This paper examines mechanisms in the Japanese education system that 'bring in' knowledge of practice to the process of policy translation. The paper firstly draws on the enactment of recent curriculum reforms in Japan to define a group of actors -- practitioner advocates -- who utilise their identity as members of the teaching community to…

As the research on mindfulness expands to include school-based interventions, middle school educators across the country have implemented mindfulness in the classroom. However, similar to other social-emotional learning approaches, when implemented in the absence of cultural context and trauma-informed care, mindfulness can be weaponized. In this…

Polyphony, often used to describe a type of composition in early European music, is also practiced in other parts of the world, not only for aesthetic enjoyment but also to strengthen a society's cohesiveness. Examples of such musical traditions are found in sub-Saharan Africa and many mountainous regions of Europe, where group singing or…

This article profiles the teaching context in Askaoun, in Taroudant province in the south of Morocco, and Karima Mezouari, a teacher dedicated to giving her students there a chance to learn English in meaningful and enjoyable ways. Adil Azhar describes how he learned to speak English through persistence and practice, and how he passes on his own…

The re-conceptualisation of texts over the last 20 years, as well as the development of a multimodal understanding of communication and representation of knowledge, has profound consequences for the reading and understanding of multimodal texts, not least in educational contexts. However, if teachers and students are given tools to…

Being up front with students about Standard English as "the language of power" allows them to learn valuable lessons about Standard and non-Standard English dialects. In this article, the author describes an eighth-grade language unit that helps students understand the value of dialects and standardized English. The author concludes that the…

Mendel and his peas. Goodall and her chimpanzees. Bentley and his snowflakes. Pasteur and his sheep. Not only do these stories intrigue students, but they also demonstrate the trials and tribulations associated with scientific inquiry. Using scientists' biographies piques student interest while providing an added dimension to their understanding…

This article features "Pop Culture Universe," which received the 2009 Dartmouth Medal honoring the creation of a reference work of outstanding quality. School librarians will find "Pop Culture Universe" a wonderful resource for assisting middle school and high school students with research projects on significant historical events that focus on…

Using this instructional resource, teachers can explore the impact of the Cultural Revolution (1966-1976) on contemporary art in mainland China with their students. The three artists Luo Zhongli (b. 1948), Xu Bing (b. 1955), and Wang Guangyi (b. 1957) came of age during the Cultural Revolution and are representative of a much larger number of…

The Theatre Arts Standards of Learning identify the essential content and skills required in the theatre arts curriculum for the middle school and core high school courses in Virginia's public schools. The standards are designed to be cumulative and progress in complexity by course from the middle school through the secondary level. Throughout…