Doctoral Dissertation Research: Riding the Waves or Driving the Tide? Educational Reform and Institutional Change

University Of Chicago, Chicago IL

Investigators

Abstract

SES 0082002 PI: Barbara L Schneider, Christopher B Swanson This is a longitudinal, multi-level analysis of the diffusion of standards-based educational reform in the U.S. during the 1990s. It examines the development of the national reform movement and variability of its application across states. Data come from the National Assessment of Educational Progress, supplemented by qualitative descriptions of four illustrative cases (Arkansas, California, Connecticut, and Michigan). Supplementary data sources include the NCES Common Core Data on schools' practices and teacher qualifications, and published reports of policy initiatives from national, state and local level educational systems. Results will contribute to theoretical understandings of institutional change, as well as shedding light on some sources of contemporary educational practice in the United States.