The purpose of this book is to provide an evidence-based theoretical practical model for professional development of pedagogical specialists in Bulgaria, Romania and Serbia. The framework steps on two key strands of knowledge, linked to online teaching evaluation and mentoring provision, informed by Jim Knight's impact cycle model. The model is…

An extensive body of literature has examined the benefits and challenges of experiential learning in higher education. At the same time, colleges and universities have increased the utilization of large class sections, both online and face-to-face. To date, little research has examined mechanisms for leveraging the benefits, while mitigating the…

In this article we report on the results of a pilot study on the use of task-based multilingual and multicultural professional scenarios for higher education teachers and learners at BA and MA level. The scenarios reflect new learning outcomes and assessment criteria for the presently under-conceptualised domain of communication in multilingual…

In a marketized environment, ESL providers, in common with other postcompulsory educational institutions, canvass student satisfaction with their services. While the predominant method is likely to be based on tick-box questionnaires using Likert scales that measure degrees of satisfaction, qualitative methodology is an option when rich data is…

Beginning in 2002, The Chicago Community Trust embarked on an ambitious grant- making strategy to improve education outcomes primarily in the city of Chicago and Cook County, Illinois. Known as The Education Initiative, this effort focused on three priority grant areas: literacy, professional development, and alternative models of schools. In…

The Bologna Declaration brought reforms into higher education that imply changes in teaching methods, didactic materials and textbooks, infrastructures and laboratories, etc. Statistics and mathematics are disciplines that traditionally have the worst success rates, particularly in non-mathematics core curricula courses. This research project,…

Preliminary guidelines are presented to provide a methodology for conducting user studies in the information field, particularly in developing countries. Topics covered include: user needs in planning a national information system; the identification of user groups; the design and organization of user studies, including background research survey…

Guidelines and resources for conducting a faculty evaluation were developed based on an evaluation project at Irvine Valley College (California). In the fall of 1989, eight instructors participated in a pilot test of evaluation through observation by two peers and the collection of rating forms completed by students. Participants also completed…

In 1992, the Leon County School District in Tallahassee (Florida) began a review process to select a new norm-referenced test. The selection process was efficient and functional, and may be of interest to other school districts. Consideration was given to a variety of sources through the following process steps: (1) establish the norm-referenced…

Bilingual Curriculum Content (BCC) is an instructional component of the Transitional Bilingual Basic Skills program offered to students with limited English proficiency (LEP) in the Dade County Public Schools, Florida. In BCC instruction, students learn mathematics and combined instruction (science, social studies, and health/safety) in their…

This technical report documents the procedures followed in developing student and teacher surveys to gather information about the accommodations students are accustomed to receiving and those that might be beneficial on a mathematics test delivered on the computer. It provides documentation of the technical adequacy of the survey instruments, as…