State Strategies for Building Capacity in Education: Progress and Continuing Challenges

The purpose of this study was to examine the progress of education reform "from Congress to the classroom (1996-2001)." In recent years, the federal government, states, districts, and non-governmental participants (e.g., professional organizations, foundations, and other private organizations) have taken unprecedented steps to raise the quality of teaching and learning by developing challenging academic standards and new assessments designed to encourage different ways of teaching. This project sought to understand the effects of these policies, particularly on state and local policy and on classroom practice.