School inspection is used by most European education systems as a major instrument for controlling and promoting the quality of schools. Surprisingly, there is little research knowledge about how school inspections drive the improvement of schools and which types of approaches are most effective and cause the least unintended consequences. The…

School-based aggression prevention programs have been implemented in many educational institutions, and fostering the development of social competencies is one of the central aspects of many approaches. The aim of the present study was to assess the level of subjectively perceived usefulness of the prevention program "Faustlos" in…

The purpose of this website study was to get feedback from recently admitted students to discover if the site was meeting their needs and expectations for information regarding the program and processes. Websites are often the first contact a student has with a university and, especially for those seeking a degree online, could potentially leave…

This paper describes in detail a successful training program developed for sessional (part-time or nonpermanent) laboratory demonstrators employed in the Electrical Engineering Department of an Australian university. Such demonstrators play an important role in teaching practical concepts and skills in engineering. The success of the program…

This study evaluated the hypothesis that schools in Connecticut's Alliance Districts (lowest-performing districts) with higher-quality school improvement plans (SIPs) would have higher levels of student achievement. An exploratory research question evaluated whether SIPs predicted achievement of particular subgroups. SIPs were obtained and scored…

Students often struggle with learning about statistics, which encompass a large proportion of a psychology degree. This pilot study explored how first- and final-year students reflected on their experiences of being taught this topic, in order to identify needs that could be addressed in a project to improve their learning. First-year students…

The purpose of the present study is twofold: (1) to investigate the relationship between the efficacy of teachers of English as a foreign language (EFL) and their self-reported practice of communicative language teaching (CLT) and (2) to examine the impact of an in-service teacher education program on teachers' efficacy and self-reported and…

The main purpose of this study is to understand the opinion of student trainee teachers towards Microteaching skills. In this study, survey method was adopted. The participants of this study were 130 trainee students from four Teacher Training Colleges of West Bengal, India in 2013-14 sessions. The tools used in the study for data collection was a…

It has been observed that students shy away from the study of Mathematics even though it is a back bone of science and technology. This is confirmed by the negative attitude and poor performance of students in Mathematics especially at primary colleges' level. It is this background that prompted the research into the problems faced by lecturers…

This paper focused on preparing teachers for the contemporary Nigeria. Teaching is a versatile field that requires at all times the correct identification of indices of developments in the society. This responsibility makes it imperative that teachers be an embodiment of a constant search for updated knowledge in various fields of Endeavour. The…

Background: Afterschool programs are promising arenas to improve youth physical activity (PA) levels. During the school year for 2012-2013, 5 elementary schools from a low-socioeconomic status (SES) school district in southern Colorado participated in evaluation of the afterschool program entitled Keep It Moving! (KIM). Methods: In this…

This paper presents a simplified approach for the application of material efficiency metrics to linear and convergent synthesis plans encountered in organic synthesis courses. Computations are facilitated and automated using intuitively designed Microsoft Excel spreadsheets without invoking abstract mathematical formulas. The merits of this…

In Sweden, there is concern about fewer students taking chemistry courses in higher education, especially at university level. Using a survey, this study investigates the reasons upper secondary school chemistry students choose to follow the Swedish Natural Science Programme. In addition, students' views about their chemistry education are sought…

Academic reading is different from other forms of reading because it is complex and discipline-specific. It involves a measured, challenging, and multifaceted process in which students are dynamically engaged with a range of reading strategies. Academic reading improvement is possible, provided students work on it and there are no short cuts or…

This case study describes a continuous improvement experience, conducted from 2002 to 2014 in Sao Paulo, Brazil, within 47 Project-Based Learning MBA courses, involving approximately 1,400 students. The experience report will focus on four themes: (1) understanding the main dynamics present in MBA courses; (2) planning a systemic intervention in…