As middle grades teacher educators, we carry a responsibility to prepare pre-service teachers for the realities of practice ahead in their real-world classrooms. Similarly, middle school instructional coaches and specialists support in-service practitioners within the authentic context of their real world, real time experiences as teachers. In the…

In 2013 the Vermont legislature enacted Act 77 mandating that students in Grades 7-12 develop personalized learning plans (PLPs) to guide them toward high school graduation using proficiency-based requirements. In the present qualitative self-study, we document the impact of implementation of a personal learning framework integrating PLPs into a…

Increased student achievement is the goal of all educators, and to that end, teachers must engage in professional development so that they are introduced to new strategies. Moreover, these professional development offerings must be sustained with a follow-up plan that allows teachers to practice strategies and reflect and collaborate with…

This paper highlights reciprocal teaching as an inclusive instructional strategy that has been shown to improve reading comprehension and metacognitive skills. It provides a conceptual background to reciprocal teaching and examines its purpose, strengths and weaknesses. The notion of reciprocal teaching as an evidence-based practice is also…

Given international use of video-based reflective discussions in teacher education, and the limited knowledge about whether teachers apply learning from these discussions, we explored teachers' learning of new ideas about pedagogy and their self-reported application of this learning. Nine inservice and 48 preservice teachers participated in…

This article is about spiritual development for early childhood Jewish education. Findings from a research study defines the spiritual development of young children as an integration of deep connections, basic dispositions (strengthened from experiences of wonderment, awe, joy, inner peace), and complex dispositions (displayed through acts of…

In the digital age, numerous technological tools are available to enhance educational practices. When used effectively, student engagement and mobile learning are significantly increased. "Social Media in Education: Breakthroughs in Research and Practice" contains a compendium of the latest academic material on the usage, strategies, and…

This multiple case study examined the reflections of elementary teachers as they taught science to English language learners (ELLs). The six participants in this study developed explanations about their science teaching with ELLs as they engaged in reflective practice using video-based tools during a professional development experience. Open…

In spring 2012, Sherry Kaufman, a consultant at Francis W. Parker School in Chicago, was asked to support kindergarten teachers in deepening their practice of constructivism and exploring the Reggio Emilia approach to early childhood education. Central to such an approach is the belief that all learning is socially constructed through interaction…

If practicing teachers are expected to be reflective practitioners, as teacher standards require, they must understand what reflection means. The problem addressed in this research study concerns the confusion about the meaning of the term reflection in education. The purpose of the study was to develop substantive theory about the relationship…

This article explores the use of blogs for pre-service language teacher education in two national settings, the UK (University of Cambridge) and the US (University of South Florida). Taking two approaches to blogging and to learning through blogging (one based on self-reflection and a constructivist approach and one based on social and…

Educators in the social studies content area have struggled for over a century with how to best instruct their students in critical thinking. A growing group of researchers in the discipline of history, one of the major components of social studies education, support teaching the domain-specific skills of historical thinking through the process of…

Many scholars have characterized the "apprenticeship of observation" as a "pitfall" to be avoided or a barrier to be overcome in preservice teacher education, but directly challenging students' experience-based beliefs often leads to resistance, making students feel discounted or disrespected. In my introductory educational psychology course,…

Although teachers often report that they subscribe to cooperative learning (CL) to help students attain social and academic goals, research indicates that they often have difficulties implementing and sustaining their commitment. The purpose of this study is to report on the reflections of seven middle-year teachers who had embedded CL in their…

Formal mentoring programs focus on the probationary period of new teachers. Providing teachers with mentoring support during the initial years of teaching requires significant commitment and investment from school districts, mentors, and new teachers. Numerous studies argue the merits of mentoring programs, yet the research has been less clear…