This article describes the Pathways to Prevention (PTP) infant mental health initiative conducted by Early Head Start (EHS). The authors note that staff members who want to build their early childhood programs' capacity in infant mental health are often at a loss about how to do it. They suggest establishing an intensive, ongoing relationship with…

In fall 2002, the University of Hawai'i at Manoa (UHM) Board of Regents approved a new structure for teacher education programs in the College of Education (COE). The new Institute for Teacher Education (ITE) provides coordinated oversight for four programs: the Bachelor of Education (BEd) in Elementary Education, Bachelor of Education (BEd) in…

This article demonstrates that interdisciplinary alliances on environmental education projects can effectively address the gap between complex environmental problems in the real world and disciplinary curricula in a university. We describe an alliance between an advanced communication course and a general science course wherein we addressed…

The purpose of this article is to describe the Quality Educators Academy (QEA), a year-long training for K-8 classroom teachers that was funded by a NC ESEA Title II-A Improving Teacher Quality (NC QUEST) Grant. Key features of the project as well as the design and content of the training contributed to success in recruiting, retaining, and…

For years California has been a leader in public education. In 1999, the state implemented some of the strongest content standards in the country through its main accountability metric, the Academic Performance Index (API). The state has also signed onto the Common Core State Standards, taking important steps to ensure its students are college-…

The purpose of this study is to evaluate the efficacy of a feedback and coaching intervention designed to improve the quality of principal leadership. Principals received feedback from teachers on their instructional leadership, and their teachers' trust of them. Principals also provided self-ratings and they compared their teachers' ratings to…

Schedule redesign is only one small part of the much larger approach to turning around low-performing schools. Even so, most states' No Child Left Behind waiver applications show a disappointing lack of detail on learning time. While they've done some careful thinking about schedule redesign, states must continue to think critically and…

Less than 25 percent of college students who take any developmental education courses earn a credential within eight years. Over the past three years, the six states in the Developmental Education Initiative have developed and enacted unprecedented changes in policy and practice in an effort to reverse these dismal outcomes. "Ahead of the…

The Thomas B. Fordham Institute is the nation's leader in advancing educational excellence for every child through quality research, analysis, and commentary, as well as on-the-ground action and advocacy in Ohio. The institute advances: (1) High standards for schools, students and educators; (2) Quality education options for families; (3) A more…

Jumpstart is a growing literacy program that is now active in 17 states in addition to the District of Columbia. The Jumpstart Model pairs children of low-income families with college mentors in the child's typical learning environment. Despite the prevalence and importance of Jumpstart, little has been written about either the general model of…

Many children in Malawi have poor access to learning and are at risk of exclusion and early dropout. In the context of HIV/AIDS, formal schools need to become more flexible and responsive to children's lives. Introducing an educational model that integrates open and flexible learning strategies with conventional schooling, this paper highlights…

Current U.S. policy initiatives to improve the U.S. education system, including No Child Left Behind, test-based evaluation of teachers, and the promotion of competition are misguided because they either deny or set to the side a basic body of evidence documenting that students from disadvantaged households on average perform less well in school…

School inspections are expected to have an impact on data use and improvement of schools. Schools are expected to generate data (e.g., self-evaluation reports and student achievement results) as part of the inspection process. This process, in turn, also generates data (e.g., inspection reports) for school improvement. The high-stakes context in…

Maple Leaf School is a large English elementary school in Ontario, Canada. Wanda Miller, the principal, has been at the school for 2 years. Upon arrival, she engaged the teachers in a collaborative exercise to determine their school goal (as required by the province). Character education was selected. The district insisted that the school adopt an…

From 2001 to 2006, following a request from the Scottish Executive, HMIE gathered evidence about the implementation of "A Teaching Profession for the 21st Century", the tri-partite agreement prepared in 2001 by Scottish Executive, COSLA and the teachers' unions. This "teachers' agreement" had been drawn up in response to the…