The purpose of this paper is to inform the community about teacher appraisal methods in the School District of Philadelphia, outline the difficulties of the current system, and suggest approaches that would strengthen the teacher appraisal process. The authors gathered their information over three months in mid-2009 from multiple sources:…

The primary purpose of this volume is to awaken a realization on the part of helping professionals that some people have real-life emotional and psychological distress that cannot be defined or treated, like traditional psychopathological problems. Professionals must identify real-life problems that must be treated if the person is to live…

The 22 case studies in this book offer a variety of real-life school controversies designed to provoke dialogue among students and practitioners. The problems presented here demonstrate the inter-relatedness of curriculum decision-making and problem-solving with other educational system functions. The case studies are grouped according to five…

Reports a follow-up study designed to examine the question of cause and effect in the commonly observed association of poor learning with behavior disturbance. Concludes with a discussion of the implications for early diagnosis and treatment of maladjusted behavior in school. (CT)

This article presents a graduated word problem sequence in mathematics, beginning with simple words; progressing to phrases, sentences, and paragraphs; advancing to paragraph word problems with extraneous information; and finally having students create their own word problems. Results from 67 elementary students with learning disabilities support…

Problem-based learning is argued to be the most effective means of developing students' general mental abilities, integrating academic and operational approaches to higher education, and instilling a high level of student motivation and capacity for active learning. Conditions for successful problem-based learning are discussed. (Author/MSE)

Offers advice on which search techniques work best, and lists eight specific strategies on recovering from a search that does not go as expected. A sidebar describes expanding a search and limiting results. (Author/PEN)

It is now recognised that thinking skills, such as problem-solving, analysis, synthesis, creativity and evaluation, can be nurtured and developed, and education professionals can play a significant role in shaping the way that children learn and think. As a result, schools are being encouraged to make greater use of thinking skills in lessons and…

A study of a new University of Toronto medical school problem-based learning (PBL) curriculum found that students (n=207) and faculty (n=15) had more favorable attitudes toward PBL after direct experience with it than before. Recommendations are made for other schools and programs wishing to implement PBL curricula. (Author/MSE)

Examines issues of CD-ROM networking for companies; identifies cost savings and focuses on administrative and technical problems. Highlights include slower access speed, technical design deficiencies, inconsistency in search engines and user interfaces, installation problems, drive letter selections, designs that work for LAN access, questions to…

Three categories of options for colleges dealing with reduced resources are defensive reactions, constructive structuring and flexibility, and long-term new directions. Areas toward which resources need to be redirected, however, include broadening educational options for minority youth and encouraging client-centered and goal-oriented learning.…

Discussion of issues in implementation of problem-based curricula in health professions schools lists some obstacles, offers guidelines for planning the implementation process, describes the use of the guidelines in implementation at one medical school, and outlines some essential elements for success, including administrative support, a…

Discusses copyright issues pertaining to information use on the Internet. Topics include digital copyright interpretations; court rulings on copyright infringement; copyright advice from the Copyright Clearance Center; rights management models; technology as a solution; and developing corporate copyright policies. (LRW)

Discusses a system developed to combine collaborative bargaining and adversarial bargaining called dual collective bargaining. Includes a step-by-step discussion of the groundrules under which this system operates. (MD)

Presents brief descriptions of research methodologies by social studies educators. Offers examples of the potential research questions each method may suitably address. Concludes by listing several ways to improve the quality of research conducted by each method. (Author/GEA)