The Learning Forward Academy is Learning Forward's flagship deep learning experience, committed to increasing educator and leader capacity and improving results for students in the ever-changing landscape of education. For over 30 years, the academy has supported the problem-based learning of teachers, teacher leaders, instructional coaches,…

As one of the national leaders in innovative public education strategies focused on future talent development, Indiana is positioned to create a sustainable, collaborative strategy for K-12 Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics (STEM) instruction, curriculum, and career exploration and exposure. To provide a comprehensive, coordinated,…

This article describes the process of designing and creating six computer-based simulations for school leadership training programmes, in the context of the Chilean school system. For the design and construction of the simulations, six scenarios were selected from case analysis of principals with formal training and experience in different…

Teaching is complex; teachers and school leaders crave more meaningful collaborative experiences to make sense of that complexity. However, the structural, cultural, and historical factors involved with schooling impede the extent to which teachers can collaborate. Teachers spend five to six periods of the day teaching classes, largely working in…

Developing excellent principals who can set direction, develop people, redesign organizations, and lead instruction requires a system of high-quality preparation and professional development. This paper summarizes the elements of high-quality principal preparation and professional development programs that have been associated with positive school…

This article describes a design problem that not only takes students through the technological design process, but it also provides them with real-world problem-solving experience as it relates to the manufacturing and engineering fields. It begins with a scenario placing the student as a custom wheel designer for an automotive manufacturing…

When teachers work toward the goal of using evidence of student learning to improve teaching, they typically use test scores, student work, portfolios, and a variety of formative assessments. Videotapes of teaching are another valuable form of evidence. Research has shown that analysis of videotaped teaching cases is effective in promoting teacher…

The topic of alternative energy is not only relevant to a multitude of issues today, it is also an effective vehicle for developing instruction that applies across a variety of content disciplines and academic standards. Since many of the issues associated with alternative energy are open-ended, alternative energy also lends itself to…

The author suggests that transparency in all venues, including social work education, practice and policy, and the conduct and reporting of related research, will be required to advance the effectiveness of professional education. Possibilities for improving the quality of professional education differ in terms of how evidence-informed practice is…

Schools are raising standards to improve academic and technical achievement and intellectual growth for all groups of students, particularly at-risk students. This newsletter contains tools and strategies that school leaders and teachers are using successfully to help students meet higher expectations. It organizes the techniques into five…

Problem-based learning is a student-centered pedagogical strategy that poses real-world situations and provides resources, guidance, instruction, and opportunities for reflection. Examines problem-based learning, provides a rationale for its use in the curriculum, identifies problems inherent in designing and implementing problem-based learning,…

Problem-based learning is an approach that can be used to increase student participation while promoting the development of skills for lifelong learning. In solving problems learners acquire two types of knowledge--knowledge of concepts, principles and facts; and procedures for how to use them. (Author/MLW)

Problem-based learning (PBL) has gained credibility and some use in institutions of higher education. This paper provides a brief conceptual discussion of PBL and the idea of "problem," and describes one learning model that incorporates PBL as a method for moving students to high levels of learning. The second portion of the paper describes one…