Download
Download eBook for Free
| Format | File Size | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| PDF file | 0.6 MB | Use Adobe Acrobat Reader version 10 or higher for the best experience. |
Purchase
Purchase Print Copy
| Format | List Price | Price | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Add to Cart | Paperback312 pages | $20.00 | $16.00 20% Web Discount |
Why do students have different achievement levels across states? Is math achievement improving across states? Differences in average achievement levels across states are mainly traceable to differing family characteristics. However, students from similar families also score differently across states. These differences are related to differences in resource levels and in how resources are spent. States with high spending per pupil, lower pupil-teacher ratios, higher participation in public prekindergarten and higher reported teacher resources have higher achievement. Disadvantaged children are the most sensitive to low resource, and additional resources could substantially their scores. Between-state, rather than within-state, differences in resources appear to be the main reason for inequitable resource levels for students of lower socioeconomic status. The conclusion is that significant math gains are occurring across most states that cannot be traced to resource changes, that the rate of gain varies significantly by state, and that reform efforts are the likely cause of these gains. The results certainly challenge the traditional view of public education as unreformable.
Table of Contents
Chapter One
Introduction
Chapter Two
The State NAEP Achievement Results and State Family and Educational Characteristics
Chapter Three
Review of the Literature
Chapter Four
Methodology
Chapter Five
Trends in State Scores
Chapter Six
Estimating Scores Across States for Students from Similar Families
Chapter Seven
Effects of State Educational Policies
Chapter Eight
Assessing the Cost-Effectiveness of Different Resource Utilizations
Chapter Nine
Conclusions
Appendix A
State NAEP Test Scores and State Family and Educational System Characteristics
Appendix B
NAEP Exclusion and Participation Rates
Appendix C
Sources of Bias
Appendix D
The Tennessee Experiment
Appendix E
Family Variable Development
Appendix F
Variable Definitions
Appendix G
Statistical Results for Estimating State Trends
Appendix H
Statistical Results for Estimating Score Differences for Students from Similar Families Across States
Appendix I
Statistical Results for Estimating Effects of State Policy and Educational Characteristics
Appendix J
Robust Regression Results
Appendix K
Making Cost-Effectiveness Estimates from the Tennessee Class-Size Experiment
Appendix L
Regression Cost Estimates
The research described in this report was supported by the ExxonMobil Foundation, the Danforth Foundation, the NAEP Secondary Analysis Program, and the Center for Research on Educational Excellence and Diversity and was conducted by RAND Education.
This report is part of the RAND Corporation Monograph report series. The monograph/report was a product of the RAND Corporation from 1993 to 2003. RAND monograph/reports presented major research findings that addressed the challenges facing the public and private sectors. They included executive summaries, technical documentation, and synthesis pieces.
This document and trademark(s) contained herein are protected by law. This representation of RAND intellectual property is provided for noncommercial use only. Unauthorized posting of this publication online is prohibited; linking directly to this product page is encouraged. Permission is required from RAND to reproduce, or reuse in another form, any of its research documents for commercial purposes. For information on reprint and reuse permissions, please visit www.rand.org/pubs/permissions.
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.