Executive Summary: Usage of Policies and Practices Promoted by Race to the Top and School Improvement Grants
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Executive Summary: Usage of Policies and Practices Promoted by Race to the Top and School Improvement Grants

Executive Summary
Published: Sep 29, 2015
Publisher: Washington, DC: U.S. Department of Education, Institute of Education Sciences, National Center for Education Evaluation and Regional Asssistance
Human Services Education School Reform Teacher and Principal Effectiveness Teacher and Principal Preparation and Support
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Associated Project

Evaluating Race to the Top and School Improvement Grants

Time frame: 2010-2018

Prepared for:

U.S. Department of Education, Institute of Education Sciences

Key Findings

RTT Findings:

  • Early RTT states (which received Round 1 or Round 2 grants in 2010) reported using more RTT-promoted policies and practices than non-RTT states (which did not receive grants) in five of six areas: (1) building state data systems that measure student growth and inform instruction, (2) improving state capacity to support school improvement efforts, (3) encouraging conditions in which charter schools can succeed, (4) adopting standards and assessments that prepare students to succeed in college and the workplace, and (5) improving teacher and principal effectiveness. There were no differences between the two groups in the sixth area: turning around low-performing schools.
  • Later RTT states (which received Round 3 grants in 2011) reported using more RTT-promoted policies and practices than non-RTT states in one of the six areas: teacher and principal effectiveness.
  • Across all states, use of RTT-promoted policies and practices was highest in the state capacity and data systems areas and lowest in the teacher and principal effectiveness area.
  • Across the six areas, there were no differences between RTT and non-RTT states in use of RTT-promoted policies and practices that focused on English language learners (ELLs).

SIG Findings:

  • SIG schools (which implemented a SIG-funded intervention model) reported using more SIG-promoted practices than non-SIG schools (which did not implement a SIG-funded intervention model) in all four areas examined: (1) comprehensive instructional reform strategies, (2) learning time and community-oriented schools, (3) teacher and principal effectiveness, and (4) operational flexibility and support.
  • Across all schools, use of SIG-promoted practices was highest in the comprehensive instructional reform strategies area and lowest in the operational flexibility and support area.
  • Across the four areas, there were no differences between SIG and non-SIG schools in use of SIG-promoted practices that focused on ELLs.
This executive summary provides an overview for a two-volume report from Mathematica’s multi-year evaluation of Race to the Top (RTT) and School Improvement Grants (SIG) programs for the Department of Education’s Institute of Education Sciences. It describes the RTT and SIG programs and examines (1) if states and schools that received grants under RTT and SIG reported in spring 2012 using the policies and practices promoted by these programs; and (2) if their usage of these policies and practices differ from states and schools that did not receive grants. 

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