Identifying motivation for enrollment in MOOCs has been an important way to predict participant success rates. But themes for motivation have largely centered around themes for enrolling in any MOOC, and not ones specific to the course being studied. In this study, qualitatively coding discussion forums was combined with topic modeling to identify…

This paper reports on research into the practice of learning rounds in Scotland. Learning rounds are a form of collaborative professional development for teachers based on the instructional rounds practice developed in the USA. In recent years learning rounds have gained high profile official support within education in Scotland. The research…

Preparing teachers in clinically rich contexts requires teacher educators who are skilled and knowledgeable about university coursework as well as the complexities of classrooms. Retired teachers or principals have often assumed the role of field supervisor, bringing to their work extensive practitioner knowledge but often lacking theoretical…

Providing academic assistance to English Language Learners (ELLs) is varied and often ineffective. The purpose of this causal-comparative study was to determine if there was a relationship between 9th grade students' performance on the High School Graduation Exam (HSGE) in reading and language and the Push-in and Pull-out models of instruction.…

Classroom management is a challenge for beginning teachers. To address this challenge, a model to provide support for beginning teachers was developed, consisting of a one-day workshop on classroom management, followed with online support extending over eight weeks. Specific classroom management strategies included (a) developing a foundation…

The continuously growing demand for program results has produced an increased need for evaluation capacity building (ECB). The "Integrative ECB Model" was developed to integrate concepts from existing ECB theory literature and to structure a synthesis of the empirical ECB literature. The study used a broad-based research synthesis method with…

Using a framework of assessment literacy that included teachers' view of learning, knowledge of assessment tools, and knowledge of assessment interpretation and action taking, this study explored the assessment literacy of five experienced middle school teachers. Multiple sources of data were: teachers' predictions about students' ideas, students'…

This article focuses on three features of professional development (PD) programs that play an important role in developing leadership skills and building teachers' capacity: (1) fostering a professional learning community, (2) developing teachers' mathematical knowledge for teaching, and (3) adapting PD to support local needs and interests. We…

This study involved the inclusion of special needs students in the general education classroom as required by law. The problem centered on general educators' perceptions of their abilities to meet the education needs of included students and their lack of training in special education issues. Research questions studied perceptions general…

One objective of the U.S. Department of Education's (ED) School Improvement Grants (SIG) and Race to the Top (RTT) program is to help states enhance their capacity to support the turnaround of low-performing schools. This capacity may be important, given how difficult it is to produce substantial and sustained achievement gains in low-performing…

In 2003, a state in the Rocky Mountain region combined the concept of partner schools (Goodlad, 1993) and the model of a professional development school (Holmes Group, 1986, 1995) to develop four university public school partnerships. This study asked two guiding questions: Is authentic cross-cultural collaboration possible between a university…

The HOPE Foundation (HOPE) commissioned the American Institutes for Research (AIR) to conduct an exploratory study of the implementation and impact of the Courageous Leadership Academy (CLA). In this report, the authors introduce the school reform model, describe the study methodology, present findings for each of the three research questions…

This paper investigates the impact of a two-year professional development program on teacher self-efficacy for inquiry-based instruction. The program utilizes scientist-teacher partnerships to develop content knowledge, inquiry-based instruction, and leadership skills for in-service STEM teachers. Participating teachers are administered a survey…

The purpose of this study was to develop a model for professional development based upon the views of in-service (practicing) music educators regarding their own professional development experiences and preferences. Toward this end, a survey was developed that gathered data from in-service music educators who were all members of the North Jersey…

Education policy analysts and professional educators have called for more and better professional learning opportunities for in-service teachers, and for at least 30 years economists called for more content training for high school economics teachers. Using new data from all Georgia high school economics students, we assess the impact of…