Action research is an empowering experience for educators, yet many believe that they do not have the time, resources, or knowledge to make it a worthwhile experience. What do you need to know to feel confident in making action research a method of bettering your teaching and your students' learning? This article reveals how to make this process…

This revised Early Learning Framework is the culmination of a collaborative process that included early childhood educators, primary teachers, academics, Indigenous organizations, Elders, government, and other professionals. The first Early Learning Framework published in 2008 changed the landscape of early years practice in British Columbia. It…

This article describes how action learning can be accompanied by a project to encourage shared learning about organisation culture, the external environment, political context and team dynamics, while allowing space for personal issues. It drives forward reflective practice and encourages sets to deliver a tangible pay-back to the organisation.…

Literacy coaches inspire teacher reflection and promote a culture of ongoing professional learning. This article illustrates the role of literacy coaches, describes how coaches differentiate support for a diverse group of teachers, and explains how teacher reflection can be a catalyst for change and professional growth. The authors, current and…

This article provides an inside look at Barbara Knighton's classroom teaching. She uses big ideas to guide her planning and instruction and gives other teachers suggestions for adopting the big idea approach and ways for making the approach easier. This article also represents a "small slice" of a dozen years of collaborative research,…

As classrooms become more diverse, one of the necessary goals of teacher education programs is to prepare preservice teachers (PSTs) to work with children of diverse populations. PSTs who derive largely from a dominant White culture will clearly face this challenge. One effective approach used to assist PSTs to grasp the issues of cultural…

Professional development is an ongoing process, one that evolves as teachers assess and reexamine their teaching beliefs and practices. This article highlights some reasons for teachers to pursue professional development. It also suggests techniques that help teachers feel empowered and motivated in their English language classrooms. She includes…

Every school district has policies and procedures for evaluating teachers that are shaped by state law and local collective bargaining agreements. As a result of No Child Left Behind and other accountability legislation many states modified requirements about the frequency of evaluation and now require the use of student achievement data as one…

Successful inclusion is directly related to collaboration success between the special education specialist and the general classroom teacher. The role of the special educator has undergone steady change ever since students with exceptionalities were intentionally included in regular classrooms. This role now requires effective collaborative…

Collaboration and reflection are critical to effective teaching and student progress in reading. Responding to the needs of linguistically and culturally diverse students who struggle in reading is a persistent challenge for teachers, especially those in urban settings. Conversations between literacy coaches and teachers in urban settings provide…

Portfolios have a long tradition in teacher education and now these are available in electronic form. At the same time, there are increasing demands for primary teachers to be technologically capable and confident in classrooms. When teacher educators wish to respond through the introduction of new technologies such as e-portfolios, there are…

In the context of a three-year professional development program in mathematics, practicing elementary teachers persistently engaged in collaborative inquiry and reflection to build connected meanings for slope. One teacher invented a compelling representation for slope as a process of repeated addition, using Cuisenaire rods, based on teachers'…

Creating a culture of inquiry rather than continuing to work in a culture of isolation represents a significant change within schools that must be supported. In this article, the author presents and discusses a well-constructed agenda template which shows topic, purpose, guiding questions, and background or process. He states that an agenda…

This paper reflects on the role of mobile learning in teachers' professional learning. It argues that effective professional learning requires reflection and collaboration and that mobile learning is ideally suited to allow reflection-in-action and to capture the spontaneity of learning moments. The paper also argues for the value of…

It is notoriously difficult to classify occupations as professions and to define professional work. Numerous authors have provided criteria for categorising occupations as professions but the judgement still remains a difficult one. Freidson (1991) is clear that professional work is Good Work. It has a moral purpose and arguably that sense of…