Examines teacher empowerment as it appears in current educational reform by analyzing the concept against a template of democratic assumptions and conditions. Analyzes empowerment's meaning and workplace requirements and provides a democratic rationale for the existence of public education. Academic achievement is not the sole purpose of…

The last 20 years in applied linguistics have seen the evolution of the communicative approach in language teaching and the development of a number of language teaching innovations. Investigating the problems associated with implementing these innovations is essential. Frameworks for evaluating and tracking the diffusion of innovations are…

Offers some critical reflection and conversation on the topic of spelling and spelling instruction. Describes concerns about the lack of transfer from instruction to practice, about teaching spelling through isolated word lists, and about failing to meet individual needs and parents' expectations. Discusses ways teachers and researchers are trying…

In higher education, there is distinction between what is valued as scholarship and the pragmatic needs of the larger world. In the dominant view of scholarship, research and theory are superior to practice. An alternative view is that, in many fields, knowledge emerges from the complexity and rigors of practice. (Author/MSE)

The summary of a Higher Education Research and Development Society of Australasia conference identifies significant themes in the presentations concerning theories of learning, and comments on them. It is noted that, despite the diversity of presentations, important areas of agreement emerged. (MSE)

Maintains that technical communication curricula occupy valid theoretical positions within English studies. Advocates curricula which emphasize the connections between reading and writing, the historical-cultural contexts underlying communication, and a new rhetoric for technology-based communications and readers with global language skills. (SR)

Internship field experiences and programs bridge the gap between classroom preparation and professional practice in the preparation of educational administrators. Proposes a model program that recognizes the uniqueness of each intern; provides time for reflection; and has established procedures to evaluate interns and their experiences. (28…

Examines the work of representative scholars in the field of basic writing in terms of their pedagogical and theoretical assumptions about teaching academic discourse. Categorizes the scholarship into two theoretical schools of thought (i.e., inner-directed and outer-directed) and two pedagogical camps (i.e., freedom-directed and…

Identifies reasons for the scarcity of communication theories. Observes that early interdisciplinary forays did not result in communication theories but contributed to a view of communication as an applied social science. Argues that speech and journalism departments' appropriation of communication research has limited theoretical development.…

Describes a process of collaboration between an elementary school teacher and a researcher during a case study of teacher planning. Explores the separate and mutual courses of meaning construction in both planning and collaboration. Demonstrates how educational research definitions and, hence, research options can be broadened and diversified in…

Discusses literary and compositional theory and their pedagogical implications. Explores the disjuncture between theory and practice to argue for a reconceptualization of the nature and role of writing in the graduate curriculum. Touches on writing in graduate literature courses; invention, tradition, and individual talent; and academic genres.…

Early education reformers attempted to take the schools out of politics and turn over educational decision making to professionally trained school administrators. Postpositivist epistemology, however, suggests that all knowledge is political. This article reviews the knowledge/politics linkage, reformulates program evaluation according to a…

Cross-disciplinary similarities and differences are apparent among various conceptualizations of decision making. This article isolates several decision theories outside education traditions and reports the application of social judgment theory to improving educational administrators' ability to identify high-risk students. (42 references) (MLH)

Educational research should closely reflect the relatively turbulent world of schools and the micropolitical processes therein. Common research themes in England include response to change, establishment of new working relationships and new roles for local education agencies, marketing influences, curriculum management reforms, and quality control…

Practical suggestions and application of six principles from cognitive psychology can make learning more efficient now and produce learners who will be more self-sufficient in the future. This means redefining student and teacher roles, organizing the course and content in a way consistent with how learning occurs, and helping students learn how…