The purpose of this bounded single case study was to explore the day-to-day functioning of a successful urban school-based agriculture veterinary program. Findings indicated student success was a product of multiple youth-adult relationships created through communal environments. Adults served as mentors with whom students felt constant, caring…

This paper presents a promising and powerful approach used to cultivate a doctoral community of inquiry and practice and harness the intelligence, commitment, and energy of all of its members in a blended learning environment. The discussion board online learning community approach was developed to transform a traditional face-to-face doctoral…

Implementing Communities of Practice (CoP) in online learning is well documented (Gray, 2004; Wenger & Snyder, 2000), and is of particular interest to the LIS profession (Yukawa, 2010). Most of the students in school library programs are practicing teachers seeking to add the library science endorsement to their existing license. They are…

Grounded as a self-study using arts-based inquiry to explore the experiences of six university faculty members participating in a cross-disciplinary faculty development program, the purpose of this paper is to (1) describe the Madison Research Fellows (MRF) program, and (2) explore the impact of the MRF program. Participating members included…

This article explores a faculty-facilitated consultation group that was created for MSW students in an academic setting as a response to the paucity of group work supervision and training available in many field placements. This study considers the context in which training occurs, the impact of systemic and professional factors, which includes…

The purpose of this study was to explore teachers' perceptions of the influence of professional learning communities on teachers' professional practices. Research shows that the adjustment from college student to the teaching environment for new teachers has increased through involvement on committees, collaboration with peers, and hands-on…

First year students, like all students at a university, comprise a diverse mixture of personal traits, backgrounds, experiences, and assorted learning styles. Each of these unique student characteristics can either enhance or inhibit successful integration to the campus community. The purpose of this study is to evaluate the impact of various…

The purpose of this study was to identify, categorize, and describe practitioners' perspectives regarding factors that help and hinder sustainability of Tier I (universal) systems within School-Wide Positive Behavioral Interventions and Supports (SWPBIS). Seventeen participants involved in sustaining Tier I SWPBIS over several years within a…

This article presents the findings of an evaluation of the eMINTS (enhancing Missouri's Instructional Networked Teaching Strategies) professional development program. eMINTS is an intensive teacher professional development program designed to promote inquiry-based learning, support high-quality lesson design, build community among students and…

"Leading for Literacy" provides tools and real-life examples to expand the benefits of a literacy approach that sparks students' engaged reading and thinking across disciplines, from middle school through community college. A companion to the landmark "Reading for Understanding," this book guides teachers, leaders, and…

Studies have shown that teacher quality is the single greatest factor affecting student achievement. However, it is not simply enough to recruit highly qualified candidates and place them into the schools where they are needed the most; the United States needs a system to support and retain these teachers. This essay posits that school districts…

The authors drew upon Remillard and Bryans' categorization of curriculum use in observating two middle-grade teachers' integration of Standards-based curriculum materials produced by the National Council of Teachers of Mathematics. Each teacher participated in a two-year professional development program focused on increasing content knowledge and…

This paper explores an innovative approach to evaluating the effectiveness of a writing group in an Australian research-intensive university. Traditional qualitative and quantitative methods typically applied in higher-education research may be effective in analysing the output of writing groups; however, they do not always address the affective…

This dissertation serves as a call to geoscientists to share responsibility with K-12 educators for increasing Earth science literacy. When partnerships are created among K-12 educators and geoscientists, the synergy created can promote Earth science literacy in students, teachers, and the broader community. The research described here resulted in…

Campuses can reinvigorate faculty by helping them make time for sustained, in-depth professional development. Scheduling scholarship in the form of on-going, long-term faculty learning communities (FLCs) link work in the classroom with research and reflection. The benefits of FLCs to two-year colleges include decreased isolation, intellectual…