Practice profiles are a tool used to ensure practices are well-defined so that they can be taught, learned, used, and measured. This brief highlights how the Michigan Department of Education (MDE) engaged systematically and purposefully in the practice profile development process to clearly define Multi-Tiered System of Supports (MTSS), a…

Academic disciplines and professional fields need to engage in ongoing evaluation of their purposes and conceptual frameworks. The complex field of gifted education can benefit from such evaluations, and the refinements that can emerge from them. This article is a discussion between two of the most prominent scholars in the field. The discussion…

School counselors are charged with creating comprehensive school counseling programs that recognize and affirm the wholeness and humanness of students, families, and their communities (Holcomb-McCoy, C., Mayes, R. D., Cheatham, C., Sharp, S., and Savitz-Romer, M. (2020). Antiracist school counseling: A call to action [webinar]. Center for…

This paper explores a countermovement that is emerging within an educational climate that highlights accountability, standardisation and performativity. This countermovement has become manifest in a rapid rise in the implementation and research of contemplative practices (e.g. mindfulness, yoga) across educational settings. The paper explores the…

Given that work-based learning (WBL) can -- and should be -- a key driver of student career readiness in these efforts, it is essential that all states have a robust work-based learning continuum of experiences and exposure that spans K-16. WBL is an essential element of career and technical education (CTE), and ExcelinEd's CTE Playbook series…

College and University faculty members have increasingly adopted experiential learning teaching methods that are designed to engage students in the learning process. Experiential learning is simply defined as "hands-on" learning and may involve any of the following activities: service learning, applied learning in the discipline,…

States and technical assistance centers have asked the Center on Enhancing Early Learning Outcomes (CEELO) for guidance on establishing and maintaining a peer learning community (PLC). This document is designed to delineate the steps to establish and sustain a Peer Learning Community (PLC). It begins with a definition of a PLC and then presents…

This article attempts to describe the creation and implementation of the first Professional Development School (PDS) model of teacher education in Panama. The authors set the context within brief histories of international education and PDSs and provide operational definitions of the critical terminology. To be sure, the scope and scale of the…

In China, the Central People's Government (2010) recently promulgated the "Compendium for China's Mid- and Long-Term Education Development," which declared that 95% of Chinese children should receive at least one year of preschool education, while 75% of children should receive a three-year preschool education by 2020. Subsequently, The…

Over the past year, Massive Open Online Courses (MOOCs) have received a great deal of attention from the academic community and the media. The EUA Secretariat has followed the development of the MOOCs since the beginning of 2012, surveying discussion forums and publications, but also assessing the websites of MOOC providers and participating in…

Non-formal education, defined as any organized educational activity outside the established formal system whether operating separately or as an important feature of some broader activity that is intended to serve identifiable learning clienteles and learning objective is of great importance to society. It emerged out of the feeling that formal…

Intended for potential business users, this paper describes the main characteristics of expert systems; discusses practical use considerations; presents a taxonomy of the systems; and reviews several expert system development projects in business and industry. (MBR)

This document presents an overview of the design and implementation stages of the Spencerport (New York) More Effective Schools/Teaching Project. The first section lists nine reasons for the uniqueness of the Spencerport project, including district size, its racial and economic components, participant satisfaction, a set of clearly defined goals,…

Providing state agencies involved in vocational education with a clear picture of their responsibilities, this document presents guidelines for developing vocational education state plans. The first section reviews basic planning concepts and terminology. The focus of this review is on delineation of the policy (strategic) planning and operation…

Competency Based Education (CBE) is reviewed. Competence is defined as a complex network of knowledge, performance, and attitudes. Methods for competency identification and validation are reviewed, and assessment at all learning levels is emphasized. (Author/MLW)