Policy and practice communities increasingly are emphasizing conceptual, cognitively demanding, and "ambitious" instruction. Within this context, we examine whether such practices serve the needs of students with specialized academic needs. Across upper-elementary classrooms in four districts, we find that exposure to…

The professionalisation of teaching in Australia is a policy shift that transpires within broader policy dynamics which are increasingly influenced by neoliberal logics. In this article we examine teacher responsibility through analysis of a new measure introduced in Victoria. This requires teachers to prove professional development hours in the…

This article embeds the study of character development within the two-decades-long research program framed by the Lerner and Lerner model of positive youth development. Character development involves attaining the feelings, thoughts, and skills needed to act coherently across time and place to serve self and others in mutually beneficial, positive…

Purpose: This study is designed to create platforms to train students in higher education to be caring and responsible citizens. This is the third academe extension mission that aims to tap into the expertise and its knowledge to help the community. Based on the framework of community empowerment, the researchers measured the long-term impact of a…

For several years, the authors were involved as volunteer literacy tutors in a low-income housing development with predominantly African American residents. In this volunteer role, the authors were troubled by the ways in which the youth and their families were misunderstood and not well served by the schools. The purpose of this study is to…

In this article, we investigate 'no touch policies' as a practical teacher concern that includes the body as a location, a source and a means in educational activity. We argue that to understand issues regarding physical touch within school practice we must conceive it as deeply associated with specific teaching techniques. Thus, the didactical…

Authoritative school climates have been associated with less school bullying and other antisocial behaviors. However, studies focusing on the classroom level, as well as on bystander behaviors, are lacking. The aim of the current study was to examine whether authoritative classroom climates were associated with bullying victimization and various…

In all parts of the world, researchers are addressing the colonial legacy of research. This article aims to contribute to the decolonisation of research in a sub-Saharan African context by exploring Ubuntu as an indigenous Southern African research paradigm. Drawing on lessons learnt from participatory action research with South African science…

Studies of teachers in higher education have acknowledged the relationship between teaching and teacher identity. Teacher identity is seen as dynamic, context-specific, and encompassing a teachers' sense of meaning, values and self-esteem. This article considers the relationship between the values dimension of teacher identity and the use of…

The papers in this special issue on the spaces of pedagogy speak to the failures of neoliberal thinking when applied to education. Their pedagogical critique of neoliberalism contributes to a considerable body of work focused on challenging the driving discourses of education (or more accurately, school) systems. The source of the tensions between…

Effective school leadership has been ranked the greatest indicator in the hiring and retaining of highly qualified teachers. Considering that the classroom teacher has the highest impact on student academic success, issues such as teacher absenteeism and teacher turnover absorb a great deal of time and resources of school principals while…

The purpose of this study was to investigate multiple perspectives and perceptions of good teaching as viewed through the lens of a Parent Teacher Organization's Teacher of the Year Award program. To better understand the complexity of good teaching, I conducted a single case study involving five distinct groups of people: students, parents,…

This article explores the meeting of two approaches towards philosophy and education: the philosophy for children (P4C) approach advocated by Lipman and others, and Schmid's (2000a) philosophical concept of" Lebenskunst" (the art of living). Schmid explores the concept of the beautiful or good life by asking what is necessary for each…

The notion of moral attention allows the recognition of fundamental aspects of ethical life ignored or neglected by mainstream ethical theories. It is central to the theories of several notable female ethicists and many of them identify the French philosopher Simone Weil as the source of the contemporary use of this concept which invites…

Adolescents who attend high school as preparatory boarding students are growing up and learning to care for themselves in a very different set of circumstances than those who live at home with their families. Although this choice may present myriad opportunities for personal growth and academic advantages, nurturance and support from caring adults…