This article explores the critical need for improved Mathematics, Science, Engineering and Technology (STEM) education in South African townships and rural areas, where persistent challenges in teaching methods and resource accessibility have hindered the development of these crucial subjects. The perception of Mathematics and Science as complex…

The authors research describe the complementary roles of centers as a combination of disruption and stabilization to show how they provide balance to reform efforts. They discovered that STEM [science, technology, engineering, and math] Education Centers (SECs) often had a disruptive influence and that Centers for Teaching and Learning (CTLs) had…

Since 1994 South African further education and training (FET) has undergone significant and fundamental changes. These changes include the transfer of colleges between state departments, curriculum revision, forced mergers and a shift in the student population. As a result of the growing interest in, and funding of, vocationally aligned education,…

This descriptive study of the twenty regional Education Service Centers in Texas is an exploratory analysis of programs and services that promote school improvement. Data collected from each service center website enabled the researcher to determine which programs and services are available to school districts and also allowed the researcher to…

"The Achiever" is a monthly publication for parents and community leaders. Each issue contains news and information about school improvement in the United States. Highlights of this issue include: (1) "Promising Gains" among Urban School Districts: Nation's Report Card Reveals Greatest Increases in Math; (2) Tying Names to…

As a growing number of schools and districts are found to be underperforming under the requirements of NCLB, school and district administrators are increasingly searching for research-based whole school improvement programs, including comprehensive school reform (CSR) models and education service providers (ESPs), in order to create dramatic…

An assessment of the role of teachers centres in England. (CB)

Two schools in Idaho received ARRA SIG (American Recovery and Reinvestment Act School Improvement Grants) funds to enable them to implement improvement efforts. This paper describes the outcomes of these two ARRA SIG recipient schools: (1) Jefferson Middle School; and (2) Lakeside Elementary School. The experiences of this non-recipient school is…

Two schools in Michigan received ARRA SIG (American Recovery and Reinvestment Act School Improvement Grants) funds to enable them to implement their improvement efforts. This paper describes the outcomes of these two ARRA SIG recipient schools: (1) Phoenix Elementary-Middle School; and (2) Arthur Hill High School. The experiences of these…

The major purpose of this descriptive report is to provide an overview of the structure, capacity, and roles of educational service agencies (ESAs) across five states--Illinois, Indiana, Michigan, Ohio, and Wisconsin--in the Great Lakes region, within the context of the broader statewide systems of support for educational improvement and progress.…

Using qualitative and quantitative methods in a single research project has been the subject of controversy. Purists argue that qualitative and quantitative approaches derive from different, mutually exclusive epistemologic and ontologic assumptions, and cannot be combined. Situationalists focus on methodology and assume that data collection and…

The number of objectives that formal education is expected to achieve has grown incredibly over the years. The task of educating has become so complex that the problems are hardly comprehensible. As with other complex problems, people tend to turn in frustration to simplistic solutions. When educational variables are studied, unfortunately, no…

THE REACTIONS OF 11 SUPERINTENDENTS OF SCHOOLS TO THE IDEA OF A SUPPLEMENTARY EDUCATION CENTER WERE PRESENTED. SUPERINTENDENTS WERE ASKED TO COMMENT ON THEIR PRESENT COOPERATIVE ARRANGEMENTS. REACTIONS WERE OBTAINED ON SUCH TOPICS AS REFERENCE SERVICE, INSTRUCTIONAL MATERIALS LIBRARY, BOOK EXAMINATION CENTER, CENTRALIZED CATALOGING AND PROCESSING,…

This consumer guide, for the first time ever, provides comparative ratings on the effectiveness and quality of seven widely adopted Education Service Providers (ESPs)--nonprofit or for-profit organizations that contract with new or existing public, charter, or private schools and/or school districts to provide comprehensive services. This report…

The Wabash Valley Supplementary Educational Center, the organization and activities of which are described in this report, is one of several multidistrict, multifunctional supplementary centers in the state of Indiana. Unique in that a university has contracted its operation, the Center has a two-fold purpose: (1) to provide educational services…