This article examines the disposition toward critical thinking of post-baccalaureate initial certification students at a Texas institution of higher education using the California Critical Thinking Disposition Inventory. The inventory characterizes seven subscales of critical thinking disposition and an eighth combined score for overall critical…

The focus of this article is on the professional development of teachers in Irish-medium education in Northern Ireland, with attitudinal information collected from staff in Irish-medium schools on the range and quality of the professional in-service education and training (INSET) and support opportunities they have experienced. Fieldwork for the…

The Classroom Assessment Project to Improve Teaching and Learning (CAPITAL) examined teacher change and development with regard to classroom assessment. The National Science Foundation supported the four-year effort to study how teachers modify their practices to create the conditions for the kinds of assessment that foster learning. The authors…

This article describes changes in the practice of two teachers, observed over an 18-month period, who were participating in a study intended to support teachers in developing their use of assessment in support of learning. The design of the intervention allowed each teacher to choose for themselves which aspects of their practice to develop.…

This paper explores a new pedagogical approach to teaching teachers to assume a learning or inquiry stance in their practice. It is based on an assumption that professional learning is a core capability of good teaching that is responsive to the changing needs of children, schools, and communities. One source of teacher learning is practice--one's…

Despite policy mandates to include students with disabilities in educational assessment and accountability programs, current practices suggest a substantial lack of capacity for effective inclusion. Continuing professional development (CPD) is an essential component of disseminating and implementing effective inclusion practices. Recent reviews of…

The purpose of this article is to demonstrate how the method of meaning implication discourse analysis can be applied in the context of online collaborative reflective practice of student teachers. The method was developed to identify knowledge building in networked contexts. It derives from the model of meaning implication developed by Piaget,…

In order to attract trade and industrial teachers and to help them perform successfully in the classroom, states across the nation must make teaching an attractive choice for skilled professionals and offer them adequate and accessible training in order to smooth the transition from industry to education. The New Teacher Institute (NTI) is a…

This article discusses the substantial changes in the system of adult education in Russia, in connection with a qualitative transformation of ideas about the possibility and necessity to learn new professions. The transition to the market economy has brought about a situation in which many people, both those who have obtained a professional…

End-of-year marks and achievement test results in intermediate grade math and reading were linked to high-stakes test results at the secondary level. The results suggest that analysis of marks and test scores would alert educators to students who may be at-risk. This study is an example of the scientific approach to school improvement advocated by…

An international study of mathematics and science education tells us more about what we need to know to improve math and science professional development. Students need regular opportunities to explore mathematical relationships to develop high levels of understanding in addition to developing skills. Teachers in high-achieving countries offer…

As we approach the end of the first decade of the twenty-first century, the globalization and privatization of the academy is destabilizing the patterns of university professional work developed over the past hundred years (Slaughter and Leslie, 1997). To grasp the extent of changes taking place and to understand the forces of change on women in…

Learning disabilities is the theme of the latest issue of "Focus on Basics," the World Education publication that brings together research, policy, and practice in adult basic education. Starting with an update on research on neurobiology and dyslexia, this issue also examines how the adult basic education system supports students with…

This descriptive report examines the strategies of the six Southeast Region states (Alabama, Florida, Georgia, Mississippi, North Carolina, and South Carolina) to improve high school graduation rates and student achievement and to increase the number of students leaving high school with the skills and knowledge necessary for the twenty-first…

In this article, the authors present Edwin Diaz, superintendent of California's Gilroy Unified School District and discuss the common challenges and strategies among those education leaders who take on--and succeed at--the role of change agent and reformer. When Edwin Diaz became superintendent of California's Gilroy Unified School District in…