This report focuses on how better teaching results in better student learning. It is the result of a Think Tank on Professional Development comprised of parents, educators, and business and community leaders that convened to improve education and teaching in Louisiana. Think Tank members determined that they wanted to help build the capacity for…

This handbook was designed to lead students step-by-step through the planning process for conducting a community project and, thereby, help them learn project-planning skills. The guide is organized in six sections. The first section, "Preliminary Thinking," includes topics such as motivation ("What's in it for me?"), sample projects, personal…

This paper describes the conceptualization and development of an evaluation system that can be used to monitor and evaluate online instructional efforts. The evaluation system addresses concerns of both program administrators and course instructors. Computer technology is used to provide partial automation to reduce respondent burden and to…

In 2000, the Finance Project received a planning grant to launch a new initiative on financing professional development in education. This report represents efforts to identify and develop a database on promising new approaches to professional development in education, profiling 16 initiatives recommended by knowledge experts and representing a…

The Spanish-language version of this best practices sourcebook builds on a 1993 publication, "The Prevention of Youth Violence: A Framework for Community Action." It offers insight into tested strategies to prevent violence by children and adolescents. It was developed with input from people working to prevent youth violence and people…

This document describes the final grant report for the Anchorage School District (Alaska) project titled Extending Curricular Effectiveness through Links among Standards (EXCELS). This grant was a demonstration project designed to provide extensive professional development related to national standards. A process was developed for bringing…

Launched in 1994, Smart Start is the statewide early childhood initiative in North Carolina designed to ensure that every child "arrives at school healthy and ready to succeed." This guide provides a practical reference to the lessons learned from Smart Start as the program was developed and experienced from the local county partnership…

Among the requirements of an intellectual skills training program are: (1) a culturally relevant theoretical basis; (2) training in information processing skills; (3) program responsiveness to students' needs and sensitivity to individual differences; (4) establishment of linkages between the training program and the real world; and (5) empirical…

Although Israel's educational system is centralized, the syllabi of the Department of Curriculum Planning (part of the Ministry of Education) are not compulsory. Curriculum facilitators are used as the link between the Department of Curriculum Planning and the teachers in the school where the facilitator continues to teach. (RL)

Developed a program to support adults concerned about their aging parents. Specific objectives were to: develop educational materials, provide a group milieu, and train participants in communications techniques. Results indicated the program had limited positive results in contrast to no, or slightly negative change for the delayed treatment…

The author suggests that the primary purpose of vocational education is to promote human development by exposing the learner to intrinsically meaningful activities. The criterion for evaluating vocational education from this perspective is the growth of students' personal qualities. (SK)

A three-year study examining the effects of 15 resident camp programs on over 2,000 disabled campers ages 7-21 indicates that campers made notable achievements in both affective and recreational skills, that positive gains in personal development carried over to the home and community settings, and that increased independence was the predominant…

Three studies evaluated a one-day program for training 24 paraprofessional staff in basic teaching skills for working with children with severe disabilities. All participants achieved the performance-based mastery criterion and successfully applied their teaching skills, as evidenced by skill development progress of students with severe…

Reports a study that analyzed the processes of educational innovation in seven projects in the Andalusian region of Spain. Using qualitative and quantitative methods, the study determined that the quality of the impact of innovation on students, teachers, schools, and communities was determined by the original source, the relationship to perceived…

The features of positive youth development settings, identified in recent research, are applied to camp program planning, staff selection, and comprehensive program evaluation. A web-like model of positive features of the program's organizational and social environment provides a systemic viewpoint. (TD)