This digest briefly reviews connections among the literature on the adoption of innovations, technology integration, and the value of reflection in encouraging educators to explore the integration of new educational technologies into their current teaching practices. An approach to prompting reflection is described, which uses structured guidance…

Change efforts should be guided with a systemic understanding of the context in which they are undertaken. Depending on the circumstance, or as the implementation effort progresses, it may be most effective to focus interventions on a particular component of the framework at a time. This ERIC digest presents a sequence for approaching the major…

Since professional development schools (PDSs) emerged in the mid-1980s as a promising approach to improving teacher education and P-12 schooling, information about these institutions has become more abundant and more accessible. Four primary sources of PDS information are discussed in this digest: the ERIC database, electronic resources, fugitive…

This digest documents the experiences of faculty, administrators, and staff at several colleges as they addressed a broad range of instructional technology issues. Included in the digest are several approaches suggested by instructors and staff affiliated with various community college technology programs. Plans for implementation, development,…

The 1980s were years of concern about the curricula in elementary and secondary schools. Throughout the decade educators in the social studies, as well as in other fields of knowledge, formed curriculum study groups to assess the status quo and to recommend improvements in widely distributed reports. This ERIC Digest examines: (1) four social…

Although volunteer tutors traditionally have formed the basis of the programs of Laubach Literacy Action and Literacy Volunteers of America, volunteers have begun to play a greater role in adult literacy instruction provided through community-based organizations, correctional institutions, churches, and federally funded adult basic education.…

Not for profit community college foundations play a major role in overall resource development. Because foundations are legally and organizationally independent of the college, they are able to promote the well-being of the college without the statutory limits imposed by the governing board and staff. Foundation money is not restricted to basic…

The growing population of "English-as-second language" (ESL) students in the United States need to learn how to cope with the rights and responsibilities of citizenship in the U.S. Because of this, civic education should pervade the curriculum for ESL students. This ERIC digest treats five facets of civic education for ESL students: (1)…

The voyage of Columbus in 1492 is a turning point in world history. After 1492, people and civilizations of long-separated regions began to develop connections that have led to the incipient global community of the 1990s. It is their global significance that justifies a prominent place in today's curriculum for the four voyages of Columbus to the…

In order to realize their academic missions and respond to state demands for access, assessment, and accountability, the nation's community colleges, along with all other institutions of higher education, are focusing increasingly on the enhancement of academic support services. Learning centers represent an important means of providing learning…

The National Science Foundation (NSF) released its first call for proposals for the National Science, Mathematics, Engineering, and Technology Education Digital Library (NSDL) program early in 2000. Building on work supported under the multi-agency Digital Libraries Initiative, this program aims to establish a national digital library that will…

To find vocational education curriculum materials, educators can contact their State Liaison Representative (SLR) to the National Network for Curriculum Coordination in Vocational and Technical Education (NNCCVTE), regional Curriculum Coordination Center (CCC), state vocational education resource center (SVERC), and/or one of the consortia that…

Recent events in Europe suggest that the pattern of global ideological struggle that provoked the division of Korea is apparently dissolving, giving way to nationalist movements. The division of the Korean people now appears anachronistic. There are signs that reunification is possible. Despite the importance of the Korean peninsula in world…

Career and technical education (CTE) can provide significant benefits to students with disabilities. Research shows that students with disabilities in secondary CTE programs were less likely to drop out and more likely to be employed, to have paid competitive jobs, and to work full time after high school, especially if they were mainstreamed and…