The best leaders are visionaries--individuals who possess a strong sense of purpose that inspires and motivates others. This book offers practical tools and insights designed to help school leaders access the power of their personal vision and translate it into truly dynamic leadership. This exciting new guide to becoming an authentic leader is…

Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander students are not achieving the levels of English literacy required for satisfactory completion of Australia's school system. A national strategy has been launched to help Indigenous students achieve English literacy. However, there continues to be little recognition of the language and cultural needs of the…

The academic success of underserved students depends on their experiences within the education system. These experiences are influenced by the degrees to which their own culture and language are acknowledged and integrated into the school program, how engaged they become and are encouraged to become, and how well educators support them in…

The Research Institute on Secondary Education Reform for Youth with Disabilities (RISER) has been studying three significantly restructured high schools that have included students with disabilities and their parents in the design and/or implementation of school reform efforts. Each of these schools has operated for 3-12 years with its new,…

This second volume of "Proving and Improving" collects essays from the First-Year Assessment Listserv, which is hosted by the Policy Center on the First Year of College and the National Resource Center. Like the first volume, this one brings together the nation's leading experts and practitioners of assessment in the first college year.…

This paper presents three vignettes to help teachers engage students in self-regulated learning. "Vignette One: Strengthening Your Will Power--Taking Charge of Your Life" explains how to help students take charge of themselves by "working smarter, not harder," i.e., by developing the habit of using such strategies as…

Recent research by the Metropolitan Educational Research Consortium has led to the development of a resiliency model that helps explain why some at-risk students actually do well in school. The recent investigations have determined that some students develop traits that enable them to be successful in school. The model suggests that four…

African-American parents whose children attended 12 different Baltimore City Public Schools (Maryland) made it clear while participating in a focus group that white teachers have a lot to learn about teaching their children. Forty-three parents whose children were involved in an enrichment program at an urban community college emphasized that they…

The new foundations related to the schooling initiatives targeting Mexican Americans in the United States are the focus of this paper. The issues that bring together research, theory and educational policy and practice are outlined. Within the last few decades, research and practice in culture and education have shifted from a focus on…

This article is about the relationship between teaching and learning. It is based on data from the Project on Learning, in which the experiences of individual students during science and social studies units in 5th and 6th grade classrooms are related to what they learn from these units. Activity theory is used to identify what determines how…

This publication presents Montgomery County, Maryland's plan for empowering the educational community by organizing the necessary resources, knowledge, and skills to fulfill the promise of success for every student. The four main goals are: to ensure success for every student; to provide an effective instructional program; to strengthen productive…

A study examined the beliefs and attitudes of Mexican-trained educators regarding instruction for minority and language minority students in light of assumptions that students experience better outcomes with culturally and linguistically compatible teachers. Fifteen educators who received their teacher education in Mexico, and whose native…

Educators in intentionally small schools in Chicago are working to create a climate that is inviting, engaging, and challenging to some of the most academically disadvantaged students. Over a period of 18 months, data were collected from eight intentionally small schools that included elementary, middle, and high schools; freestanding schools;…

This brief discusses the outcomes of a study that examined the views of 32 secondary education teachers in four secondary schools on the inclusion of students with disabilities in their classrooms. Analyses of the interview data indicate that the general education teachers were committed to inclusion and that they did make instructional…

This study examined the perceptions of preservice teachers tutoring non-native English speakers in a local public school. A group of 14 predominantly female preservice teachers participated, nine white and five Hispanic. Participants completed interviews asking about their tutoring experiences. Results found two common themes: most participants…