A r c h i v e d  I n f o r m a t i o n

Designing Effective Development: Lessons from the Eisenhower Program - December 1999

Chapter 7

Conclusions and Lessons for the Eisenhower Program

This is the second report of the National Evaluation of the Eisenhower Professional Development Program, Part B (Title II of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act). The first report was based on six exploratory case studies of school districts conducted during the first months of the evaluation (Birman, Reeve, & Sattler, 1998). The purpose of that report was to obtain an initial description of the program and the issues that it faced in different local contexts. This second report describes the current status of the program, based on data from national probability samples of districts, State Agency for Higher Education (SAHE) grantees, and teachers, as well as on data from 10 in-depth case studies in five states. The third report of the evaluation, to be issued in early 2000, will augment the cross-sectional results reported here with a longitudinal account of teachers' experiences in Eisenhower and other professional development activities and changes in their teaching practices.

The Eisenhower Professional Development Program is the U.S. Department of Education's largest investment that is solely focused on improving the quality of teaching practice. Part B of the Eisenhower Professional Development program, with a 1999 appropriation of approximately $335 million, provides funds through states to school districts and institutions of higher education and nonprofit organizations. These funds primarily support professional development in mathematics and science.

In its 1994 reauthorization of the program, Congress made explicit that Eisenhower-assisted professional development activities should be designed to improve teacher practice and, ultimately, student performance. The law also places particular emphasis on serving teachers in schools with high poverty rates. Furthermore, the reauthorized Eisenhower program embodies policymakers' intention that the program support systemic education reform and deeper learning among teachers.

In the analyses conducted for this report, we examine the extent to which these intentions have been achieved. Our conclusions about the effectiveness of the Eisenhower program are divided into four main parts. First, we ask, what is the nature of current classroom teaching practices in mathematics and science, and what directions does current classroom practice suggest for professional development (Chapter 2)? Second, what evidence do we find that teachers experience high-quality professional development in Eisenhower-assisted activities (Chapter 3)? Third, what evidence do we find that districts develop their portfolios of professional development activities and manage and operate their projects in ways consistent with the intent of the legislation (Chapters 4 and 5)? Fourth, how well do SAHE grantee projects perform with respect to the requirements and intent of the legislation (Chapter 6)?

These major areas correspond to the main elements in our conceptual framework for the evaluation (see Exhibit 7.0).

EXHIBIT 7.0
Conceptual Framework for This Evaluation

In the following section, we briefly review the data on which our evaluation is based. Then, we turn to the main conclusions and implications of the study.

[Chapter 6 Summary and Conclusions]

[Strengths of the Data]