Reports a study of Masters students in records management distance learning course. The 28 students shared a common experience of being a distance learner, though not a common experience of use of information technology (IT). Students benefited from the opportunity to combine employment with study. Drawbacks centered on distance from university…

Ten sixth-grade teachers and 60 students (14 with reading disabilities, 17 low-achieving students, and 29 typical students) participated in a four-month professional development and intervention program designed to enhance reading outcomes using word identification, fluency, and content area comprehension strategies. All three groups improved in…

Examines factors contributing to and preventing the implementation of developmentally appropriate practice (DAP) in early childhood education. Presents basic guidelines for DAP, illustrates the use of "both/and" thinking in early childhood practice, and describes the conversion of one school district to DAP. Concludes that administrative…

Examines student art teachers' perceptions of their progress during their first teaching experiences through a reflective writing format. Reveals that they learned about instructional strategies and student learning and needed to learn more about teaching strategies, art content, classroom management, and student learning in order to become…

A profession has been defined as a calling requiring specialized knowledge and intensive academic preparation. At the University of Missouri-Columbia, specialized knowledge and intensive academic preparation have been the hallmarks of its program since its inception in 1839. The University of Missouri-Columbia (MU) is the flagship and land-grant…

When teachers participate in professional development and learning opportunities it enables them to reconceptualise their assessment and teaching practices with the support of facilitators and researchers. National programmes of professional development and research, such as the three year Enhancing Effective Practice in Special Education (EEPiSE)…

The instructional improvement model Data on Enacted Curriculum was tested with an experimental design using randomized place-based trials. The improvement model is based on using data on instructional practices and achievement to guide professional development and decisions to refocus on instruction. The model was tested in 50 U.S. middle schools…

In the past few years many states in the U.S. have moved toward full implementation of the federal No Child Left Behind (NCLB) act. In doing so, schools have adopted "research-based" early reading models to implement Reading First, a salient component of NCLB. Through structured observations and interviews, the study team examined the…

This article reports on a study of the preparation of teacher trainees for field experience, and the conduct of the actual practicum in Trinidad and Tobago. Its purpose was to gain insights into the kinds of messages sent to trainees about teaching, and the ways in which these messages impacted on how and what trainees learned about good teaching.…

Can teacher-educators and teachers work together in community, to make a difference in society? The aim of this article is to describe a set of strategies the implementation of which will contribute towards the elaboration of a new "culture of teaching". By promoting practices that lead to the development, in students and educators…

In this study, the researchers examined the effectiveness of a reflective model of peer mentoring in the professional growth of early-career science teachers. The study was carried out over one academic year with three beginning secondary science teachers. The public school teachers in this study reported that participation in peer mentoring…

This qualitative study examined the professional growth of literacy teachers as they scaffolded students' one-to-one literacy learning within a university reading clinic tutoring experience. These teachers--graduate students within a reading education program--documented both their own learning and that of their students through various venues.…

Every child deserves a quality education. Providing competent, caring, qualified teachers in schools organized for success is the way to get there, but the devil is in the details. By tinkering on the edges, adopting piecemeal approaches to attracting, supporting, and retaining highly qualified teachers for the students who need them most, the…

This paper describes the frameworks and cognitive tools that have been developed to enhance practising teachers' pedagogical content knowledge in primary school technology education. The frameworks evolved from our research that firstly examined existing teaching practices, secondly enhanced formative interactions and thirdly enhanced summative…

Partnership and the integration of language and content teaching in English-medium schools have long been active areas of research and inquiry in applied linguistics and TESOL. However, most researchers have tended to focus on methods and techniques to use in the classroom or on the analysis of the linguistic demands of the content areas. Much…