The rise of the accountability movement in education has resulted in the proliferation of school report cards, school ratings and rankings, and other kinds of performance reporting for public consumption and policy use. To understand the strengths and limitations of school rating systems and the role they play in shaping public perceptions and school improvement practices, this paper situates rating systems within the broader field of comparative organizational assessments and neo-institutional theory; describes school rankings and rating systems in use by states and consumer-oriented enterprises; and details four aspects of school ratings (measurement, transformation, integration, and presentation) that affect their use and interpretation.

This volume provides a succinct up-to-date summary of global research on principal instructional leadership as it has evolved over the past 50 years. The book’s particular focus is on the development and use of the Principal Instructional Management Rating Scale (PIMRS). The PIMRS is the most widely used survey instrument designed for assessing instructional leadership for research and practice. It has been used in more than 250 studies in more than 30 countries around the world. The authors provide a detailed conceptual and data-based description of the rationale and development of the instrument as well as the ways in which it has been used in practice. The book also provides, for the first time, a comprehensive assessment of the scale’s measurement properties. This represents essential information for future users of the instrument across different national contexts. Finally, the volume outlines an agenda for improving future research on the role of principal instructional leadership in student learning and school effectiveness.

In The School Reform Landscape: Fear, Mythologies, and Lies, the authors take an in-depth and controversial look at school reform since the launch of Sputnik. They scrutinize school reform events, proposals, and policies from the last 60 years through the lens of critical social theory and examine the ongoing tensions between the need to keep a vibrant unitary system of public education and the ongoing assault by corporate and elite interests in creating a dual system. Some of events, proposals, and policies critiqued include the Sputnik myth, A Nation At Risk, No Child Left Behind, the lies of the Common Core State Standards Initiative, and other common reform schemes. The authors provide an evidence-based contrarian view of the free-market reform ideas and pierce the veil of the new reform policies to find that they are built not upon empirical evidence, but instead rest solidly on foundations of myth, fear, and lies. Ideas for a new set of reform policies, based on empirical evidence and supportive of a unitary, democratic system of education are presented.

In July 2012, the City of Santa Monica Human Services Division and the Santa Monica–Malibu Unified School District contracted with the RAND Corporation to conduct an assessment of child care programs in Santa Monica. The project sought to assess how well Santa Monica’s early and school-age care programs meet the needs of families. Recommendations for improvement focused on advancing access, quality, service delivery, and financial sustainability.

Improve principal evaluation and create highly effective leaders! Even with great teachers, student achievement hinges on an effective principal. Behind every high-quality principal is an airtight system of leadership evaluation that consistently rewards excellence and remedies deficits. While teacher evaluation methods have improved, instructional leadership evaluation has often stood still—and student learning and achievement have paid the price. This book identifies the major problems in this process and articulates clear solutions. The result is a blueprint for ensuring the best person for the job is occupying the principal’s chair. Content includes: Extensive data, presented in a user-friendly manner Clear connections to the ISLLC Standards for School Leaders A suite of interactive tools including sample self-assessments, mid-year and final evaluation forms, and professional growth plans "This book not only highlights the key messages about the role of the leader, but it is does so in a way that is engaging, practical, and reflects the Smiths’ long history of being school leaders, teaching school leaders, and seeing the effects of their teaching. I have seen the Smiths in action, separately and together, and they know how to lead and how to teach, they have a strength of purpose they do not waver from, and these attributes come through in this book." -John Hattie, Director Melbourne Education Research Institute, University of Melbourne "After reading this book, you′ll truly understand what it takes to grow as a lead learner. We can always get better. This book provides quality insight on strategies that will make good leaders great." -Brad Currie, School Leader, Corwin Author and Co-Founder of #Satchat

This book provides a highly accessible overview of public education policy. It organizes knowledge about 21st century education policy around two main topics: the policy process, and the discourse on public education policy. This unique organization provides a novel lens for better understanding the dynamics and contents of current education policy making. The work also offers a broad overview of theories of public policy, economics, demography, sociology, history, and psychology. Each chapter includes a discussion of data derived from the international and Israeli contexts. The book provides a series of valuable insights relevant to researchers, practitioners, and policymakers interested in understanding the multifaceted aspects that shape contemporary education policy.