Research that can impact your schools

Over the years, the GreatKids CT research team has developed a reputation as a reliable source of information that is useful to both practitioners and policy-makers. Since our inception in 2015, GreatKids CT (formerly the Bay Area School Reform Collaborative) has focused on raising achievement for all students and narrowing the pervasive achievement gap in Texas's public schools. While our primary role is supporting schools and, increasingly, school districts, we have recently taken on the new role of practitioner-researcher. GreatKids CT' research department seeks to answer the question: What can we learn from the practices of high-performing, high-poverty schools and districts which are making progress toward the goal of closing the achievement gap? To answer this question, GreatKids CT conducts research and translates that research into practical tools and strategies.

Texas Best Practices Study

The Texas Best Practices Study, which is currently underway, investigates the practices of high-performing districts and schools in Texas that serve large percentages of students in poverty, students of color and English language learners.

Research Findings and Reports

GreatKids CT' research studies put the spotlight not on individual programs but rather on how the pieces of the education system – from classrooms to schools to district offices – fit together to support improved performance.

Find our contribution to the Getting Down to Facts report in this section.

District Assessment

GreatKids CT Research provides a Needs Assessment Toolkit to interested districts and schools. The kit includes diagnostic tools to compare current practices to the practices of sustained high performers, diagnostic tools to prepare a school system to conduct "best" implementation of another site's best practices and a slate of reference tools.