This narrative case study describes the use of improvement science methods to strengthen the effectiveness of field experiences for teacher candidates. As part of a networked improvement community, we sought to reduce variation in the quality of field experience by providing a cohesive network of high-quality coaching supports. Using design-based…

The longitudinal study was designed to investigate the impacts of the International Training Program in Pedagogy (ITPP) at a midwestern institution in the US on the visiting scholars in seven cohorts from China in 2012-18. The study used the cohort survey research design method. The first part of the data was collected from 48 visiting scholars…

This appendix augments a report that updates 2013 guidance to school district leaders and their partners across the country who are interested in launching summer learning programs or improving established ones. In that report, the authors present recommendations based on evaluations, conducted between 2011 and 2016, of summer programs in five…

This study focuses on exploring pre-service primary general teacher students' (N = 40) reflections on the opportunities they were given to awake their creativity, by participating systematically (13 weeks) in music improvisation activities, in the context of the course Music Education in a university classroom of a Greek Department of Primary…

A core motivation for the widespread teacher evaluation reforms of the last decade was the belief that these new systems would promote teacher development through high-quality feedback. We examine this theory by studying teachers' perceptions of evaluation feedback in Boston Public Schools and evaluating the district's efforts to improve feedback…

Many students with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) have specialized interests and passions that are highly reinforcing. Such special interest areas (SIAs) are more than mere hobbies or simple curiosities. Rather, the SIAs of an individual with autism may be characterized by (a) significant depth and breadth of knowledge about the area, (b)…

Background: The social relationships model was developed to describe positive relationships between support staff and people with intellectual disability. We evaluated an educational intervention based on this model. Method: Eighteen staff supporting 5 adult service users with severe or profound intellectual disability from 3 day services received…

Contexts that promote intensive second language (L2) experiences (typically, stay abroad, immersion, etc.) are reported to facilitate language development; yet, little is known about such programs when they are addressed to school-age learners in their home country. The present study examines the experiences of learners aged 11-13 years who…

Effective field supervision of preservice teachers has numerous challenges, including a recent shift in how supervision is being conducted due to COVID-19. To address these challenges, faculty members from an educational leadership and teacher preparation program, respectively, developed a model of supervision involving educational leadership and…

Today, efforts are underway across the country to transform teacher evaluation into a useful tool for improving teaching and learning. These efforts are supported by state statutes as well as by improvements in state and local data systems and the development of new student assessments. In 2015, the National Council on Teacher Quality (NCTQ)…

Today many special education classrooms implement procedures based upon the principles of Applied Behavior Analysis (ABA) to establish educationally relevant skills and decrease aberrant behaviors. However, it is difficult for school staff and consultants to evaluate the implementation of various components of ABA and general classroom set up. In…

Questions about optimal routes to becoming an effective teacher have fueled an ongoing debate for more than 50 years--also, not coincidentally, a time of increasing regulation of teacher preparation programs. A number of alternative pathways have been investigated (Darling-Hammond, 2010; Darling-Hammond, Holtzman, Gatlin, & Heilig, 2005), yet…

Spanish teachers' feelings of self-efficacy can provide an important measure of their abilities to be effective in the classroom and, perhaps, affect student achievement. There is a need for qualitative research focused on the lived experiences of inservice foreign language teachers while they are immersed in the target culture in order to better…

The purpose of this study was to investigate the effect of a community service activity on improving teachers' pedagogic competence in Bawean Island of Gresik Regency, Indonesia. The treatment method was based on a model of special education profession in a remote island by implementing lesson study activity introduced and developed previously on…

This article explores the interaction between popular culture, community-based education, and the establishment of a critically literate debate community, using the case of City Debate as one example of how critical literacy is embedded and taught through curriculum. Debate has historically been conceptualized as a structurally rigid space for…