This paper describes the design, implementation, evaluation and further refinement of an ELGG-based social networking site to support professional development activity, project group and special interest groups, and the discussion and sharing of educational experiences and resources across Edinburgh Napier University in the United Kingdom.…

This paper describes a process in which early childhood professionals, who were novice researchers, engaged in their own research projects in collaboration with academics through a practitioner inquiry group. The aim of the project was to introduce the concepts and practices of practitioner enquiry, and learn about, plan and implement a…

An expert panel including representatives from schools/districts, teacher education, and professional education associations was convened by the National Council for the Accreditation of Teacher Education (NCATE) to make recommendations regarding clinical preparation in teacher education. This article presents an analysis of how the ten design…

The purpose of this study was to determine the outstanding agricultural teachers' attitudes toward mathematics integration and perceived needs regarding academic integration. Participants of this study were selected by a panel of expert, including teacher educators and state staff, who frequently visit agricultural education teachers and observe…

The International Society for Performance Improvement has always been divided by two often-conflicting views of what its purpose or mission really is. Is it primarily technology focused (focusing on the development and promotion of the field) or member focused (focusing on members' interests and their professional development)? This difference in…

In recent research, it has been argued that effective professional learning would continue over the long term and is best suited for a school community that promotes learning. This requires an examination of the teachers on a daily basis. In order to develop such a community, it becomes increasingly important for teachers to mutually observe and…

Schools everywhere vary little with regard to the subjects they teach, the classrooms where students learn, and the students' opinions about school. They do differ significantly in one area, however: the way they address the inequalities and diversity their students bring to school. For the small, agrarian, and relatively poor nation of Finland,…

This article takes a broadly sociocultural perspective on the development of an Armenian English as a foreign language (EFL) teacher. It focuses on how experiences and actions outside the professional development classroom influence language teacher agency. The paper is framed within activity theory and specifically draws on Galperin's orienting…

Using social realist theory and critical discourse analysis, this article examines a number of discourses which construct academic staff attitudes to teaching and learning in their disciplines. It seeks to explain academics' resistance to engaging in activities aimed at professionalising academic practice. The research described in the article…

When a course designed around cooperative, problem-centered instruction attracts learners with a wide range of experience in the topic, should learners be grouped heterogeneously or homogeneously in terms of their relative expertise? In this study, learners were randomly distributed between the two types of groups; learning gains, satisfaction,…

Dispositions are the engine of performance in teaching, linking inner values and commitments with action in the context of practice. This article presents a theoretical conception in conjunction with an individual case study of the process by which dispositions develop and function in teaching. Focusing on teaching that is ambitious both in its…

Retaining and supporting Latino faculty is a challenge for many colleges and universities in the United States. This article focuses on the unique experiences faced by Latino junior faculty, when power differentials between senior faculty are most prominent in their career, and examines the cultural norms of "personalismo", "familismo", and…

This study examined the effects a 6-week mindfulness group had on 31 college students who were intending to enter helping professions (e.g., nursing, social work, counseling, psychology, and teaching). Group activities included meditation, yoga, a body scan exercise, and qi gong. The group members completed the Perceived Stress Scale, the…

Books by education experts and speakers at national professional conferences have inspired many school leaders to initiate professional learning communities (PLCs). Sustaining them effectively to raise student achievement is another matter. How can one know whether a PLC is moving toward a desired outcome? Measuring effectiveness requires an…

In recent years, policy documents, curricula and other educational initiatives have promoted a pedagogy founded on the concept of independent learning. This is broadly defined as "having the belief in yourself to think through learning activities, problems or challenges, make decisions about your learning and act upon those decisions".…