Case studies and questionnaire responses from 59 recent registered nurse (RN) graduates identified differences in six role socialization processes (individual-collective, formal-informal, sequential-random, fixed-variable, serial-disjunctive, investiture-divestiture) in three types of programs: generic, RN-track, and second-step. In second-step…

Focus groups with 59 North Carolina parenting educators addressed professional needs. They identified concerns about the scope of the field and collective vision, keeping professional knowledge current, partnerships, networking, and community collaboration. A model of the interrelated components of professional development systems was developed.…

The Citizens Changing Communities program trained advisory boards in time and meeting management, conflict management, problem solving, goal setting, action planning, and decision making. Although evaluations revealed high interest in program content and delivery methods, actual participation did not match responses. A holistic approach focused on…

Project SUCCESS sought to recruit, train, and support paraprofessionals and mid-career adults in high-need teaching fields (math, science, special education, bilingual) in transitioning to teach in high-need schools. A 27-minute video was produced to supplement reporting of project evaluation outcomes. This paper highlights procedures and…

In this paper, we synthesize two bodies of work related to students' representational activities: the notions of meta-representational competence and representation as a form of practice. We report on video analyses of kindergarten and first-grade students as they create representations of pollination in a science classroom, as well as summarize…

Scientific and religious ways of thinking are central to an individual's cognitive and cultural ways of making sense of the world. This paper explores what foundational concepts pre-service primary teachers are employing when they teach science. The study measured the attitudes to science and religion of 92 pre-service primary teachers. The…

This study used focus groups to create building blocks for the creation of a collaborative program consisting of a university and a school district for the preparation of principals. The focus groups of practitioners considered recommendations from researchers and applied it to the context of their experiences to develop the essentials of a…

Peer teaching has been recognized as a valuable and effective approach for learning and has been incorporated into medical, dental, and healthcare courses using a variety of approaches. The success of peer teaching is thought to be related to the ability of peer tutors and tutees to communicate more effectively, thereby improving the learning…

This report focuses on the initial design, implementation and baseline results of the five-year Longitudinal Educational Growth Study (LEGS) of the Milwaukee Parental Choice Program (MPCP) being conducted by the School Choice Demonstration Project (SCDP). The LEGS will be the first evaluation of the participant effects of the MPCP using…

One of the central challenges of designing and implementing a performance pay program is developing an approach for determining which schools, teachers, and administrators have performed well enough to have earned a bonus. The U.S. Department of Education's Teacher Incentive Fund (TIF) program provides grantees substantial latitude to create…

In 2006 and 2007, two workshops on teaching work-family courses were held at the annual meetings of the American Sociological Association. This article examines the current challenges and strategies of teaching work-family, as identified by workshop participants, and the resources that are available through the Sloan Work and Family Research…

Purpose: The purpose of this paper is to show that the "Back on Track" program is designed to support students with a chronic illness (usually cancer) to maintain contact with their school and peers whilst undergoing treatment, to promote socio-emotional wellbeing and to facilitate the ease of return to school when they are well. An…

State oversight for teacher preparation programs mostly ignores the impact of graduates on the K-12 students they teach, and it gives little attention to where graduates teach or how long they remain in the profession. There is no evidence that current state policies hold programs to high standards in order to produce teachers who can help…

Our current system for holding U.S. teacher education programs accountable doesn't guarantee program quality or serve the needs of schools and students. State oversight for teacher preparation programs mostly ignores the impact of graduates on the K-12 students they teach, and it gives little attention to where graduates teach or how long they…

In this companion to "Opening Doors", Friedman and Webb provide more helpful, hand-on tips for bringing SEM to life in your school. Readers learn, step-by-step, how to create a schedule that includes a weekly E-Slot for enrichment learning experiences as well as ideas for injecting interest-based experiences into the E-Slot, regular curriculum,…