Closing the achievement gap: the experience of a middle school.

Abstract: The accountability imperative requires schools to evaluate the effectiveness of educational programs. Florida answered the accountability imperative by instituting statewide objective assessments and assigning grades to schools. The latter move led to several initiatives concerning the practices that improve schools in Florida. This article describes how leadership, community involvement, data-driven decision making, and the celebration of diversity reversed a negative trend in the academic achievement of students in one middle school.

Keywords: academic achi