This paper tells the story of how a small group of academics and practitioners worked together using action learning to produce a collectively planned research proposal aimed at addressing challenges in the English special educational needs and disabilities (SEND) system. A genuine attempt to try something new, the paper reflects on the pros and…

Distance learning technology continues to grow and undergo significant changes in higher education settings. Applying strategic planning methods from organizational behavior and operations management can act as a useful guide for the implementation of a sustainable distance learning program. Strong planning can help ensure the distance learning…

The COVID-19 Omicron variant was causing a new wave of infections and, because of school and life disruptions, students were struggling with learning loss and a decline in mental and emotional health in 2021. Against this backdrop, FHI 360, an organization whose education initiatives aim to dismantle obstacles and give students the tools they need…

"Implementation in education" refers to active and planned efforts to introduce and sustain an approach in schools. It involves making, and acting on, evidence-informed decisions. There is substantial evidence indicating that quality implementation amplifies the effectiveness of a range of school-based approaches. However, implementation…

Universities consist of students, faculty and staff, interacting through multiple layers of organization and on a variety of time scales. They are complex adaptive systems (CAS) yet the bulk of scholarship on higher education analyzes them using conventional social science methods, with little work that tries to understand them using complexity…

This qualitative case study examined the individual plan of study (IPS) within three comprehensive high schools. Ecological systems theory was used as a construct for understanding the actions of the participants and their interactions within the ecology in support of the success of each student. Participants in this research shared their…

Agent-based models combine data and theory during both development and use of the model. As models have become increasingly data driven, it is easy to start thinking of agent-based modelling as an empirical method, akin to statistical modelling, and reduce the role of theory. We argue that both types of information are important where the past is…

The rhetoric of the reading wars has become more than just an armchair academic debate, but is encoded now in the very laws, house and senate bills, and legislative policies of the majority of the states. In turn, these policies are powered by staggering sums of money such as the 90-million-dollar investment of Fulton County, Georgia in a revamp…

In this chapter, the major concepts from program planning in adult education will be applied to health professions education (HPE). Curriculum planning and program planning will be differentiated, and program development and planning will be grounded in a systems thinking approach.

Community partnerships empower charter schools by strengthening their capacity to serve the needs of students, families, and staff through deliberate partnerships with community-based entities. The autonomy that charter schools are afforded uniquely equips them with the flexibility to engage partners and even design schools for which one or more…

The North Dakota Department of Public Instruction (NDDPI) periodically assesses the needs of early childhood and K-12 students and educators regarding literacy instruction. These periodic assessments assist NDDPI with meeting the needs of educators and the students they serve through grants and other programs and opportunities. This report reviews…

Through a collaborative autoethnographic approach, a former principal, current principal, current assistant principal, and aspiring principal recount their experiences pertaining to identification of leadership talent. As identified through previous research, proper identification or talent is the first major component to quality succession…

Education and business, as professional disciplines, seem, at first glance, to be linked. Both are social enterprises involving relationships and processes derived to accomplish a particular set of tasks. However the track record of injecting business methodology into school communities has been poor. Historically the introduction of management…

The alignment of professional development and teacher evaluation has been a growing concern in teacher professional development practices. The issue of how teacher evaluation can help authentic professional development is important in that teachers only learn what is real, useful and valuable to them. Based on our reflections on current…

When K-12 schools in California closed for in-person instruction in response to COVID-19 in March 2020, few would have predicted that most schools would remain physically closed for more than one year. Throughout this period, California's educators and students have continued teaching and learning remotely for the most part, demonstrating…