Thesis advisor: Marilyn Cochran-Smith / This practitioner research longitudinal study examines the effects of the No Child Left Behind (NCLB) law and the Race To The Top (RTTT) initiative on a high performing middle school in Massachusetts between 2003 and 2013. Utilizing a theoretical framework that combines Cochran-Smith and Lytles (2009) "inquiry as stance" and Ball's concept of (1990b) "policy cycles," the study analyzes the programmatic and structural changes enacted in response to NCLB, RTTT and their effects on special education and low income students, their teachers, parents, and the principal. The study's findings show that federal mandates and related state regulations placed unrealistic, unfair and unreasonable demands on students, teachers and the school. Staff often felt as if we were riding on a rollercoaster. Massachusetts' rating of "High" and "Very High" performance on the state test contrasted with the NCLB school report cards that labeled the school as in need of "improvement," "corrective action," and eventually "restructuring" because of the failure of special education or low income students to meet constantly rising targets. NCLB's and RTTT's requirements caused the school to prioritize courses providing remediation in tested subjects--English language arts and mathematics--reducing the availability of related arts classes and thereby narrowing the curriculum. The school's obsessive focus on the annual state tests produced an atmosphere of anxiety for all stakeholders. Unwanted changes in the school culture eventually generated a schoolwide movement to resist the obsession with testing, reduce anxiety and expand interdisciplinary learning. The study concludes with recommendations for further research of the effects of federal mandates on "good" schools across the US. It recommends that policymakers recognize that "one size fits all" school reform is detrimental to public schools and calls for the recognition of local knowledge in the making of policy. A further recommendation encourages school leaders to study their own practice, becoming practitioner researchers for the benefit of their schools. / Thesis (PhD) — Boston College, 2014. / Submitted to: Boston College. Lynch School of Education. / Discipline: Teacher Education, Special Education, Curriculum and Instruction.

Much of the child welfare literature addresses risk factors, incidence, and consequences of abuse and neglect, and innovative programs, services, and interventions designed to serve at-risk and maltreated children, youth, and their families. Less attention has been given to how state and local governments oversee the public child welfare system and respond to federal mandates, especially in achieving positive outcomes for this vulnerable population. In 1997, the Congress enacted the Adoption and Safe Families Act (ASFA). This legislation mandates that all states meet certain performance and accountability standards regarding safety, permanency, and well-being of children served by their child welfare systems. These issues are important for the approximately 500,000 children in foster care at any point in time. There is also significant concern for the millions of children involved in the child welfare system through investigations, court proceedings, and both mandated and voluntary services. A significant effort resulting from ASFA is the Child and Family Services Reviews (CFSRs). The myriad requirements under ASFA and the CFSRs create a federal mandate for changes in the way state child welfare systems meet the needs of the children, youth, and families they serve and a process for improving federally defined outcomes. This study examined how states responded to federal requirements of the CFSRs. Specifically, it looked at how states proposed to address shortcomings identified in relation to two individual child and family well-being outcomes and two systemic factors where they had failed to meet conformance criteria in their CFSR. It is important to understand how the federal-state process transpired to ameliorate these conditions without additional federal funding to implement the CFSR requirements. Results of this study describe six states' strategies related to two well-being outcomes, specifically in the areas of education, physical health, and mental health, and two systemic factors, service array and agency responsiveness to the community, as identified in their Program Improvement Plans (PIPs). Four central themes emerge: complexity of the problems, knowledge base and data to guide improvements, resource availability, and collaboration among agencies. These themes help inform states on the potential benefits and challenges in responding to federal mandates. / Ph. D.