Magnet schools are best known for offering unique programs or curricula to attract students from outside a school’s neighborhood; many started off as neighborhood public schools but converted with the goals of increasing student diversity and achievement. A nine-year AIR study of 21 magnet schools found that while there was ...
To improve services to students and families, we need information on what districts and charter management organizations are doing and plan to do to address COVID-19. From mid-May through July 2020, we are asking school district and charter management organization leaders to respond to a nationally representative survey of school ...
What should states and districts working on school improvement keep in mind about successful turnaround efforts? AIR experts have identified nine key conditions that led to successful turnaround in Massachusetts that could be useful to education leaders in other states.
Susan Therriault is an education researcher whose work straddles equity, K-12 school improvement, and policy. In this Q&A, she describes her career and her work with the COVID-19 Equity in Education project.
Students at high schools focusing on deeper learning had higher scores on standardized tests in mathematics and English, and higher graduation rates than their peers, according to a study by the American Institutes for Research (AIR). In conducting the Study of Deeper Learning: Opportunities and Outcomes, funded by the William ...
AIR surveyed school climate in 33 Alaska school districts between 2006 and 2009. Overall school climate increased in these districts at the same time that statewide achievement test results declined—especially for math. This report explores the nature of the relationship between school climate and student achievement over time, concluding that, ...
To stay current on the most effective strategies for school improvement, Catherine Barbour keeps a close eye on new research. At AIR, researchers and technical assistance providers collaborate to put the most authoritative and timely information to practical use.
What impact do Teach for America (TFA) members have on other teachers' performance? A strategy to "cluster" TFA members in high-need schools contributed to large gains in math achievement, but was found to have little effect on reading skills and no spillover effect on other teachers.