Certain practices in volunteer development have proved successful to help organizations make the best use of their volunteers. Development should be a comprehensive, continuous process through which individuals can extend, update, and adapt their knowledge, skills, and abilities to enhance their performance and potential. A model for volunteer…

A pivotal part of Scotland's Childcare Strategy is the provision of out-of-school care (OSC). The Scottish Executive Education Department commissioned an assessment of the costs and benefits of OSC in Scotland. Despite methodological issues such as lack of longitudinal studies, the review of existing literature evidenced a range of economic…

As part of Louisiana's efforts to expand and improve the quality of its early childhood programs, a committee of educators from across the state collaborated to develop standards for programs serving 4-year-olds. This guide presents program standards to assist the ongoing development, evaluation, and improvement of early childhood center-based…

This chapter examines how integrating the study of motivation to learn with the issue of identity development during adolescence requires simultaneous attention to patterns of school functioning, peer relationships, and mental health at the level of the individual, and to patterns of developmental supports or risks at the level of the social…

Using data from the San Diego City School District as a case study, this paper describes how discipline policies and practices put black and Latino students at a disadvantage. It offers examples of effective approaches to addressing dysfunctional classrooms. It focuses on how San Diego's schools provide unequal educational opportunity in the…

This final report describes the activities and outcomes of a federally funded project that was designed to develop, validate, and disseminate a training program for teachers of students with autism. The strategies taught to teachers were those that have been accepted as best practice in autism literature. Since 1996 more than 500 teachers,…

The purpose of this paper is to draw a distinction between the use of group work and subgroup work in the delivery of online courses, and along the way to pose the question "What should be the objective of the instructor?" To do this, four different models of online course delivery used in the teaching of information technology (IT) and…

This book focuses on a key component of literacy instruction: helping children become thoughtful, independent readers who are able to use a flexible repertoire of reading strategies for comprehension and word recognition. The book presents research-based explanations and guidelines that culminate in a comprehensive strategy instruction model. It…

Early Childhood Research and Practice (ECRP), a peer-reviewed, Internet-only journal sponsored by the ERIC Clearinghouse on Elementary and Early Childhood Education (ERIC/EECE), covers topics related to the development, care, and education of children from birth to approximately age 8. The journal emphasizes articles reporting on practice-related…

The Peace Corps Information Collection and Exchange makes available its information resources to other organizations. This document, made available in English, French, and Swahili, is one such resource. The focus of this document is a comprehensive behavior change approach that concentrates on the development of skills needed for life, such as…

Over the past decade, the care of children with serious emotional challenges has evolved toward a system of care encompassing a coordinated spectrum of services and supports responsive to child and family needs. This book is a collection of papers based on work at East Carolina University that examines elements of the system of care in relation to…

This workshop manual focuses on validation procedures designed to foster program improvement rather than compliance monitoring. The manual is in eight chapters. Chapter 1 looks at the elements to be evaluated--organization and management, training, student assessment, design and implementation of classroom interventions, team work, screening a…

The Instructional Support Team (IST) process is mandated in all Pennsylvania schools that include any grade from kindergarten through 6. Middle schools that house grade six or below are required to enroll in IST training and ultimately achieve IST validation. In addition to the IST requirement, all secondary schools are required to have a Student…

This report concludes a 15-month research project examining the role that minority status (African American, Hispanic, Asian Pacific Islander, Native American) plays in the processing of youth by the juvenile justice system. The research began with a review and summary of existing research on the issue. A strategy was then developed for…

This document presents a model used by the Davis School District (Utah) to revise their comprehensive guidance program. The model addresses the four primary purposes of education (essential learning skills, civic responsibility, career preparation, and personal development). Counselors collaborate with individual students and their parents to form…