Policy Is Not Enough: Language and the Interpretation of State                Standards

Hill, Heather C.

doi:10.3102/00028312038002289

Cited by 157 publications

(146 citation statements)

References 15 publications

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“…Some researchers have found strong effects of policy alignment on teacher knowledge and beliefs and on teachers' classroom practice (Levitt, 2001;Swanson & Stevenson, 2002), but others have found only modest effects (Blank, Porter, & Smithson, 2001). A recurring theme in research that examines effects of policies on cognition is that local actors often misinterpret the intentions of policy makers (Hill, 2001;Spillane, 2004;Spillane & Callahan, 2002). As local actors interact with one another, moreover, they develop shared but local meanings of policies and curricular interventions that can proliferate misunderstandings of policy intentions (Reiser et al, 2000;Spillane, Diamond, Walker, Halverson, & Jita, 2001).…”

Section: Alignment As a Policy Instrument For Promoting Curriculum Immentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Past studies have shown that prior knowledge affects teachers' interpretation of state standards, which are often limited in the guidance they provide to teachers for how to interpret them (Hill, 2001(Hill, , 2006L. K. Smith & Southerland, 2007).…”

Section: How People and Places Could Affect The Success Of Alignment mentioning

confidence: 99%

“…The assumption behind this strategy is that without good alignment among standards, curriculum, and assessments, teachers face a conflicting configuration of demands on their practice that is difficult for them to interpret and act upon (Fuhrman, 1993b). Including professional development as part of a broader strategy of aligning standards, curriculum, and assessments has emerged as a key policy instrument, since teachers need opportunities to learn about what new standards and curricula demand of them so that they interpret policy demands accurately and enact materials as intended (Hill, 2001). …”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Is alignment enough? Investigating the effects of state policies and professional development on science curriculum implementation

et al. 2008

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Implementation of science curriculum materials has been a fundamental challenge in science education for decades. Policy researchers have argued that alignment of standards, curriculum, and assessment are the key to supporting implementation. This paper focuses on teachers' perceptions of curricular alignment and on curriculum implementation using empirical data from a statewide systemic inquiry science reform effort targeting students from kindergarten to eighth grade. We find that the success of alignment policies depends on teachers' construal of the relationship between standards and curriculum materials and on allocation of time for planning at the school level.

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Section: Alignment As a Policy Instrument For Promoting Curriculum Immentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: How People and Places Could Affect The Success Of Alignment mentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Is alignment enough? Investigating the effects of state policies and professional development on science curriculum implementation

et al. 2008

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“…As Spillane notes (cited in Olson, 2001), school districts can "amplify, drown out, or minimize" the impact of standards in schools. In addition the language of standards is itself subject to interpretation (Hill, 2001). State articulation of desired content in no way guarantees that the language embedded in state documents will be interpreted by local educators in ways states intend.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

The Relationship Between State and District Content Standards:Issues of Alignment, Influence and Utility

Dutro

Valencia

2004

EPAA

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At the core of standards-based reform are content standards--statements about what students should know and be able to do. Although it is state standards that are the focus of much public attention and consume substantial resources, many local school districts have developed their own content standards in the major subject areas. However, we know very little about the role state standards have played in local standards efforts. In this article we report on a study of the relationship between state and local content standards in reading in four states and districts. Through interviews with key personnel in each state, and district and analyses of state and local content standards in reading, we explored the alignment between state and district content standards, the path of influence between the two, and the role of high-stakes tests in state and districts reform efforts. Our findings suggest that alignment had multiple meanings and that state standards had differential utility to districts, ranging from helpful to benign to nuisance. This wide variability was influenced by the nature of the standards themselves, the state vision of alignment and local control, districts’ own engagement and commitment to professional development, and student performance on high-stakes tests. We explore implications for the future of content standards as the cornerstone of standards-based reform and argue that states must promote district ownership and expand accountability if state content standards are to have any relevance for local efforts to reform teaching and learning.

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“…Policy is therefore presented as an iterative process rather than linear progression from formulation to implementation and then evaluation. In other words, policy changes across settings and over time (Hill 2001;Lin 2000;Levinson and Sutton 2001;Spillane 2004). What has not been adequately explored is the fact that the understanding of policy changes over time even for one person or within one group.…”

Section: Temporalitymentioning

confidence: 99%

1 - Theorising the Intersection of Public Policy and Personal Lives through the Lens of ‘Participation’

Anyidoho¹

2021

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The continued interest in political economy-inspired perspectives on economic and social policies is an attempt to understand policymakers as human beings who are influenced by values, votes and other factors that were once thought to be exogenous to policy choices. However, there is still little theorising about those on the other side of the policy equation. This article seeks a better understanding of how ordinary people engage in a very personal way with policy.I present a model of participation grounded in empirical research with members of a poverty-reduction project in Ghana, and a conceptual framework informed by an interpretive or sense-making approach to policy analysis. The model is based on the three principles of 'subjectivity', 'temporality' and 'situatedness': First, human beings make subjective interpretations of policy grounded in their life histories; secondly, temporality is an inherent aspect of how individuals cognitively organise their lives; and thirdly, people experience policy as one of many overlapping contexts in which they are situated. RésuméL'intérêt continu pour les perspectives sur les politiques économiques et sociales inspirées par l'économie politique est une tentative visant à comprendre les décideurs en tant qu'êtres humains influencés par des valeurs, des votes et d'autres facteurs que l'on pensait autrefois exogènes aux choix politiques. Cependant, il y a toujours peu de théorisation concernant ceux qui sont de l'autre côté de l'équation Sstitre-2 02/08/2011, 11:11 1 2 Africa Development, Vol. XXXV, No. 3, 2010 politique. Cet article cherche à mieux comprendre comment les gens ordinaires s'impliquent dans les politiques d'une façon très personnelle.Je présente un modèle de participation ancré dans la recherche empirique avec les membres d'un projet de réduction de la pauvreté au Ghana et un cadre conceptuel informé par une approche interprétative ou de construction du sens (sense-making) de l'analyse des politiques. Le modèle est fondé sur trois principes : la subjectivité, la temporalité et la situationnalité (situatedness). Premièrement, les êtres humains font des interprétations subjectives des politiques ancrées dans leurs histories de vie ; deuxièmement, la temporalité est un aspect inhérent de la façon dont les individus organisent cognitivement leur vie ; et troisièmement, les gens vivent la politique comme un des nombreux contextes qui se chevauchent, dans lesquels ils sont situés.

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Policy Is Not Enough: Language and the Interpretation of State Standards

Cited by 157 publications

References 15 publications

Is alignment enough? Investigating the effects of state policies and professional development on science curriculum implementation

Is alignment enough? Investigating the effects of state policies and professional development on science curriculum implementation

The Relationship Between State and District Content Standards:Issues of Alignment, Influence and Utility

1 - Theorising the Intersection of Public Policy and Personal Lives through the Lens of ‘Participation’

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