In response to a concern about the persistent underachievement in exams of Chemistry students in one school, a pilot study was carried out to see if mentoring-style intervention could improve exam performance. Individual personalised interviews were offered to a class, during which support for the development of the skills and subject knowledge…

Building on Freire's (1970) emancipatory learning theory and Yosso's (2005) community cultural wealth (CCW) approach, this article examines parents' participation in a family literacy project. Specifically, we focus on 10 Latina mothers and explore their interactions and relationships as a type of meaningful parental involvement. The research…

This article reports on a qualitative study that explored the experiences of eight Hong Kong teachers of academic subjects who undertook a full-time, short-term professional development course (PDC) designed to provide them with specialized knowledge and classroom skills required to teach content subjects through the English medium. Using a…

Emphasis on continuing professional development is seen as an important aspect of educational reform at all levels of education. In recent years, a number of colleges and universities have established partnerships for the professional development of teachers at the elementary and secondary levels. However, there have been few partnerships within…

This study examined the outcomes of 409 students with mental retardation or multiple disabilities from 177 school districts in a Great Lakes state. These students with intellectual disabilities were interviewed at exit and 1 year following graduation. The authors developed and tested three regression models--two to predict full-time employment and…

This paper explores one district's attempt to implement a blended science and English Language Development (ELD) elementary program, designed to provide English language learners opportunities to develop proficiency in English through participation in inquiry-based science. This process resulted in blended program that utilized a combined…

In Finland, quality assurance related to the Bologna process has been adapted to existing systems of higher education at the national level and a form of implementation is also recognised at the level of the higher education institution. In universities, varied outcomes of quality assurance are based on interaction of organisational structures,…

Background: During the 2004-2005 school year, the Mississippi Department of Education, Office of Child Nutrition, initiated a pilot program to distribute free fruit and vegetable snacks to students during the school day. This article describes the first-year implementation of the Mississippi Fruit and Vegetable Pilot Program. Methods: The process…

This article analyses the dilemmas and practical tensions in implementing competence-based vocational education. Eleven case studies were conducted, including observation of lessons and interviews with teachers and students. The results show that schools meet various fundamental issues in realising this approach. A crucial question is how to…

Utilizing a qualitative case-study design, this study explored how a mid-sized urban high school professional learning community was used as a reform effort to increase student achievement in mathematics on standards-based assessments. From a year-long interaction with the math professional learning community, which consisted of 3 school leaders…

The importance of storytelling in social, cultural and educational contexts is well established and documented. The extension of storytelling to people with profound intellectual and multiple disabilities (PIMD) has in recent years been undertaken with an emphasis on the value of sensory experience and the context storytelling provides for social…

This three-year longitudinal study explored the approach to study and academic performance of a group of male psychology undergraduates. In induction week, 112 new psychology students completed the survey. Later in the year, some of the males were interviewed in small groups. Performance was measured from marks at the end of Years 1 and 3. In Year…

The purpose of this study was to describe and evaluate an intervention used to train neighborhood leaders about community organizing and to enhance leadership skills. A mixed-method design was used which included (a) a pre- and posttest assessment of 83 participants, and (b) qualitative descriptive interviews of 33 participants. Over half of the…

This paper reports findings from an empirical four-year study designed to investigate the relationship between key constructs of an extended model of teaching and learning in higher education. Using a mixed-methods approach, we sought to assess the impact of a year-long faculty development program (FDP) designed for pre-tenure faculty on…

Evidence is accumulating that drug court programs appear effective in reducing the substance use and recidivism of drug-involved offenders. As there is no single drug court model, programs vary from site to site and the extent to which individual programs are fully implemented is not well documented. The extent to which drug court programs deliver…