The present study is a follow-up to an earlier investigation of themes and trends in school counseling journals. The original study examined articles pre- and post-merger of the American School Counseling Association (ASCA) journal(s) for content reflecting themes evolving from the Education Trust Initiative. This study evaluated literature…

This report synthesizes what research says works in improving teacher skills and knowledge, what nations that outperform the United States in education are doing, and provides an analysis of newly available data from the federal Schools and Staffing Survey and other sources to indicate where the nation stands in building the capacity of educators…

In this article, Catherine Snow, Twakia Martin, and Ilene Berman describe professional development institutes offered in 2001 and 2002 by the Harvard Graduate School of Education and the National Governors Association Center for Best Practices to familiarize state-level policymakers with research on adolescent literacy and to guide states'…

This study examines and compares the recruitment and retention of minority and White elementary and secondary teachers and attempts to empirically ground the debate over minority teacher shortages. The data we analyze are from the National Center for Education Statistics' nationally representative Schools and Staffing Survey and its longitudinal…

This study focuses on the profile of principals who seem to be able to shape the school culture to best encourage teaching and learning. Data from a representative sample of primary schools (N = 46) were collected through questionnaires for principals and for teachers (N = 700) and semi-structured interviews with the principals. Functioning,…

The goal of the "Closing the Achievement Gap for 21st Century Learners in West Virginia (CAG)" report, 3rd edition, is to update West Virginia educators to the status and improvement of student achievement in West Virginia which may then be utilized as a basis for determining future educational decisions. In order to enhance the quality…

The federal No Child Left Behind Act requires schools, districts, and states to recruit and retain "highly qualified teachers" and to show annual progress toward the goal of 100 percent student proficiency in reading and mathematics by 2014. This heightened attention to teacher quality and pressure to improve achievement leaves educators facing a…

This report compares findings from application data the End of Training surveys administered to Master Teachers (MTs) participating in the Classic version of Intel Teach to the Future and those who took part in the Expansion version of Intel Teach to the Future. Classic survey data were collected between March 2001 and July 2002. Expansion survey…

This research report focuses on identifying different phases of organizational mentorship, or examining how mentorship might differ for men and women, and compares informal (spontaneous and unstructured) and formal (organizationally arranged and structured) mentorships. Surveys were mailed to 158 individuals (43 surveys were eventually used) from…

In August 2004, the WVDE asked the Appalachia Educational Laboratory at Edvantia, Inc. to evaluate the demonstration project, in order to meet the evaluation and reporting requirements set forth in the law. According to Fink (1993), baseline evaluation data allow for subsequent analyses of the effect or impact of a program. The purpose of this…

This paper reviews research on the dynamics of school culture and environment and their effect on the quality of teaching and the effectiveness of schools. The way schools are, the corporate experience, and effective schools are explored. Recommendations, including roles for the business community, are offered. (MT)

Despite research findings showing that mentoring exists in all types of organizations, it is unclear whether mentoring is critical to advancement to the highest levels of organizations, and if it is, what factors in the mentoring relationship are critical to that success. This paper presents case studies of mentoring taken from three…

Argues that systematic study of school administrators' activities could be valuable in refining development models. Reviews North American, Australian, and British research on elementary school management. States organizational demands on leadership increase as schools become more complex. Observes that British primary school heads lack a reliable…

The professional literature continues to be an essential resource for scholars and practitioners for filtering and highlighting new advances in research and practice. However, the ongoing challenges associated with too much information, inadequate tools for managing information overload, and too little time for professional development demand that…

This paper reports on a longitudinal study of four urban schools that sought to develop professional community as part of a restructuring process. The study focuses on how restructuring affected teachers' work over a 3-year period. It reports that the absence of structural conditions can impede the growth of professional community; however, their…