In Germany, responsibility for early childhood education and care (ECEC) lies with the 16 federal states, which define the structures, financing and regulations concerning ECEC. Due to a subsidiary system, municipalities are not able to offer ECEC as long as private providers offer enough places. These providers employ a large variety of…

A retired public school teacher recollects and reflects upon her collaboration with Patricia F. Carini, founder of the Prospect School and the Prospect Center for Education and Research. The recollections synthesize her participation in annual Prospect gatherings with an eclectic group of like-minded educators and caretakers from all over the…

There are long-standing educator shortages in particular subject areas and localities. Recent teacher polls and reports from states and localities indicate that the COVID-19 pandemic has broadened and deepened these shortages. At the same time, enrollment in teacher preparation programs has fallen. These trends have led state policymakers, pre-K…

The problem in this study was that despite encouragement from administrators, kindergarten through Grade 8 teachers struggled to use project-based learning (PBL) in a local school in the Association of Independent Maryland and DC Schools (AIMS). Rooted in Kilpatrick's progressive philosophy of education and Piaget's theory of constructivism, this…

Intermediary organizations seek to make change in the world by strengthening the practice or building the capacity of direct service providers. In the education sector, these types of organizations often play important roles as technical assistance providers, capacity builders, additional administrators, investors, or funders. At the core of this…

This theoretical piece explores the frame of mind required for a Science, Technology, Education and Mathematics (STEM) education in an uncertain time. Predominantly argued from an epistemic standpoint, this paper analyses the relationship between environment, anthropomorphism, the essence of education, and our presumed mastery of nature. In the…

Tamim is an organization designed as a school network, much like those found in the charter school sector, among innovative public schools, and in smaller numbers in other corners of the private school sector. Tamim is built on the notion of expanding existing prekindergarten programs associated with local Chabad Jewish centers into full…

The "Wall Street Journal" declared 2011 the "year of school choice" after 13 states enacted new choice policies or expanded existing ones. This brief discusses coalitions as the secret ingredient of the choice movement's success and shares lessons learned from the most effective coalitions. Key points include: (1) parental…

A burgeoning set of education-related organizations join networks each year, reflecting a shared belief that problems in education are too complex for any one educator or organization to solve on their own and that collaboration can support educational improvement. The goal of this paper is to describe how networked improvement communities (NICs)…

In this paper, we study fundraising efforts for traditional public schools in Philadelphia by neighborhood-based 'friends' groups that have incorporated as independent 501(c)(3)s to support individual schools. We situate the growth of school-based fundraising efforts within the well-known social science literature on the shadow state and the…

Neighborhood North, a play-oriented community museum in Beaver Falls, Pennsylvania, had just opened when the COVID-19 pandemic hit, and schools closed. The museum's mission is to increase educational equity in the community. Neighborhood North leaders immediately saw a need to support students at risk of falling behind in school with academic…

The education sector plays a vital role in an economic, social and environmental context since it has the capacity to transform society and prepare it to adapt to needs and challenges from different perspectives. It is a complex activity that accompanies the various stages of personal development and therefore it is an articulated sector that…

Germany, which reorganized its industry after the second world war, met a serious workforce insufficiency in the 1960s and tried to compensate this workforce deficit from developing countries. During these years there occurred big worker immigration to Germany from Turkey, which had a serious unemployment problem and an active population. The…

This article looks at the process of compiling a community archive in Westbury, Johannesburg. The township is located alongside the better known Sophiatown. Its history provides an insight into the experiences of the working class in the city since the establishment of Johannesburg more than a 100 years ago. The motivation for this archive comes…

Over the last two decades, a rising number of families with preschool age children speak a language other than English at home. Known as Dual Language Learners, or DLLs, they are likely to enter kindergarten already academically behind. This gap persists throughout high school, resulting in vastly different academic and life outcomes between DLLs…