Government commitment to the care and education of children from birth to three years in England led to the commissioning in 2001 of "a framework of best practice" (DfEE, 2001:24) to support children in their earliest years. The resulting framework of "effective" practice, together with supporting materials, was developed by a…

Conflict resolution programs are one part of peer programs offered in schools to enhance the development of life skills of students. This article addresses the need for and role of conflict resolution education in the schools. It then describes several approaches to conflict resolution education. A review of outcome research concerning conflict…

The paper describes an ontology-based framework for bridging learning design and learning object content. In present solutions, researchers have proposed conceptual models and developed tools for both of those subjects, but without detailed discussions of how they can be used together. In this paper we advocate the use of ontologies to explicitly…

Only recently have professionals recognized the importance of self-determination for young children and their families. Project SELF used the philosophy of self-determination in an interdisciplinary model to prepare graduate students to serve young children with disabilities and their families. Through Participatory Action Research (PAR) projects,…

This article contains a description of a network-based Learning Environment Organizer entitled LEO, which takes its impetus from the Assimilation Theory of meaningful learning. LEO represents a new approach to computer-mediated augmentation of face-to-face, or hybrid courses, and a different approach to distance learning course delivery. LEO…

Educational authorities in many developed countries are funding the development of online environments that aim to facilitate teacher professional learning through collegial, reflective sharing of practice. But is this a case of "if we build it they will come"? Are teachers ready to share ideas and experiences in online communities of…

Pharma Development has used action learning to help participants in their 360[degrees] feedback programme develop their leadership competencies. The article describes how the programme was designed, supported and run across four sites over a period of 2 years. The programme was systematically evaluated and found to be successful in meeting its…

Desiring to overcome sharp feelings of disconnection, a year-long participatory action research seminar involving both clinical and tenure-track teacher education faculty was formed. Working in teams with tenure-track faculty support, clinical faculty set research questions but they were reluctant to assume project leadership. In part, because of…

Successful inclusion of very young children with disabilities in natural environments requires professionals to have specialized skills including: collaboration with the child's parents and caregivers and other professionals, ecologically valid assessment of the child within the context of his or her natural environment, and the design of an…

In the first part of this article, the authors introduced the living history program. This yearly, weeklong program features living portrayals of famous people, which becomes a catalyst for teaching curricular standards, as well as providing the spark for inquiry. Successful implementation of this program requires providing teachers with…

This article explores the effects of the integration of diversity, service learning, and professional development school partnerships in preparing preservice teachers to understand and address discriminatory practices in school settings. Background information, challenges, and successes of this professional development school partnership between a…

The Rutgers Astrophysics Institute is a program in which gifted high school students learn about contemporary science and its methods, and conduct independent authentic research using real-time data. The students use the processes of science to acquire knowledge, and serve as cognitive apprentices to an expert astrophysicist. A variety of…

In this description of a learning community for "at-risk" and basic writing students at the University of Wyoming, I outline the reasons our students resist academic writing prior to their entry into college--reasons largely unrelated to typical perceptions of at-risk students as "lazy" or intellectually less capable. For…

Learning communities continue to be at the heart of teaching and learning today. The purpose of this study is to examine the extent of the impact of the Freshman Academy/Learning Community program on student progress at a historically Black university. The authors also looked at the extent to which students engaged in their learning as a result of…

Purpose: E-portfolios, which document and facilitate learning and performance, have recently attracted interest in the USA, UK, and Europe as means to increase employability and support lifelong learning. This article aims to critically examine these objectives in order to guide the future e-portfolio practice. Design/methodology/approach: Social…