Background/Context: Schools and districts are increasingly emphasizing evidence-based decision making as a means for improving teaching and learning. In response, professional development efforts have shifted toward situated, sustained activities that involve groups of teachers in reflective inquiry about student learning data, instructional…

Higher Education Support Personnel support the faculty in fulfilling the mission of America's colleges and universities. Rarely studied, these personnel include position classifications such as support/service professionals, technical/paraprofessionals, clerical and secretarial, service/maintenance, and skilled crafts. The support/service…

What is transformative professional development for educators? Ideally, teachers and school leaders are given multiple opportunities to revisit schemas about themselves and their learning communities, with the intent to transform practice, the school environment, and even themselves. In practice, three cohorts of teachers and school leaders…

Purpose: The aim of this study is to analyse the experiences of student teachers and mentors regarding in-service teacher-training or the "Learning in the Workplace Trajectory" (LIW) in Flemish secondary schools. How is this trajectory perceived by mentors and student teachers, i.e. do their individual expectations and capacities match…

Teachers are the most important element in the education system (Stronge, 2002). However, studies of teachers in certain sectors are lacking. The paucity of research on teachers who work in the alternative school environment was a driving force behind this study, which is a case study of the characteristics of alternative schools, perceptions of…

Public schools must be the catalyst for achieving equity in education. Real equity is not simply achieving equality or about ensuring that everyone gets the same resources and receives the same instruction. Equity is about ensuring that all students get what they need to be successful. Fairness is not providing the same resources, instruction, and…

Campuses are often in flux. When school leaders seek immediate solutions for problems, the status quo gives way to the next big thing. The new program brings excitement and hope yet some anxiety as teachers scramble to learn and apply it successfully. In a few short months, however, when things are not working quite as they should, teacher resolve…

This paper examines the effects of principal leadership and peer teacher influence on teachers' instructional practice and student learning. Using teacher survey and student achievement data from a mid-sized urban southeastern school district in the United States in 2006-2007, the study employs multilevel structural equation modeling to examine…

A national (USA) student-led, case-based CLinician/Administrator Relationship Improvement OrganizatioN (CLARION) competition focuses students in medical and related healthcare programs on the provision of healthcare that is safe, timely, equitable, patient-centred, effective and efficient. Students work in four-person, inter-professional teams to…

The purpose of this study is to determine how the leadership practices and guiding values of a professional learning community affect the nature of the professional relationships among teachers. For purposes of this study, professional relationships are defined as the purposeful interactions, communications, and connections between teachers…

Knowledge management is crucial in higher education practices that refer knowledge sharing, feedback and communication process as part of the quality improvements. In this process, technology has a role to diffuse knowledge and create a link for sharing within the knowledge management process. In this respect, this research study aims to examine…

The inclusion of self-directed projects as an element within a New Zealand principal development programme was designed to reflect increasing support internationally for such a context-specific "inquiry" approach. The results reported in this article suggest that considerable clarity is required for such projects if they are to realize…

Most teachers look back on their first year (or years) of teaching with humility, many with some regret. The author stresses that teachers are always learners, especially so in their first years. At the beginning of each year, they start over again with new students. A learning teacher takes risks and makes mistakes but derives new information,…

Teachers are leaders when they function in professional learning communities to affect student learning, contribute to school improvement, inspire excellence in practice, and empower stakeholders to participate in educational improvement. From an equity perspective, teachers also lead when they serve as change agents who collaborate to use…

Now in its 9th year of implementation, Oklahoma's Career Tech New Teacher Induction (NTI) has an overall retention rate of 82.6%. A team approach is used and collaboration occurs between local administrators, a local mentor, and a higher education representative. This manuscript focuses on 3 years of both qualitative and quantitative data…