When a university and a major urban district pair up, teachers learn more about science content and how to develop an inquiry-based classroom. More than 8,000 Detroit, Mich., students have felt the change--and show the results in improved science test scores.

The authors describe the development and validation of a test of career planning confidence that makes possible the targeting of specific problem issues in employment counseling. The scale, developed using a rational process and the authors' experience with clients, was tested for criterion-related validity against 2 other measures. The scale…

The rising number of individuals returning to communities from prison and jail represents one of the defining issues of time. Individuals reentering society face myriad challenges, not the least of which is securing viable employment; in addition, each individual has a unique set of experiences, needs and resources. This project stems from the…

This article explores the development and evaluation of the graduate-level Early Childhood Development Virtual University (ECDVU) programme in Sub-Saharan Africa from 2001 through to 2004. It outlines the history of the ECDVU and the establishing of a Sub-Saharan programme for future leaders in the early childhood field guided by the key principle…

A social worker and a psychologist, working with troubled youth in a day treatment setting, describe unique ways to use the concepts of Positive Peer Culture (PPC) to facilitate groups from the elementary to high school levels. The authors have adapted the well-known PPC concepts and incorporated them into their strength-based program, SPLASH, to…

This paper innovatively extends the application of transactional distance theory (TDT) to evidence-based policy development in Mauritius. In-depth interview data on student persistence from a range of stakeholders is used to understand the implications of distance education (DE) policy deficit. Policy deficit has surfaced as another dimension of…

Most successes in intelligent tutoring systems have come in well-defined domains like algebra or physics. We investigate how to support students in acquiring ill-defined skills of intercultural competence using an online environment that employs clips of feature films from a target culture. To test the effectiveness of a set of attention-focusing…

Although research identifies a plethora of evidence-based instructional practices, classroom teachers find research difficult to access, often not implemented due to perceived lack of relevance to classroom practice. Bridging this gap between research and practice requires continued and mediated support as teachers translate and contextualize…

Literacy coaching is a very hot topic (Cassidy & Cassidy, 2007) that has been spurred on by two opposite belief systems. On one hand, the Reading First schools can receive federal funding to hire coaches to raise test scores. This has led some teachers to characterize coaches as "test-prep enforcers." On the other hand, Bean, Swan…

In response to ongoing concern about unacceptable levels of AOD (alcohol and other drug) use on campuses, in 1998 Congress authorized the Department of Education to identify and promote effective prevention through a model grants program. In 1999, OSDFS (Office of Safe and Drug-Free Schools) launched an important component of the Department's…

Although computers and network technology have been widely utilised to assist students learn, few technical supports have been developed to help hearing-impaired students learn in Taiwan. A significant challenge for teachers is to provide after-class learning care and assistance to hearing-impaired students that sustain their motivation to…

The Joint Information Systems Committee and the National Science Foundation programme, Digital Libraries in the Classroom (DLiC), addresses implications for the learning of the revolution in scholarly communication. What are the obstacles to undergraduates "'writing' on and for the Internet"? Glasgow Caledonian University (GCU) is a…

The Appalachian Math Science Partnership (AMSP) is a project within NSF's (National Science Foundation's) Math Science Partnerships (MSP) initiative. Funded at $23 million over five years, the AMSP involved 51 school districts and nine higher education institutions in Kentucky, Tennessee and Virginia. The AMSP faced two significant challenges in…

Since the announcement in 1999 of a plan to tie teachers' salary increases to student achievement by Denver Public Schools, there has been a flood of nationwide policy activity around teacher compensation. This paper examines pay plans in Denver, Toledo, Minneapolis, and New York City, offering a snapshot of the changing landscape of teacher…

Information is provided on a practicum that addressed the lack of access to computer-aided instruction by elementary level students with learning disabilities, due to lack of diverse software, limited funding, and insufficient teacher training. The strategies to improve the amount of access time included: increasing the number of computer programs…