Community College Student Engagement

Based on research showing that college students who are engaged are more likely to succeed in their educational goals, the 2007 Committing to Student Engagement report, released by the Community College Survey of Student Engagement, seeks to gauge the extent to which community college students are active participants in their education. The study recommends the five following strategies for increasing student engagement.

• Set and communicate high expectations and clear goals.
• Focus on the front door.
• Elevate developmental education.
• Use engaging instructional approaches.
• Make engagement inescapable.

Career Pathways

A new ECS Progress of Education Reform reviews four reports developed by the Workforce Strategy Center that make the case for states to implement policies that support the use of career pathways to increase college completion and contribute to state and regional workforce demand. Regional economies will thrive or decline based on their ability to attract, cultivate and retain “knowledge workers”. Career pathways are helpful frameworks for making systemic changes that fill gaps in education and workforce-training systems by addressing the complementary goals of student and worker advancement, and regional economic development.

Teacher Quality and Policy

Teaching Quality in a Changing Policy Landscape, an ETS Policy Information Center report, examines the relationship between improvements in the academic quality of America’s teaching force and the recent unprecedented policy focus on improving teacher quality. The report highlights five policies or policy directions that have been implemented in the past ten years, and examines changes in the quality of teacher pool within the context of a changing policy landscape. The five specific policies having a direct impact on teacher licensure testing are:

• increasing accountability of teacher education programs;
• ensuring the qualifications of teachers;
• increasing requirements for entry into teacher education;
• strengthening teacher quality requirements for accreditation; and
• the rapid expansion of alternate route programs.

To Teach or Not to Teach?

According to a National Center for Education Statistics survey, a decade after starting, 93% of teachers are satisfied with their jobs. Using data from the 2003 Baccalaureate and Beyond Longitudinal Study, the analysis first compares current and former teachers in this cohort on several demographic and educational measures, and contrasts these groups with 1992-93 graduates who never taught. The report provides an overview of teachers’ job satisfaction and, for those not teaching in 2002-03, the main reason for not teaching. The second section looks at graduates’ preparation for teaching, including the key steps of completing a teacher education program, serving as a student teacher, and earning certification. Finally, the report examines the main reasons graduates who never taught gave for deciding against teaching. The study also finds that just 18% of education graduates who entered teaching changed occupations within four years.

Effective Teachers for At-Risk Schools and Students

Research has convincingly shown that students who lack effective teachers are destined to fall behind their peers. Efforts to address the disparities between the quality of teachers in high-poverty, low-performing schools and those in more affluent schools with high student achievement have generally been insufficiently focused and have lacked intensity. According to this report, state and local policymakers, educators, and technical assistance providers face a variety of challenges and require assistance. The National Comprehensive Center for Teacher Quality attempts to address these issues in America’s Challenge: Effective Teachers for At-Risk Schools and Students.

Postsecondary Education and State Economic Development

Confronted with the challenge of developing more globally competitive regional economies, state policymakers have taken a renewed interest in the role of postsecondary education in state economic development. The rhetoric around the importance of investing in postsecondary education to support regional economic needs is consistent across the nation. To date, however, there has not been wide agreement on the most effective strategies. This Education Commission of the States StateNote describes three popular policy mechanisms and highlights noteworthy state policies that have been enacted since 2004.

BONUS ARTICLE - Quality Counts 2008 (subscription may be required for access)

Education Week recently released the 12th annual edition of Quality Counts, a report that grades states across six areas of education performance and policy: chance-for-success; K-12 achievement; standards, assessments, and accountability; transitions and alignment; the teaching profession; and school finance. The U.S. received a grade of C overall, with state grades ranging from a B to a D-plus. Some states performed consistently well or poorly across the full range of categories, but a closer examination of the rankings reveals that most states posted a strong showing in at least one area. The report was designed to be a useful tool in providing a broad evaluation of state performance and to offer a more nuanced perspective on the educational condition of the nation and of the 50 states.