Recently Reported On.pdf

Efforts to improve outcomes for students in low-performing schools have been ongoing for decades, but limited broad-scale improvements continue to frustrate families, school leaders, and policymakers. The No Child Left Behind Act of 2001 required states to identify low-performing schools and take action to improve them. However, state leaders are now seeking intensive and innovative interventions that produce more immediate improvements in academic growth and achievement. Three school turnaround strategies gaining attention are innovation zones, recovery districts, and receiverships. Innovation zones give struggling schools autonomy to experiment with new staffing, scheduling, budget, and curriculum arrangements, while recovery districts involve states taking over lowest-performing schools and assuming local education agency functions. States are looking for turnaround strategies that produce immediate, dramatic, and transformative changes, as federal attempts to enhance turnaround efforts through school improvement grants have been costly and produced meager gains.