Researchers at AAAS and BSCS have developed a six-week unit that aims to help middle school students learn important chemistry ideas that can be used to explain growth and repair in animals and plants. By integrating core physical and life science ideas and engaging students in the science practices of modeling and constructing explanations, the…

When international graduate students and their families participate in study abroad experiences, there are many challenges and opportunities that accompany these experiences. Depending on the context of the study abroad experience, some might be characterized as both opportunities and challenges. International graduate students and their families…

Patterns and perceptions of language teachers in a professional development program were examined through various forms of classroom discourse & multimodal products. Research questions include: What kinds of learning patterns emerge with the use of Skype in an online environment? What phases of cognitive engagement are evident in Skype…

The purpose of this collaborative action research was to understand how science educators can negotiate the tension between integrating formative assessment (FA) for students' learning and meeting the need for standardized summative assessment (testing) from a critical perspective. Using formative assessment in the era of accountability testing…

This document provides guidelines for developing competency-based pathways in Iowa districts and schools and outlines waiver requirements and procedures. Competency-based pathways provide ways to validate learning of standards that occurs outside the structure of the traditional school and offer flexibility for schools to engage students in…

This publication describes new ways that States redesigning their educator effectiveness systems are measuring growth in student achievement, including value-added models and student learning objectives. The publication concludes with a brief discussion of communicating the results of student growth measures, such as monitoring correlations…

Learners' and teachers' evaluation of what constitutes useful, appropriate, and goal-relevant English may well shift in view of the globalization of English and its dominance in non-native contexts, business, and new media. Against this background, this study explores the extent to which a specific Business English university programme meets…

This research aims to ascertain the conceptual basics underlying the design of the "Seven Epitomes", the first library catalog to establish the bibliographic model in imperial China. The analytical framework for the study consists of a reconstructed version of the catalog and its historical contexts. In analyzing the surviving text of…

We empirically explored whether academics from pure/soft and pure/hard fields engage in reflective practice on teaching differently and, if so, whether these differences could be partially explained by the epistemological structure of their discipline. Interview data from academics in pure/hard (N = 30) and pure/soft fields (N = 10) were…

This paper explores the aims and purpose of long term art therapy. This is done by focusing on the experience of a woman with learning disabilities whom we have called Isobel White (pseudonym). In this paper we set out a theoretical context and then consider key aspects of the therapy process. We have included excerpts from reflective discussions…

Today the requirements in higher education are vast and majority of the population in the country cannot afford higher education as their per capita income is very low. Neither the government nor the private sector alone can cater to the requirements of higher education. It is in this context, one should look at the scope, feasibility,…

This article describes the development, implementation, and results of an extensive assessment of students and student learning outcomes in an interdisciplinary, integrative learning community. This assessment project took a comprehensive view of student learning by examining specific data and direct and indirect measures of academic growth for…

The introduction of the new tuition fee regime in the UK academic session 2012-2013 has resulted in concerns in the Higher Education (HE) community that students' expectations may become unmanageable. Previous research has explored the expectations and experiences of undergraduate psychology students; the current study extended this by considering…

Schools are responsible for civic education and for educating the students so they may live together. This means that they need to develop educative processes that take into account the social and affective dimension of the classroom, such as improvements in the atmosphere at school and the quality of teacher-student relationships. Practical…

A change in political leadership typically signals a growth in organizing campaigns to find and endorse the candidate with ideas most similar to their own. However, what if instead of focusing on finding the best candidate, organizing groups decided to focus on the conversation? How would you then use an election to engage the members of the…