Faculty members at a large state university engaged in discussions of 21st century communication, new media, and the demands for new communication skills as they elected to establish a Communication across the Curriculum (CxC) program in 2005. Faculty leaders reviewed communication theory (e.g., from McLuhan to Kress), best practices from other…

This report presents results of a study completed in fall 2004 by Inverness Research Associates on behalf of the National Writing Project (NWP). The study was designed to satisfy a U.S. Department of Education (USDOE) requirement that programs assess participants' satisfaction with their professional development experiences, and also assess the…

The Council of Chief State School Officers (CCSSO), through the Immigrant Students and Secondary School Reform project, seeks to strengthen the capacity of state education agencies and districts to improve delivery of educational services to English language learners (ELLs) enrolled in high schools undergoing reform. This compendium was developed…

Describes the Teacher Externship in Business and Industry summer program that provided teachers with first-hand experience of what today's work world is all about. Notes that teachers indicated the program would help them to prepare their students for the world of work. (SR)

A content-specific staff development summer institute upgraded teachers' knowledge of chemistry concepts, increased familiarity with pedagogical strategies, and facilitated transfer of program initiatives into the classroom. A 2.5-year study indicated that the program was beneficial. Three essential program components were modeling and practicing…

In this article Harold Wach describes the gradual evolution of instructional technology faculty development programs at Bronx Community College from "one-shot" two-hour software training sessions toward a comprehensive model that combines intensive summer sessions, academic year implementation, peer mentoring, and accountability. The…

Tougaloo College has built on its tradition of community outreach--highlighted by its vanguard role in the Mississippi civil rights struggle--by serving as the founder of the HBCU Faculty Development Network in 1994 and creating its own Center for Civic Engagement & Social Responsibility in 2004. The network has been hosting the annual HBCU…

A study examined the life transitions of adult educators and their perceptions toward a summer university program. The Summer Chautauqua Program was conducted to model program evaluation techniques for students of adult and continuing education, to provide data for program planners relative to the maintenance and revision of the summer program,…

Eileen Simmons, a veteran teacher-consultant from the Oklahoma State University Writing Project, describes collaboration among writing project teacher-consultants and site-based teachers to plan professional development before, during, and after a summer writing camp for students at their school. This model, which has been adapted in a variety of…

Site leaders at the Southern Arizona Writing Project needed to increase their pool of summer institute applicants, so they created a plan to recruit early. They invited interested teachers, principals, and district administrators to attend their "Slice of SAWP" on the last day of the summer institute. The site sent out acceptance letters…

Describes a two-week summer workshop designed for middle school science teachers and based on the modeling of teaching methods and techniques. Advocates active workshops and provides data from a workshop evaluation showing how effective such a workshop can be. (HB)

Participants in interdisciplinary professional development workshops and reunions expressed satisfaction and reported positive effects on their teaching. Although the program met participants' expectations, sessions did not consistently reflect principles of effective teaching and learning. This discrepancy is discussed. (Author/MLW)

The Modern Language Association's summer institute model for foreign language professionals focused on interchange among state and local school program supervisors and college program coordinators. To further strengthen links between mandates and implementation, the institute must recognize participants' disparate expectations, institutional…

Efforts to transfer research findings on autism into public schools would benefit from further evaluation of teacher preparation models. The purpose of this study was to evaluate a model program that was deigned to prepare current teachers in evidence-based practices for children with autism. Drawn from the extensive literature on caregiver…

This report summarizes results from the 2007 Austin Independent School District summer school program at those Title I schools that provided summer services to students who did not attend other district summer school programs.