Many schools are starting Small Learning Communities yet much is unknown about their outcomes. Students are literally disappearing in comprehensive high schools and violence has escalated. Those who implement Small Learning Communities are looking to combat these problems. While rarely feasible to split large schools into smaller schools, it is…

Whether or not "instruction" appears in their job titles, librarians are often in the position of educating their users, colleagues, and peers to successfully locate and evaluate information. Because MLIS education tends to offer less-than-comprehensive preparation in pedagogy and instructional design, this much-needed book tackles the challenge…

While there is extensive research related to the study of high-quality professional development, the research shows that there is limited evidence to indicate that teachers are provided with this type of professional development on a consistent, ongoing basis. The research also suggests that there is a lack of adequate evidence to show that…

This study reports a reflection upon the experience of a multiyear elementary school learning community designed for improved teaching and learning. The exploration uses interview data to describe the perceptions and reflections of the principal and teachers directly engaged in this project of educational reform. The goal of this process is to…

As members of a language and literacy doctoral cohort, we four authors attempt to situate ourselves within a community of practice in which knowledge is socially constructed. In this context, we explore our identities as collaborative writers and researchers. This paper documents the self-study that we undertook while collaboratively writing…

Purpose: The purpose of this paper is to define a community memory for a virtual communities of practice (CoP) based on organizational learning (OL) concept and ontologies. Design/methodology/approach: The paper focuses on applying the OL concept to virtual CoP and proposes a framework for building the CoP memory by identifying several layers of…

Districts across the country are currently adopting models of professional learning communities (PLCs) as a means for improving teachers' instructional practice and student achievement. This evaluation research case study shares the 3-year history, development, and challenges of a district-wide implementation of Critical Friends Groups (CFGs), a…

This article addresses the need to develop new pedagogic approaches which promote learner independence in contexts where learning takes place through the medium of more than one language. The challenges of responding to a rapidly changing educational landscape to ensure that our learners become pluriliterate global citizens are presented through…

This article looks closely at a teacher inquiry group and the dilemmas that emerged during the first year of facilitating the group. The author encountered a number of unforeseen dilemmas that challenged previous understanding of teacher inquiry, its processes, and purposes. The author moved from viewing the process of facilitation of teacher…

Researchers in a recent study found that online students' ability to self-regulate led to more focused attention and time on task, and in turn, these skills could lead to better learning. Given the need for more theoretical work in this area, as well as the potential practical benefits from the use of these pedagogical strategies, we sought to…

Although considerable evidence confirms that a director with good leadership and administrative skills is vital for developing and sustaining a high quality child care program, many directors assume the role with little management experience or training. This paper reports on a training program in Canada that combined a formal curriculum to…

Flexible, Distance and Online Learning (FDOL) is an open online course offered as an informal cross-institutional collaboration based on a postgraduate module in the context of teacher education in higher education. The second iteration, FDOL132, was offered in 2013 using a problem-based learning (PBL) design (FISh) to foster collaborative…

The school-readiness gap for Latino dual language learners in the United States has been well documented, despite a strong research base highlighting effective strategies and practices for supporting their academic success. However, current educational practices reflect the hegemonic discourse that, because the United States is an English-speaking…

Efficacy of a teaching strategy technically refers to the ability of that strategy to produce a desired or intended learning outcomes. To date, there is little information on the efficacy of social media technologies in academia and it is likely to be some time before their effectiveness is proven. It is therefore legitimate to ask the question,…

This study was undertaken to better understand the range of learning practices that academic librarians use throughout their careers, and to explore the ways library schools give students the opportunities to engage in learning methods that they are likely to use in their careers as librarians. The study uses semi-structured interviews with…