shtml
Laboratory for Student Success (LSS)
Serving the District of Columbia, Delaware, Maryland, New Jersey, and Pennsylvania
https://www.temple.edu/lss/
Mid-Continent Research for Education and Learning (McREL)
Serving Colorado, Kansas, Missouri, Nebraska, North Dakota, South Dakota, and Wyoming
https://www.mcrel.org/programs/csrd/
North Central Regional Educational Laboratory (NCREL)
Serving Iowa, Illinois, Indiana, Michigan, Minnesota, Ohio, and Wisconsin
https://www.ncrel.org/csri/
Northwestern Regional Educational Laboratory (NWREL)
Serving Alaska, Idaho, Montana, Oregon, and Washington
https://www.nwrel.org/csrdp/
Pacific Regional Educational Laboratory (PREL)
Serving American Samoa, Northern Mariana Islands, Micronesia, Guam, Hawaii, Marshall Islands, and Palau
https://www.prel.org/products/Products/CSRDP.pdf
SERVE
Serving Alabama, Florida, Georgia, Mississippi, North Carolina, and South Carolina
https://www.serve.org/schoolreform
Southwest Educational Development Laboratory (SEDL)
Serving Arkansas, Louisiana, New Mexico, Oklahoma, and Texas
https://www.sedl.org/pubs/change46/welcome.html
WestEd
Serving Arizona, California, Nevada, and Utah
https://www.wested.org/cs/we/view/area/7
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