This report presents findings from the second-year evaluation of the Governor's Educator Excellence Grant (GEEG) program. The GEEG program was federally- and state-funded and provided three-year grants to schools to design and implement performance pay plans from the 2005-06 to 2007-08 school years. GEEG was implemented in 99 high poverty, high…

Numerous studies have been undertaken demonstrating that online learning is an effective teaching tool, working best when combined with more conventional teaching methods. There is a paucity of data both examining the longitudinal blending of an e-module with more conventional modes of curriculum delivery and also relating to the time and…

Public schools are under increased pressure to implement evidence-based substance abuse prevention programs. A number of model programs have been identified, but little research has examined the effectiveness of these programs when "brought to scale" or implemented district-wide. The current paper summarizes the application of the Adelman and…

The Technology Immersion Pilot (TIP), created by the Texas Legislature in 2003, called for the Texas Education Agency (TEA) to establish a pilot project to "immerse" schools in technology by providing a wireless mobile computing device for each teacher and student, technology-based learning resources, training for teachers to integrate…

This paper highlights the existing Botswana national policy on natural resources conservation and development, as well as the stated conservation strategy, institutions and implementation. In order to achieve Botswana's commitment to sustainable development as a goal which emphasizes both conservation and development, the paper strongly argues for…

Tech Prep programs have been designed and structured to forge strong and comprehensive links between secondary and postsecondary education institutions. Programs within these institutions lead to completion of an associate degree or two-year certificate, provide technical preparation in specified fields, build student competence, and lead to…

This report explores the potential for and obstacles to comprehensive community-level approaches to preparing young people for occupational and academic advancement. Chapter I introduces the New Workforce strategy based on a pathways design and a community framework and strategic plan. Chapter II includes the following: overview of the shaping of…

This book is designed to help people who want to know whether distance education is useful for them. It suggests what questions to ask in considering whether distance education makes sense in a particular context and examines the different ways in which it can be organized. Chapter 1 considers who it can teach, what it can be used for, and how…

Educational research has documented that technology can enhance student acquisition of discrete skills through drill and practice. This document presents case-study profiles from a study that examined whether technology could provide significant support for constructivist, project-based, teaching and learning approaches. The study also identified…

The history of Texas' implementation of bilingual education is examined through a review of relevant literature and court litigation, and a survey of school district superintendents and administrators on this topic is reported. In interviews with the administrators, it was found that bilingual education and English-as-a-Second-Language (ESL)…

This study examined how professional learning communities develop, using cross-subject teams within the context of HUMANITAS, a program designed to promote teachers' professional growth and effectiveness by creating a voluntary "community of learners" for teachers and students. Data were gathered from teacher interviews, team…

Through a participatory approach to adult basic education, a project was conducted to break the debilitating cycle of illiteracy that passes from low-income parents to their children. The approach included a family literacy book club designed to encourage parents and children to read together and to improve parents' literacy skills, interests, and…

This report presents strategies for implementing interdisciplinary personnel preparation programs for Part H of the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act and discusses barriers to meeting the spirit and intent of the personnel preparation components of the law. Three models of personnel preparation were explored, including preservice,…

A collaborative study group on teacher development of alternative assessments in mathematics and the sciences was cosponsored in the 1992-93 school year by the Virginia Educational Association and the Appalachia Educational Laboratory. Twenty-two teachers from 11 schools throughout Virginia worked with staff from the sponsoring organizations and…

This paper describes the development of an inclusive special education program in 12 elementary schools in an urban Colorado school district. Specifically, the study examined the role of leadership in program implementation. Leadership is defined as a reciprocal, multidirectional, noncoercive influence that involves multiple leaders and followers…