This article presents a model demonstration project that was designed to promote disability awareness, understanding, and responsiveness among University faculty and staff at a large private University. One of the unique features of the Productive Learning u Strategies (PLuS) project is that the effort targeted all faculty and staff through a…

Despite the promise of technology in education, many practicing teachers are faced with multiple challenges of effectively integrating technology into their classroom instruction. Additionally, teachers who are successful incorporating educational technology into their instruction recognize that although technology tools have the potential to help…

Purpose: The purpose of this paper is to introduce and describe the features of a new e-learning quality framework developed for a large multi-campus university. The framework is explicitly designed to improve the quality of e-learning sites and the quality of online student learning, by developing the skills of the academics who design the sites.…

The common approach to scaling, according to Christopher Dede, a professor of learning technologies at the Harvard Graduate School of Education, is to jump in and say, "Let's go out and find more money, recruit more participants, hire more people. Let's just keep doing the same thing, bigger and bigger." That, he observes, "tends to…

This paper summarizes the findings from a K-6 professional development program that emphasized scientific inquiry and nature of science within the theme of scientific modeling. During the 2-week summer workshop and follow up school year workshops, the instruction modeled a 5-E learning cycle approach. Pre and posttesting measured teachers' views…

In 2005 the Australian Literacy Educators' Association (ALEA) established a professional learning project focused on the Standards for Teachers of English Language and Literacy in Australia (STELLA) professional standards developed earlier in the decade by the Australian Association for the Teaching of English (AATE) and ALEA. The key question for…

This study describes the design and implementation of an adversary hearing used to evaluate professional development initiatives in a military environment. The adversary hearing model used in the evaluation was developed to meet the requirements of an environment that differs from other environments in which adversary hearings have been used. The…

The paper addresses the failure of the Professional Development Schools movement in bridging the cultural gap, existing between schools and academic institutions. A model, based on the "ecological edge", is suggested. It is believed that this metaphor has a higher potential for constructing collaborative communities because of the unique nature of…

K-12 education has identified an important need for culturally relevant practices among underrepresented minority students in the classroom. Research has shown that minority students perform better in multicultural learning environments that place an emphasis on addressing both the student's social and academic needs. Accordingly, Central State…

The design and implementation of the professional development model of the New Zealand Numeracy Development Project has been successful in improving teacher knowledge and practice as well as raising student outcomes. Since 2000, more than 25,000 teachers in English-medium settings have participated in the project. In New Zealand the terms…

In this article, the author offers suggestions for reconceptualizing the Teach for America (TFA) program. She recommends that TFA develop a residency training model with the following features: (1) Extend the program's current two-year commitment to three years; (2) Require first-year corps members to complete a residency year in an experienced…

This paper reports on the design and the implementation of the Technological Pedagogical Science Knowledge (TPASK), a new model for science teachers professional development built on an integrated framework determined by the Technological Pedagogical Content Knowledge (TPACK) model and the authentic learning approach. The TPASK curriculum…

To increase operational effectiveness and efficiency and develop the next generation of IT leaders, one needs to move toward an emotionally intelligent organization (EIO) model. The EIO promotes a culture in which openness, transparency, and respectful assertiveness are the norm. It also encourages diversity, tolerates constructive disagreement,…

This paper describes a general model for skills instruction and its implementation through the program "Scientific Communication" for acquiring learning skills. The model is characterized by modularity, explicit instruction, spiral integration into contents, practice in various contexts, and implementation in performance tasks. It requires…

Trends in International Mathematics and Science Study raised the concern that the United States (US) mathematics teachers place less emphasis on topics and teach a variety of content strands (Goldsmith, Mark & Kantrov, 2000; Kerachsky, 2008). The overall pattern in the US mathematics classrooms today is that primary and upper elementary…