While social emotional learning (SEL) school-based initiatives can benefit student well-being and learning, a need remains for a more nuanced understanding of aspects affecting systemic SEL integration within under-resourced learning environments. This study considered factors affecting implementation of a community initiative to provide…

In April 2009, Superintendent Arlene Ackerman announced her reform plan for the School District of Philadelphia (the District)--"Imagine 2014". Among other major initiatives, "Imagine 2014" laid the groundwork for Philadelphia's Renaissance Schools Initiative. The Renaissance Initiative, set to enter its second year in 2011-12,…

In April 2009, Superintendent Arlene Ackerman announced her reform plan for the School District of Philadelphia (the District)--"Imagine 2014". Among other major initiatives, "Imagine 2014" laid the groundwork for Philadelphia's Renaissance Schools Initiative. The Renaissance Initiative, set to enter its second year in 2011-12, is an effort to…

The results relating to staff development, contained in a Rand Corporation survey on change agents, are summarized in this paper. The researchers discovered that successful staff development program implementation was characterized by three major components: local materials development, online planning, and concrete, ongoing training. Their…

Describes how the California Professional Development Reform Initiative (CPDRI) developed a framework for professional learning. The final CPDRI document, Designs for Learning, is organized around 10 design elements which comprise a system for ongoing professional learning for teachers. Sidebars present: the California Standards for the Teaching…

Based on the Florida Linkage System Project, this training program introduces school personnel to methods and resources for group problem-solving and decision-making. The program focuses on developing and refining skills for communication, data gathering, problem analysis, decision-making, goal setting, and program development. A primary objective…

Interest in educational reform is a side benefit of recent school criticism. Unfortunately, where the cause of educational failure is understood to be teachers, educational reform has become teacher reform, which most often means that greater effort will be placed on controlling teacher behavior. (LC)

Four teachers share the challenges they faced when creating and running outdoor-focused secondary school integrated programs in British Columbia, Canada. The five most common challenges were funding constraints, insufficient support from administrators and colleagues, time constraints, liability and risk management, and inadequate skills and…

This document looks at educational reform related to teacher incentives policy through legislative and state education agency perspectives. It includes an overview of national issues pertaining to teacher incentives, a narrative report on the status of teacher incentive policies in the seven state region serviced by the North Central Regional…

This paper focuses on the ongoing development of an inservice teacher education program for teachers in Albania following the downfall in the early 1990s of a repressive totalitarian regime. The Kualida project's name is an acronym based on the Albanian words for training, distance, and teachers and is very close in sound to the Albanian…

ADOPTION OF THE NONGRADED SYSTEM FOR ELEMENTARY AND SECONDARY SCHOOLS NECESSITATES EXTENSIVE CHANGES FOR BOTH THE SCHOOL SYSTEM AND THE COMMUNITY. A SET OF ADMINISTRATIVE GUIDELINES IS PROPOSED FOR THE IMPLEMENTATION OF THE NONGRADED SYSTEM, AND THE ROLE OF THE ADMINISTRATOR IS EXAMINED IN RELATION TO (1) PROGRAM DEVELOPMENT, (2) TEACHER AND…

USEFUL STRATEGIES FOR IMPLEMENTING AND EVALUATING THE NONGRADED SCHOOL ARE PRESENTED IN SEVEN ARTICLES AND FOUR APPENDICES. CHAPTER 1 OUTLINES HISTORICAL AND SOCIOLOGICAL PERSPECTIVES THAT FORM A BACKDROP FOR THE NONGRADED MOVEMENT. CHAPTER 2 FOCUSES ON HOW ADMINISTRATIVE LEADERSHIP IS, AND SHOULD BE, EXERCISED IN SETTING UP A NONGRADED SCHOOL.…

The report examines the present position of adult education in Scotland, its future aims, and how these aims might be achieved. Following a summary of 66 recommendations by the committee, 13 chapters, divided into two sections, present: (1) definitions of terms; (2) an historical review, from the seventeenth century to the present; (3) present…

A project was undertaken by a university to develop in-service staff development programs for 500 part-time faculty members at three community colleges. The university project staff functioned as process consultants, who initially conducted a needs assessment of programs and services desired by faculty members. Subsequent to the assessment, their…