Mindfulness research is growing as educators and practitioners place emphasis on social emotional learning (SEL). Evidence supports mindfulness benefits are both physical and mental to include lowering blood pressure, decreased anxiety, increased executive functioning, and increased ability to pay attention. While the benefits of mindfulness…

In 2009, district data revealed that new students at Appoquinimink School District (ASD) were struggling academically and socially. Several specific steps were taken to improve the outcomes of these new students. First, an in-depth review of the relevant data regarding new students in the district was conducted. A white paper on relevant research…

For the forty-first time, the Association for Educational Communications and Technology (AECT) is sponsoring the publication of these Proceedings. Papers published in this volume were presented at the annual AECT Convention in Kansas City, Missouri. The Proceedings of AECT's Convention are published in two volumes. Volume 1 contains twenty-seven…

This case study examined the implementation of the California Mentor Teacher Program (CMTP) in a large urban school district. The CMTP is an effort to retain skillful teachers and to improve teaching by promoting direct, rigorous, and consequential activities and relationships between mentors and beginning teachers. The participants in the study…

British educational policy on inservice training has established as a priority the training of classroom teachers to meet special educational needs of their students, using a curriculum-focused, whole-school approach. Three issues require consideration in the policy's implementation: academic organization, social climate of the school, and…

The purpose of this guide is to help school districts and education service centers plan effective inservice education programs consistent with laws and rules enacted by the Texas state legislature and the Texas State Board of Education. Essential provisions and acceptable activities of inservice teacher education are listed. The basic elements of…

An intensive study of innovative projects in five elementary and secondary schools provided an opportunity to examine teacher participation in pre-implementation activities. Particular attention was paid to the motivation and roles of participants. It was found that participation is complex and varied. There were three major findings: (1)…

The purpose of the Career Education Program in the Paint Valley Local School District (Ohio) was to provide career education experiences for students in the district that would enable them to make valid decisions in relation to career education based upon a sundry of planned vocational experiences provided by the district staff and project…

The PRECEDE model, a conceptual model of comprehensive program development and implementation for health education, was used as a framework for a school-based drug (including alcohol and tobacco) education program specific to each individual classroom teacher's situation. A dual-purpose workshop was held for elementary and secondary school…

The state-funded Quality Improvement Program Plan (QUIPP) for Special Educators provided professional development training to New York City special education teachers and paraprofessionals to improve the quality of instruction for students with mildly to moderately handicapping conditions. The program was designed to be participant-driven and…

School climate is defined, four instruments used to assess various dimensions of school climate are described, and implications of a school climate profile for developing an individualized staff development program in a rural school setting are discussed. Developed from the professional literature, the definition of school climate includes the…

The career education project conducted by the Mesa (Arizona) Unified School District was designed to develop a written objectives-based Model Accountability System (MAS) that identifies terminal career education behaviors according to several themes, specifies assessment items for each objective, and provides a monitoring system and mastery…

This report describes and assesses second-year activities of the University of Toledo (Ohio)/Springfield Local Schools Teacher Corps Project. Planning and implementation procedures related to staff development courses and workshops at elementary, junior, and senior high schools are the focus of this initial assessment. Assessments of the following…

Schools of choice, which enable families to select among deliberately diversified schools and programs, benefit teachers. They facilitate empowerment, professionalization of practice, collaborative activity, and collegiality. The choice debate in Minnesota is reviewed, and issues confronting stakeholders are discussed. Educators should be…

This report describes and assesses the effectiveness of activities conducted by the University of Toledo (Ohio)/Springfield Local Schools Teacher Corps Project. On-site staff development activities provided to staff at elementary, junior, and senior high schools are described: (1) two credit-bearing courses on elementary and secondary level…