ED464227 - High Schools That Work: Findings from the 1996 and 1998 Assessments - ERIC-ED464227 | Content Details

ED464227 - High Schools That Work: Findings from the 1996 and 1998 Assessments

Sponsoring Agency: Department of Education, Washington, DC. Planning and Evaluation Service

Subject: Academic Achievement, Academic Education, Educational Assessment, Educational Change, Educational Improvement, Effective Schools Research, High Schools, Instruction, Integrated Curriculum, Partnerships in Education, Program Effectiveness, Program Evaluation, Program Implementation, Vocational Education

Abstract: A study examined the performance of the High Schools That Work (HSTW) initiative in 1996 and 1998, based on data from the HSTW Assessments. Analyses found support for the hypothesis that HSTW is the cause of school improvement, although other non-measured factors may also influence these schools, and showed that between 1996-98 HSTW schools significantly increased percentages of students in their senior classes who met the HSTW achievement goals in mathematics, science, and reading and who completed the HSTW-recommended program of study. Evidence indicated many HSTW practices were being implemented and supported the hypothesis that meeting the HSTW curricular standards is related to meeting the achievement goals. Increases in the use of best instructional practices, in vocational teachers' emphasizing using academic skills for vocational assignments, in the amount of time students spend on homework, and in the percentages of students who receive help from the school in developing a four-year educational plan were related to an increase in percentage of students' meeting achievement goals. Analyses showed schools that had an increase in percentage of students who took a mathematics or science course in senior year had an increase in percentage of students completing the HSTW curriculum in those academic areas. Teacher indicators are appended. (Contains 10 figures and 13 tables.) ( YLB 1.