Challenges and Potential of a Collaborative Approach to Education Reform
Dissatisfied with the results of earlier efforts to improve educational outcomes in U.S. schools, the Ford Foundation developed a program called the Collaborating for Education Reform Initiative (CERI) that provided grants to collaboratives of community-based organizations in urban settings as a way to address systemic barriers to high-quality teaching and learning. Eight collaboratives signed on, and, over four years, the RAND Corporation assessed the progress of the program. The authors of this report found that the eight sites made varying degrees of progress and, while none had reached the final outcomes desired, some of the collaboratives offered considerable promise. Although success is far from certain, by adopting such techniques as clear communication of expectations, engaging school staff, and using data to alter strategies as necessary, collaboratives stand a better chance of becoming self-sustaining and positively affecting student learning.
- Full Document (pdf format)
- Summary Only (pdf format)
Use Adobe Acrobat Reader version 7.0 or higher for the best experience.
Document Details
- Copyright: RAND Corporation
- Availability: Available
- Format: Paperback
- Pages: 186
- List Price: $24.00
- Price: $19.20
- ISBN/EAN: 0-8330-3652-1
- Document Number: MG-216-FF
- Year: 2004
- Series: Monographs
Contents
Chapter One
Introduction
Chapter Two
Literature Review, Indicators, and Methodology
Chapter Three
History of CERI Reform
Chapter Four
Progress of Sites
Chapter Five
Themes from CERI
Chapter Six
Conclusions and Observations
Appendix A
Collaborative Context
The research described in this report was conducted by RAND Education for the Ford Foundation.
This report is part of the RAND Corporation monograph series. RAND monographs present major research findings that address the challenges facing the public and private sectors. All RAND monographs undergo rigorous peer review to ensure high standards for research quality and objectivity.
Permission is given to duplicate this electronic document for personal use only, as long as it is unaltered and complete. Copies may not be duplicated for commercial purposes. Unauthorized posting of RAND PDFs to a non-RAND Web site is prohibited. RAND PDFs are protected under copyright law. For information on reprint and linking permissions, please visit the RAND Permissions page.
The RAND Corporation is a nonprofit institution that helps improve policy and decisionmaking through research and analysis. RAND's publications do not necessarily reflect the opinions of its research clients and sponsors.


