In this paper we consider the aspect of teacher education which takes place, not in the school, but in the university classroom. Teaching about teaching, it is argued, must be grounded in students' understanding of the present, but must foster both hope and critique. Beginning from Maxine Greene's (2000) concept of imagination, this paper develops…

This article describes the structure and social justice orientation of Gonzaga University's Leadership Formation Program, an innovative, nontraditional graduate program preparing principals, program administrators, and superintendents. Highlighting the virtual school district and complex case study approach used in the program, the article details…

The attribute focus in engineering education now adopted by the engineering education accrediting bodies of the US, UK and Australia is based on meeting the assumed needs of professional practice. It is associated with an increasing expectation by employers of work-ready graduates rather than relying on subsequent work-based learning and…

Few evidence-based instructional practices achieve large-scale use, often remaining only in the schools directly involved in their development. Research on scaling up effective educational practice often lacks sensitive measures of the practice's implementation and the required research protocol. This article describes how we used rate of…

While the term "learner-centered" is invoked in many curriculum standards documents, packaged curriculum materials, mission statements and criticisms of educational practice, there is little agreement on its meaning. Shallow understandings and conflicting practices abound. And rarely do the meanings ascribed to the term take into account the…

In this paper, I identify how the child welfare challenges of Northern Ireland are partially similar to, and partially different from, those in the United States. To do so, I provide a discussion of current US child welfare legislation, critical prevailing themes, and observations regarding the similarities and differences with Northern Ireland…

Facilitating schools to develop more collaborative cultures is seen as one of the major challenges in promoting teachers' continuing professional development. This article recounts how a fifteen-month project designed to promote greater collegial learning and professional development emerged and developed within one school. Evidence suggests that…

The effects of recent moves toward national testing regimes are being felt at the classroom level, where teachers feel compelled to "teach to the tests." Thus, they are now accountable in two ways: to students (and their understandings) and to the public and to the school boards (for improving overall student test scores). It is important to…

Teacher beliefs are mediated and lived in the dialectic of teacher education and teacher practice. We reframe this dialectic of "teacher" preparation as "faculty" preparation, as many faculty are not prepared for the rigors of teaching, and most are not trained in the ethics of their profession. We propose a critical model of faculty development…

Academic selectivity plays a dominant role in the public's understanding of what constitutes institutional excellence or quality in undergraduate education. In this study, we analyzed two independent data sets to estimate the net effect of three measures of college selectivity on dimensions of documented good practices in undergraduate education.…

Fashion is easily understood as something to do with style and consumption. However, the concept of fashion can also be applied when organisations and the change in them is analysed and explained. Universities and their departments adopt different kinds of policy fashions. This article approaches management by results and evaluation in the Finnish…

Concerned about the dehumanization of teachers and students throughout the history of schooling in the United States, the author critically analyzes two metaphors for education that have perennially shaped educational practices in the United States: education is production and education is a cure. Drawing on a set of commitments that could…

Gender differences in educational attainment have generated considerable debate. Unfortunately, this debate has been constructed in terms of either the measurement of change in the size of the gender gap over time or attempts to theorise such change. This scholarly divide reflects the commitment of researchers to particular methodological…

Three pieces make up this publication. The first, titled "Absent without Leave: Solitude and the Scheme of Schooling" (Craig B. Howley), argues that education requires both a measure of solitude for students to form opinions and a healthy respect for the privacy of students' minds from educators. The second essay, "A World Came to…

The literature on vocational education (VE) in secondary schools was reviewed. The main conclusion of the review of international and Australian policy trends and directions in VE was that, to date, Australian attempts to create a more vocationally relevant curriculum have resulted in a system in which the academic curriculum has remained central…