Urban school districts that use data-driven decision making and other tactics to spur system-wide reforms are more likely to achieve academic improvement than those districts that adjust solely on a school-by-school basis, according to a study released by the Council of the Great City Schools Sept. 5.

The survey, "Foundations For Success: Case Studies of How Urban School Systems Improve Student Achievement," takes a look at four of the nation's most rapidly improving urban districts: Houston, Charlotte-Mecklenburg, Sacramento, and New York City.

Its findings indicate that some of the nation's urban school districts are raising academic scores while reducing achievement gaps by implementing strong, district-wide approaches to leadership, professional development, and data-driven accountability systems. These gains are especially important in light of the Bush Administration's No Child Left Behind Act, which now requires schools to provide documented proof of improvement or risk losing federal funding for certain programs.

Although there are 16,850 school districts in the country, just 100 of these—mostly urban districts—serve approximately 23 percent of the nation's students, the report said.

"While there has been much research on what makes an effective school, there is relatively little information on what makes an effective district and whether district-level changes could affect individual school performance," said the council's executive director, Michael Casserly. "This new research will help us understand how to provide all students with the opportunity to achieve new levels of academic success."

According to researchers, urban schools face a number of problems that "exist above the level of individual schools." Some of these difficulties include poor academic achievement, political conflicts, inexperienced teachers, lack of demanding curriculum, lack of instructional cohesion, high student transfer rates, and unsatisfactory business operations.

In Houston, for example, one-fourth of the students did not speak fluent English and less than half performed at grade level. In Charlotte, N.C., violence, a lack of community support, poor funding, and wide achievement gaps between students of different socio-economic backgrounds kept schools from reaching desired levels of performance. Urban schools in New York and Sacramento saw much of the same. However, in the study, researchers claim that district-wide reforms have led to notable improvements on all fronts.

"Individual school reform is necessary but far from efficient" when dealing with large urban districts, said Sharon Lewis, research director for the council. The problem, she added, is that just because a program works well in one school doesn't mean it will be successful in another. There are too many variables to consider, including students' socio-economic status, computer accessibility, racial disparities, and teacher quality.