The major objective of this paper is to demonstrate the effectiveness of dynamic assessment (DA) in revealing outcomes of cognitive education programmes. Three programmes based on "mediated learning experience" theory are reviewed: "Feuerstein's Instrumental Enrichment", "Bright Start", and "Peer Mediation with…

Counteracting perceptions of teaching as a profession with a flat career trajectory may require professional leadership opportunities for experienced teachers that differ substantively from those typically available. This evaluation study investigated the results of a professional development initiative for subject specialist teachers seconded to…

Findings from two studies are discussed in relation to the experiences and challenges faced by teachers trying to implement effective group work in schools and classrooms and to reflect on the lessons learnt about how to involve pupils with special educational needs (SEN). The first study reports on UK primary school teachers' experiences of…

This article examines the first regional governance reform in public education, created in the Omaha, Nebraska metropolitan area in 2007. The legislation creating this regional reform, which is called the Learning Community, established a regional governing body, the Learning Community Coordinating Council, consisting of an elected 21-member…

This study reports on a large-scale implementation of Assessment for Learning (AfL) in a Swedish municipality. The implementation was founded on two principles: (1) teaching should be informed by educational research; (2) to be successful teachers' professional development needs to be based in everyday classroom practice. From these principles,…

The Los Angeles Unified School District (LAUSD) serves a large majority of socioeconomically disadvantaged students who are struggling academically and are underprepared for high school graduation and college. This article describes the partnership between LAUSD and the Los Angeles Education Research Institute, and how this collaboration endeavors…

Over the past decade, several European countries have implemented policies and programmes leading to the introduction of the concept of "all-day schooling," thus acknowledging the need to guarantee the guard of all children and to enhance equal opportunities of success at school. The Portuguese Ministry of Education created and funded…

Graduate teachers' preparedness for working in rural settings are mediated by the development of pedagogical expertise, professional engagement with parents and the community, and broader notions of preparation to teach in rural contexts. The Studying the Effectiveness of Teacher Education (SETE) project is a four-year longitudinal study tracking…

The Office of Shared Accountability in Montgomery County (Maryland) Public Schools (MCPS) is conducting a multiyear evaluation of the "Achieving Collegiate Excellence and Success" (ACES) program. ACES is a collaboration between MCPS, Montgomery College (MC), and the Universities at Shady Grove (USG) to create a seamless pathway from high…

The second annual implementation report for the Accelerating Opportunity (AO) initiative in four states finds that: (1) colleges aligned pathways and supports with local needs; (2) students were satisfied with AO; (3) AO instructors grew more adept at team teaching; (4) colleges struggled to recruit adult education students; (5) states and…

This three-volume report describes the "SAM (School Administration Manager) process," an approach that about 700 schools around the nation are using to direct more of principals' time and effort to improve teaching and learning in classrooms. Research has shown that a principal's instructional leadership is second only to teaching among…

The authors report on the implementation of an enrichment programme titled "Mathematics in the Workplace" for mathematically talented students, aged 8 to 12 years, who were studying in Primary 3 to Primary 6 classes in Hong Kong. The aim of the pilot programme was to enable gifted learners to make connections between mathematics and its…

The study reported an assessment of a university-wide curriculum-based service learning program and, based on the assessment data, analyzed the impact of teachers' and supervisors' involvement on students' skill and affective learning outcomes. The study (n=750) showed that in general the students agreed that their participation in…

In July 2008, Riverbend Public Schools (RPS) in Western Michigan and Grand Valley State University (GVSU) received a grant from the Wallace Foundation that supported the development of a specialized educational leadership program. The project was designed to customize an existing degree program in the university's College of Education, focusing on…

Innovations in faculty development, particularly those that make the most of available technologies, are essential. "Learning is a social activity and we are social beings; and everything is connected" (Trammel & Bruce, 2008). Finding methods for creating these faculty connections is a challenge--one that can be met by technology.…