At Wagner College, students are required to participate in a series of three curriculum-based learning communities (C-BLCs) as the core of the undergraduate curriculum known as the Wagner Plan for the Practical Liberal Arts. This article describes the senior learning community (LC) in psychology at Wagner College, which is an example of a…

In this article, the author describes their digital conversion initiative at Mooresville Graded School District. The project has placed a MacBook Air laptop in the hands of every 3rd through 12th grader and their teachers in the district over the past four years, with over 5,000 computers distributed. But they believe their academic successes have…

A small, private academic library took the risk of moving from a traditional integrated library system to adopting a system "in the cloud." This case study presents the setting, history, and local needs of the library, including staffing challenges, and explains the decision-making rationale and process. A description of the library's transition…

Talent Development Centers are just one of many tools every family, teacher, and gifted advocate should have in their tool box. To understand the importance of Talent Development Centers, it is essential to also understand the Academic Talent Search Program. Talent Search participants who obtain scores comparable to college-bound high school…

One of the dilemmas that teachers frequently face is grading student papers. As a teacher, the author regularly reads research regarding instructional practices, grading, and assessment, but struggled to translate theory into practice in her own classroom. The intent of this article is to share one method of instructing and grading writing that…

The test review process used by the Buros Center for Testing is described as a series of 11 steps: (1) identifying tests to be reviewed, (2) obtaining tests and preparing test descriptions, (3) determining whether tests meet review criteria, (4) identifying appropriate reviewers, (5) selecting reviewers, (6) sending instructions and materials to…

Non-formal learning for urban youth has a long history in the United States; it remains a source of innovation. This essay draws on literature about organizations that use community ties to encourage cognitive development and identity formation. It then describes how one youth organization in Camden, New Jersey uses presentations to the community…

The quality of e-learning can be defined in many different ways, reflecting different stakeholders and the complexity of the systems and processes used in higher education. These different conceptions of quality can be mutually contradictory and, while politically significant, may also be beyond the direct control or influence of institutional…

This paper presents a reform initiative, the Supporting Montreal Schools Program (SMSP), created by the government of Quebec to assist 184 low socio-economic-status schools in Montreal implement seven reform strategies prescribed by the government. On a regular basis, the professional team of the SMSP engages in reflection and research with…

At Concordia Language Villages, language and culture are inextricably intertwined, as they are in life. Participants "live" and "do" language and culture 16 hours per day. The experiential, residential setting immerses the participants in the culture of the country or countries where the target language is spoken through food,…

"Science for all" is not just a theme that befits the democratic society. It also exemplifies the best methodology for teaching science to children at the middle school level. For many years, teachers have grappled with trying to determine what type of grouping would most benefit their students. This article presents a strategy that highlights why…

"Cutting Through the Hype: The Essential Guide to School Reform" is a revised, expanded, and updated version of the classic work by Jane L. David and Larry Cuban. It offers balanced analyses of 23 currently popular school reform strategies, from teacher performance pay and putting mayors in charge to turnaround schools and data-driven instruction.…

Hiring tenure-track faculty is an activity common to all colleges and universities. Most institutions engage in hiring activities each year. Despite the number of searches conducted annually, most available information about faculty hiring consists of guidelines for conducting searches and statistics about searches within disciplines. The purpose…

Lakeland Community College is recognized for its energy conservation leadership in Ohio and nationally. The college's program will detail the practical, incremental approach taken in Lakeland's "Energy Journey." Setting the standard statewide, that journey recently resulted in a sustainable, guaranteed reduction of energy use by 40%.

This article describes an after-school program at the Horace Mann School for the Deaf (HMS), the oldest public day school for deaf students in the United States, where almost half of the student body imagined and created bridge and robotic machines. The Deaf Robotics Engineering and Math Team, or the DREAM Team club, included HMS students in…