For most students, completing practice problems is an essential prerequisite for success in organic chemistry courses. Practice work, however, is sometimes perceived to be easier than or even not related to the types of chemistry that students see in assessments and "real-world" science. This negative view may contribute to a reduced…

The ongoing COVID-19 pandemic has demanded large-scale collaboration within all organizations, including higher education, and taking teaching and learning seriously, in this moment, means leveraging partnerships to address the wicked (large, complex) problems cited by Bass (2020). These problems are not ours alone to solve; rather, we make the…

This brochure describes how the Making Schools Work process employs a distributed leadership approach to involve the whole school in identifying problems that impact achievement and developing plans to solve them. SREB's Making Schools Work school improvement process is grounded in the belief that increased achievement starts with motivating…

In the second edition of "Data-Driven Dialogue: A Facilitator's Guide to Collaborative Inquiry," authors Bruce Wellman and Laura Lipton provide strategies that transform school culture through data-driven inquiry. By applying a three-phase model and a host of process tools to facilitate collaborative data analysis, K-12 school and…

Education researchers have sought to address the divide between research and persistent problems of practice faced by educators through technology, pedagogy, and methodology innovations (Anderson & Shattuck, 2012; Mishra & Koehler, 2007; Richey, 1998). Barriers to the successful development and implementation of technological innovations…

In this article we present and discuss experiences developed through a dialogue conference which we organised as part of a three-year participatory action research project related to primary education and agricultural education in Tanzania. We explore how dialogue conference as a research method can fill a gap between traditional ways of mutual…

An organisational change-process in a UK local authority (LA) over two years is examined using transcribed excerpts from three meetings. The change-process is analysed using a Foucauldian analytical tool--Iterative Learning Conversations (ILCS). An Educational Psychology Service was changed from being primarily an education-focussed…

Planning ahead, practicing your response for various scenarios, being open and honest, showing empathy and respect for other peoples' perspectives and assuring stakeholders that you have the situation covered are the foundations of communicating successfully during a crisis, experts say. This article provides strategies for Community College…

Problem solving is a critical skill for engineering students and essential to development of creativity and innovativeness. Essential to such learning is an ease of communication and allowing students to address the issues at hand via the terminology, attitudes, humor and empathy, which is inherent to their frame of mind as novices, without the…

Describes Bi-Polar Situational Leadership as a model for educational administration. Discusses problem solving and leadership styles, the importance of trust and concern, a balance of authority-based leading and participation-style decision making, collaboration, leader values and development, and improvement of the learning environment. (AEF)

Teachers frequently need assistance in meeting the needs of students with behavior and learning problems. Contacts with peers and other staff usually are informal and do not allow thorough analysis of the problem. The Building Support System model used in some North Dakota schools provides prompt, accessible support to teachers through peer…

Steps are outlined that parents of handicapped children may follow if they wish to pursue complaints about their child's education. The steps include: (1) identifying the problem; (2) understanding the school system organization; (3) knowing their rights; and (4) trying to reach informal agreements before using legal remedies. (PP)

The phenomenon of "school-hopping" (students transferring frequently to different schools) and its effects on students is discussed. Strategies for teachers to use with parents who practice school-hopping (often to deny that their child may be in need of special help) are described. (CJ)

Describes a new method of resolving conflicts, called "collective gaining," that has been implemented in the Forest Park (Illinois) public school system. The method encourages teachers, administrators, and school board members to work together to benefit all parties concerned. (Author/WD)

Discusses the unique problems of accommodating the needs of mildly handicapped students in rural schools and the importance of collegial support in overcoming these problems. Describes peer collaboration, a method of facilitating collegial support and mutual problem solving. Summarizes research evaluating the effectiveness of peer collaboration.…