'Best Practices' Distilled From Studies of More Than 250 Schools

A national nonprofit group released a report today that distills the "best practices" used by elementary and secondary schools in 20 states that have proven track records of success.

Researchers at the National Center for Educational Accountability at the University of Texas in Austin based their findings on studies over the last six years of more than 250 schools across the country. The researchers singled out 140 schools that consistently outperformed demographically similar schools for at least three consecutive years and across several grades, on state exams.

To identify their success secrets, the researchers visited the schools, interviewed educators, and held focus groups. They also compared the educational practices identified in those high-performing schools with those used at similar schools in the same states where students performed closer to average...