Charting the Course: Four Years of the Thomas W. Payzant School on the Move Prize

Every spring since 2006, EdVestors (www.edvestors.org) invites Boston Public schools with 4-year rates of improvement on the Massachusetts Comprehensive Assessment System (MCAS) tests that are significantly (50% or more) greater than the district average to apply for a $100,000 School on the Move Prize (SOM). Since the creation of the Prize, the Rennie Center for Education Research & Policy has served as EdVestors' research partner, identifying and documenting lessons from the winning schools. This report draws upon the previous SOM case studies produced by the Rennie Center, along with interviews with school leaders, staff and students. The study identifies common themes across all four winning schools that describe the structures and strategies put in place to better serve students, as well as some of the opportunities and barriers the schools have faced in sustaining their success since winning the award. Finally, the study highlights some key lessons the leaders of these four schools view as critical to implementing the strategies and practices outlined to support students and improve outcomes.Over the past four years, a diverse group of schools have emerged as winners, including two pilot schools -- one a high school and the other an elementary school -- a traditional K-8 school and a small high school occupying one floor of the South Boston Education Complex. These schools also represent the diverse neighborhoods in Boston, including Dorchester, Roxbury, Brighton, and South Boston. Despite differences in structure, governance and grades served, all four winning schools do share some similar characteristics. First, they all experienced significant structural changes in the immediate years prior to winning the SOM Prize that provided an opportunity for reflection and strategic planning. Second, they are all relatively small schools with lower enrollments than most comparable schools with the same grade configurations in the district. Third, they are all led by experienced educators who are strong leaders with deep knowledge of the Boston Public School system. Finally, they all share common practices that have been critical to their success in improving student achievement, including: Shared Leadership -- Shared Learning: Distributed leadership grounded in shared accountability between administrators and teachers toward a goal of instructional excellence and increased student achievement; Data-driven Instruction: Intentional systems to use data to drive decisions about curriculum, instruction and student supports; andAcademic Rigor and Student Support: A student-centered approach that balances high academic expectations with integrated academic and developmental supports targeted to student needs

Considering Teaching Excellence in Higher Education: 2007-2013: A Literature Review Since the CHERI Report 2007

No abstract available

What Are the Best Practices to Promote High-Ranking Female Employees Within Organizations?

Companies still have a long way to go to ensure gender diversity especially in leadership positions. Recent research indicated that although entry-level men and women are hired at an increasingly equal rate, women often times reach a mid-career “the glass ceiling”. Our research investigated the best practices and drew insights on how to tackle the gender diversity challenge

What Are Best Practices to Promote High Ranking Female Employees?

Companies still have a long way to go to ensure gender diversity especially in leadership positions. Recent research indicated that although entry-level men and women are hired at an increasingly equal rate, women often times reach a mid-career “the glass ceiling”. Our research investigated the best practices and drew insights on how to tackle the gender diversity challenge

Government involvement in high performance sport: An Australian national sporting organisation perspective

The purpose of this paper is to examine the relationship between the Australian Sports Commission (ASC) and Summer Olympic National Sporting Organisations (NSOs) to determine the effect the relationship has on Olympic performance outcomes. Five Olympic NSOs were examined: Athletics Australia, Cycling Australia, Rowing Australia, Swimming Australia and Yachting Australia. All five NSOs represent sports in which Australia has consistently achieved strong results at previous Olympic Games. These NSOs receive significant funding from the ASC and, as such, are expected to achieve success at the Olympic Games. The ASC–NSO relationship was examined through an agency theory framework whereby the ‘contracts’ between the ASC (principal) and the NSOs (agents) were investigated through a survey, interviews and document analysis to identify potential management issues that may affect Olympic performance outcomes, such as agent or principal opportunism. The findings identified a lack of a collaborative high performance sport system in Australia, with the findings emphasising concerns over the ASC’s management of NSO programmes. While the ASC staff identified their organisation as the leader of high performance sport in Australia, the study’s NSO participants did not believe that the ASC had the capacity, capability and knowledge to fulfil this role.No Full Tex

A crucible of competition and cooperation: Where do the concepts fit in recreation activity delivery?

The prevailing use of competitive activities in leisure, sport and recreation continues to inspire debate as people question the value, influence and outcomes of competitive behaviour for participants. In some forums it has been suggested that competition builds character, brings out the best performance in an individual and develops a positive sense of sportsmanship (Butler, 2000; Coakley, 1990). By comparison, others critique the anti-social role of competition, claiming it can simultaneously lead to dissonance, hostility and a divisive desire to win at all costs (Sobel, 1983; Thomson, 2000). Within the general leisure and physical activity field, cooperative games are sometimes presented as the antithesis to this dilemma as it is proposed that cooperation leads to the development of respect, challenge and cohesion (Orlick, 1978; Sutcl if & Patterson, 2001). This study reports on the perceived value and use of competition and cooperation from the perspectives of 20 recreation activity leaders drawn from the fields of sport, outdoor recreation, fitness and community recreation. The findings suggest that both competition and cooperation are valid techniques for achieving positive outcomes if they are used with applied intent, but that many leaders have an under-developed understanding of the use of cooperation as an instructional tool. For many, cooperation is identified purely in a behavioural manner, composed of an observed outcome of client's working together. For others, a more complex approach is evident as cooperation is viewed as a combination of actions and attitudes reflecting empathy, open communication and equity

Beyond Green: The Arts as a Catalyst for Sustainability

The creative sector has played a significant role in efforts to raise awareness of the impacts of climate change and encourage sustainable social, economic, and environmental practices worldwide. Many artists and cultural organizations have embarked on remarkable projects that make us reflect on our behaviors, our carbon footprints, and the claims of infinite growth based on finite resources. Sometimes treading a fine line between arts and advocacy, they have sparked extraordinary collaborations that reveal new ways of living together on a shared planet. The 'art of the possible' will become even more relevant as 2016 dawns - bringing the challenge of how to implement the Sustainable Development Goals and the Climate Change Agreement adopted at the end of 2015. Yet with negotiations overshadowed by scientific controversy, political polemic and geographic polarization, individuals can easily lose faith in their own ability to shape change beyond the hyperlocal level. Against this challenging backdrop, could the arts and creative practice become a particle accelerator - to shift mindsets, embrace new ways of sharing space and resources, and catalyze more creative leadership in the public and private spheres? The goal of this Salzburg Global Seminar session was to build on path-breaking cultural initiatives to advance international and cross-sectoral links between existing arts and sustainability activities around the world, encourage bolder awareness-raising efforts, and recommend strategic approaches for making innovative grassroots to scale for greater, longer-term impact

Ethical Leadership in Intercollegiate Athletics

Ethical leadership and a values-based culture should be two sides of the same coin in intercollegiate athletics. Needed are ethical leaders serving as role models of integrity, trustworthiness, honesty, fairness, and respect for others. Ethical leaders model how values should guide actions and decisions as well as implement reward systems that hold others accountable for ethical conduct. Athletic directors and other athletic administrators with the moral courage to do what is right regardless of circumstances can nurture values-based cultures as they shape and develop the lives of athletes and colleagues they influence. The purposes of this theoretical work are to explicate ethical leadership, explain the connection between ethical leadership and a values-based culture, and propose a model for developing and sustaining ethical leadership in a values-based culture