This brief from the Region 2 Comprehensive Center, in consultation with the New York State Education Department, presents seven state case studies that illustrate the implementation of performance-based assessments. It contributes to the growing research on performance-based assessment, highlighting specific state-level policies that include…

The purpose of this exploratory case study was to explore the ways in which one specialized literacy professional (SLP) navigated and reflected on coaching conversations with teachers. The participants for this study were one elementary school SLP and two classroom teachers at the same school. Coaching conversations the SLP held with teachers, the…

The number of nontraditional students in colleges in the United States has been and is continuing to rise, but these students face difficulties that affect their motivation to persist towards graduation. Some of these difficulties include balancing multiple roles, including work, school and family demands, lack of support, financial constraints,…

This article reports on a qualitative case study that explored the use of Kumaravadivelu's "Knowing, Analyzing, Recognizing, Doing, Seeing" model as a teacher evaluation tool to identify critical and reflective aspects of teachers' practices for their professional development. The participants were nine English language teachers and…

This article reports the results of a study in which coaching was used as a professional development strategy with five foreign language adjunct instructors at a public university in Colombia. A questionnaire, coaching sessions, interviews, and both coaches and coachees' reports were the data collection sources. Results showed that adjunct…

Bogotch (2002) proposed that educational leadership cannot be separated from social justice, and this is a sentiment that is taken to heart at an urban Title-1 school district in Houston, Texas. To intentionally address the need for such alignment between mission and practice, the district implemented a recruitment and talent development…

It is generally acknowledged that alternative strategies are required to enable children with disability to access storytelling activities. In this study, we sought to analyse the benefits of one such strategy: an arts-based multisensory story and rhyme program delivered to children with Down syndrome and autism spectrum disorder. In order to…

Instructional coaching is a professional development model that seeks to improve classroom practice through collaborative, non-evaluative partnerships between teachers and coaches. Although existing literature suggests that coaching in pre-service teacher programs is relatively uncommon, the limited research on its use is promising. This…

The University of Texas at Austin Master of Fine Arts (MFA) program offers a cognitive apprenticeship for graduate students in drama-based pedagogy (DBP) through Drama for Schools (DFS), a professional development program for K-12 educators. This article presents findings from an exploratory case study investigation of graduate students'…

The purpose for this study was to develop a descriptive account of one large Virginia school district's plan for implementation of alternative, locally developed assessments designed to supplant standardized measures. As policy reform with alternative assessments has been under-researched for the past 30 years, there is a need for studies…

Over 30 states have adopted the edTPA as a performance assessment for pre-service teachers. While many have adopted the edTPA as a program requirement, few require the edTPA for licensure of individual teacher candidates, but many states are poised to do so. While the edTPA is grounded on experiences with advanced certification and program level…

This study explored effective writing strategies and scholarly identity formation during a structured program intended to help mid-level student affairs professionals produce manuscripts for publication. The most important strategy participants identified was to create a habit of practice to foster writing. After working with the researchers,…

Case studies have been an important tool in business, legal, and medical education for generations of students. Traditional text-based cases tend to be self-contained and structured in such a way as to teach a particular concept. The multimedia cases introduced in this study feature unscripted web-hosted video interviews with business owners and…

Online courses are continuing to become an important component of higher education course offerings. As the number of such courses increases, the need for quality course evaluations and course improvements is also increasing. However, there is not general agreement on the best ways to evaluate and use evaluation data to improve online courses.…

The introduction of performance-based state funding of higher education can be traced to the late 1970s which eliminated bonuses, and replaced regular state funding in part or completely, with funding tied to achievement of state-defined performance goals, which often include student outcomes, like graduation and retention rates. In this article,…