Portfolio authoring tools within teacher preparation institutions have changed dramatically as portfolios have moved from paper to electronic formats and now to the Web. This study used Engestrom's Cultural-Historical Activity Theory (1987) to examine how portfolio tools, along with external influences and institutional contexts, mediate the…

This report of qualitative findings, gathered from four sources, presents guidelines to promote implementation of whole language. The report uses Donald Ely's (1990) conditions for change as a framework. These conditions are: dissatisfaction with the status quo, the existence of knowledge and skills, availability of time and resources,…

Interviews were conducted with 45 Israeli social workers who were case managers for 105 children in residential care because of parental absence or inadequate care. Interviews indicated that the practice of home weekends is characterized by neglect in professional assurance of the well-being of children and lack of family-oriented intervention…

This study, a naturalistic inquiry conducted between 2002 and 2005, presents an integrated portrayal of issues and concerns of twenty-seven directors of postsecondary distributed/distance learning programs as well as the results of a survey that examined technology utilization and methods in 316 postsecondary schools. The major issues and concerns…

In 2003, the Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention (OJJDP) provided Florida's Department of Juvenile Justice (DJJ) with a $3.5 million grant to design and implement a faith- and community-based program for incarcerated juveniles. Florida's experience developing a completely new program has provided valuable lessons regarding…

Achieving full compliance with the accountability provisions of the No Child Left Behind (NCLB) federal legislation poses major challenges for most of the nation's states. Structured, open-ended interviews were conducted with ranking representatives from a number of so-called high-readiness states: California, Florida, New York, South Carolina,…

Complementing a 1973 survey of management information systems in state departments of education, the conclusions developed in this study present an overview of MIS development and implementation in six states: Georgia, Iowa, Maryland, Oregon, Texas, and Utah. In-depth case studies examine the concerns of MIS personnel and provide insights…

This study examines the degree, the style, and the importance of participative linkage between central, region, and school offices in carrying out management of a large urban school district. A systems approach for implementation of a districtwide testing program was chosen as the framework of the research. (Author/LMO)

Discusses the use of the seminar approach in elementary classrooms. Makes practical suggestions for implementation and outlines areas in which teachers need administrative support. Includes an interview with a sixth-grade teacher who has been using the method for two years. (FMW)

Outdoor and environmental education teachers and consultants identified nine common barriers to implementing outdoor education programs. Two frequently cited problems were lack of administrative support and teacher's limited training, experience, or confidence. Presents techniques and tactics for resolving these barriers. (LP)

Based on interviews with a principal and two teachers at a Virginia elementary school piloting a multiage program for six- to eight-year-olds, this article describes the program's bottom-up development, holistic orientation, and stress on team teaching and continuous progress. Next year's program will offer more options, including a fourth- and…

Describes eight conditions that facilitate the adoption, implementation, and institutionalization of educational technology innovations and suggests applications to the transfer of portable software. Applications of these conditions involving educational technology in Indonesia, Chile, and Peru are evaluated, and guidelines for successful…

The author of "Life Centered Career Education" (LCCE) comments on reasons for the curriculum's success, what LCCE offers for the 1990s, how easy it is for a school system to implement LCCE, how LCCE can be used in mainstreamed settings, and what is needed to implement a comprehensive program like LCCE. (JDD)

A beginning teacher's journal entries and teacher survey and interview responses are alternated with narrative commentary to document a 6-month qualitative inquiry of teacher mentoring among elementary school teachers. Issues discussed relate to components needed to create a mentoring program and effective implementation of a mentoring program.…

As prevention programs become disseminated, the most serious threat to effectiveness is maintaining the quality of implementation intended by the developers. This paper proposes a methodology for measuring quality of implementation in school settings and presents data from a pilot study designed to test several of the proposed components. These…