Once a school district determines that modernization is the best alternative for a particular building, the planning process begins. The first step is determining how administrators and teachers would like to use the building. Flexible instructional spaces, technology wiring, comfort, and communication are important considerations. (MLH)

Project-based curricula have the potential to engage students' interests. But how do students become interested in the goals of a project? This article documents how a group of 8th-grade students participated in an architectural design project called the Antarctica Project. The project is based on the imaginary premise that students need to design…

Purpose - This paper aims to compare the performance of building trades apprenticeship programs in the USA, sponsored jointly by employers and unions, with those sponsored unilaterally by employers. It reviews enrolment and graduation rates, including participation of women and minorities. The article also looks behind the numbers to examine the…

America is facing a skilled labor shortage in the construction industry. Predictions, like those from the U.S. Department of Labor's Bureau of Labor Statistics, are that things may get worse. Retiring construction workers must be replaced if this industry is to grow. The estimate is around a quarter of a million replacements are needed each year.…

A renovation of school buildings at Rosetta High School, in the northern suburbs of Hobart, Tasmania, has provided an opportunity for students to use a real life context to develop and apply mathematical understanding. This has led to students achieving educational outcomes for the Essential Learnings (ELs) curriculum that affirm the role of…

Bridge construction is a popular classroom activity. However, the basic principles of tension, compression, and counterbalance are not always clearly represented and defined. The common materials used to construct model bridges, such as straws, toothpicks, Legos[TM], and building blocks, are often too flexible or stationary to demonstrate the…

Balanced literacy is a philosophical orientation that assumes that reading and writing achievement are developed through instruction and support in multiple environments in which teachers use various approaches that differ by level of teacher support and child control. The authors describe 1 urban school district's real-world attempt to create a…

The Engineering Technology Academy (ETA) program at Stafford Technical Center in Rutland, Vermont, offers benefits beyond the conventional high school learning experience. In September, at the beginning of the program, students learn the traditional skills of using tools, line weights and lettering. Once they develop these basic skills, students…

When George Mason University's Johnson Center opened a decade ago, it was on the leading edge of architectural design and innovative thinking about spaces for learning. Over time, the building has retained many of its revolutionary aspects even as it has accepted encroachments of conventionality. With its four floors and central atrium, twenty-two…

The Business Academy Bexley is one of the first purpose-built, part-privately funded independent state schools in Europe. As part of the United Kingdom's new approach to raising educational standards in areas of social deprivation and low educational attainment, Bexley was designed to facilitate integration among its students and with local…

Belgium's Flemish government recently approved a EUR 1 billion investment in school infrastructure through public-private partnerships, its first major initiative of this kind. The Flemish Community's variant of public-private partnerships in school building allows the government to meet urgent needs in the short run, but also to spread the costs…

For 15 years, schools and universities have been striving to comply with the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA), and make their programs and facilities accessible to people with disabilities. It is not uncommon to see education facilities outfitted with ramps, elevators, special parking spaces, curb cuts, playground equipment, and signage--all…

Julius Rosenwald (1862-1932) made enormous contributions to African American education, rural education, and many aspects of American life. Even so, he remains a little known figure to many. To a large extent, his impact was the result of an ability to build and maintain effective partnerships. This brief history summarizes Rosenwald's thoughts on…

This paper presents the business plan of the Ministry of Advanced Education and Technology for 2010 to 2013. Advanced Education and Technology supports the advanced learning system by providing funding for advanced learning providers, coordinating and approving programs of study at public institutions, licensing and approving programs at private…

This study examined the impact of NISL's [National Institute for School Leadership's] Executive Development Program for principals on student achievement in Pennsylvania schools between 2006-2009. Roughly half of the NISL-trained principals started the program during the 2007 school year and completed it in the 2008 school year, whereas the other…