This Technical Appendix is part of the report from the National Research Center for Career and Technical Education's (NRCCTE's) five-year longitudinal study of South Carolina's Personal Pathway to Success initiative, which was authorized by the state's Education and Economic Development Act (EEDA) in 2005. NRCCTE-affiliated researchers at the…

This case study reports on the work of Denise Watts, who in 2011 was the newly named Project L.I.F.T. executive director and a Charlotte-Mecklenburg Schools zone superintendent. She approached Public Impact for help in meeting the new Project L.I.F.T. (Leadership and Investment for Transformation) goals. Facing urgent needs for real change, Watts…

The purpose of this study was to examine how teachers' perceptions of transformational leadership behavior of head of department (HOD) as instructional leader related to their motivation to transfer learning through professional development in public high schools in Kuwait. The study also addressed two other training transfer factors: ability to…

The Individuals with Disabilities Act of 2004 allowed schools to use a Response to Intervention (RtI) model as opposed to the discrepancy model to qualify students as learning disabled. The incorporation of the RtI model provided earlier interventions for students and reduced avoidance of special services and false diagnosis. With the success of…

Differential response (DR), also referred to as alternative response (AR), family assessment response (FAR), or multiple track response, was developed to incorporate family-centered, strengths-based practices into child protective services (CPS), primarily by diverting lower risk families into an assessment track rather than requiring the…

To explore the potential applications of synchronous technology to enrich student learning, faculty members from an American regional state university and a Chinese regional university collaborated to find appropriate ways to integrate synchronous technology (e.g., Adobe Connect) into an educational technology program in the American university…

The United Nations (UN) proclaimed the years 2005 to 2014 the World Decade on Education for Sustainable Development (ESD). As a follow up on the World Decade, the UN launched a Global Action Programme (GAP) that is designed to set the framework for international activities on ESD. The GAP focuses on five priority areas that are of high relevance…

The "Race to the Top" competitive grant program initiated a wave of teacher evaluation reform, which scholars and policymakers have long identified as critical to improving teacher quality and student performance. State boards of education (SBEs) and state education agencies (SEAs) took different approaches to these reforms, and as a…

This paper reports on the development and outcomes of the second phase of OER4Schools, a school-based professional development programme supporting interactive forms of subject teaching in conjunction with Open Educational Resources (OER) and technology in Zambian primary schools. We worked with partners to identify the needs of school-based…

For developing professional development (PD) programs, research suggests referring to effective components. In developing a PD program on classroom dialogue, we explored to what extent effective components could be addressed. We conducted a study with two groups. In the "Dialogic Video Cycle" (DVC), six German teachers participated in a…

This article is focused on identifying the current issues in elementary education in the United States. In each of these issues, elementary educators are at the crossroads looking for solutions and directions. Based on the review of literature, the authors pinpoint the upcoming challenges elementary school educators will be facing in the future.…

This study examines principals' experiences implementing Skillful Observation and Coaching Laboratory (SOCL), a program designed to help principals become effective instructional leaders. Guided by Karl Weick's notion of sensemaking, this study sought to identify the components of SOCL that were implemented with fidelity and discover the factors…

This report examines the implementation and effects of the academic summer program for middle school students offered by Building Educated Leaders for Life (BELL). BELL's middle school program serves rising sixth- through eighth-grade students who are performing one to two years below grade level. The goals of the program are to increase students'…

The Common Core State Standards (CCSS) are a key piece of current reform efforts to reshape the U.S. educational system. Critics contend that the related Revised Publishers' Criteria (RPC), coupled with the authoritative power of the CCSS, will de-professionalize teachers, directing their practice from a distance. The purpose of this qualitative…

Success for All (SFA), one of the best-known school reform models, aims to improve the reading skills of all children but is especially directed at schools that serve large numbers of students from low-income families. First implemented in 1987, SFA combines a challenging reading program, whole-school reform elements, and an emphasis on continuous…