While adolescent foundational skills interventions can be critical levers for reading improvement, district leaders, teachers, and researchers must make complex decisions about how to evaluate their effectiveness in context. In this discussion article, we explore three issues and tensions we experienced during a 2-year research-practice…

This article explores three current, influential English language teaching (ELT) curriculum approaches to the teaching of English in public-sector schools at the primary and secondary level and how the theory of each approach translates into curriculum practice. These approaches are communicative language teaching (CLT), genre-based pedagogy, and…

Multimodal pedagogy is increasingly accepted among composition scholars. However, putting such pedagogy into practice presents significant challenges. In this profile of Washington State University's first-year composition program, we suggest a multi-vocal and multi-theoretical approach to addressing the challenges of multimodal pedagogy. Patricia…

In 2006, our School of Management began the serious path of assessing both the "hard skills" (such as accounting, finance, and strategy) and the "soft skills" (such as leadership, team work, and ethics) of our MBA Program. The data generated from examining the "soft skills" that we want students to learn within our…

We have two aims here. Our first is to articulate what gains may be made by students who engage in our course to determine what exactly is gained by students who participate in such experiences. We believe such courses have educational value, but needed to find a way to articulate our course's success in helping students meet our stated learning…

Background: A responsive and innovative postgraduate programme curriculum that produces an effective and competent multi professional healthcare leader whom can lead within the United Kingdom (UK) and international healthcare context offers a promising approach to contributing towards the challenging global healthcare agenda. Aims: The aim of the…

This enlightening handbook offers current, international perspectives on the conditions in communities, contemporary practices in schooling, relevant research on teaching and learning, and implications for the future of education. It contains diverse conceptual frameworks for analyzing existing issues in education, including but not limited to…

What general principles should inform a socioculturally sensitive pedagogy for teaching English as an International Language and what practices would be consistent with these principles? This text explores the pedagogical implications of the continuing spread of English and its role as an international language, highlighting the importance of…

Two experiments in training teachers of modern languages, carried out in Greece from 1982 to 1985, are analyzed. The approach, aimed at establishing a theory-practice link, was intended to maximize teacher autonomy. The second experiment, based on the first, involved producing a new curriculum and materials and new evaluation methods. (Author/MT)

Needs assessment identifies "real world" problems to result in priorities for action. It is used for educational planning, but is inconsistently practiced and poorly researched. This paper describes how 14 novices conducted needs assessments and explains the outcomes. The research context was a year-long fellowship in medical education in which…

Reports on a curriculum development project in which principles of instructional design were integrated with real-world experiences in a corporate environment to provide a connection between graduate education and practice. Evaluations by learners, the client, student teams, and the instructor are discussed, and guidelines for similar projects are…

This book presents a series of case studies in higher education which demonstrate how teams of academics have improved their practice, skill and conditions of learning and teaching through "action research." Action research is defined as collaborative critical enquiry by academics themselves into their own teaching practice, into problems of…

This paper presents a functional approach to assessment and associated program development for individuals with severe disabilities, with emphasis on informal strategies that target beginning communicative levels. In the first section, form, function, and context (three components of any communicative act) are defined and described. Three…

Describes an experimental undergraduate seminar on the production and dissemination of scientific knowledge. The course takes a multidisciplinary approach, using case studies to draw together theoretical principles from library and information science, the philosophy and sociology of science, critical thinking and problem solving, and the…

In this volume of "Adventures in Assessment," an annual literacy education journal, teachers and practitioners write about their experiences with standards-based reform initiatives at the state and national levels. The following seven articles are included: "What Makes a Good Teacher?" (Marie F. Hassett); "Successful…