The purpose of this study was to explore the components of a PBIS pilot program facilitated by a team at a special services cooperative in the Midwest. This study identified the goals of the program and looked at the fidelity of implementation over a three year period for the first cohort of schools to participate in the program. For this study…

This article discusses practice-near research in human services, a cluster of methodologies that may include thick description, intensive reflexivity, and the study of emotional and relational processes. Such methods aim to get as near as possible to experiences at the relational interface between institutions and the practice field.…

This article reports on a review of empirical research published in selected higher education journals in 2008, which was focused on examining how often theories are developed through research. This review found relatively little evidence of theory development. Drawing on the notions of internal and external languages of description, it is argued…

Fragmentation between formal and functional approaches to prosodic variation is an ongoing problem in linguistic research. In particular, the frameworks of the Phonetics of Talk-in-Interaction (PTI) and Empirical Phonology (EP) take very different theoretical and methodological approaches to this kind of variation. We argue that it is fruitful to…

Knowledge about the nature of science has been advocated as an important component of science because it provides a framework on which the students can incorporate content knowledge. However, little empirical evidence has been provided that links nature of science knowledge with content knowledge. The purpose of this mixed method study was to…

This article explores the intersections between drama and digital gaming and the educational possibilities for literacy of both. The article draws on a model for the educational uses of digital gaming and three case studies from the Australian Research Council funded three and a half year project, "Literacy in the digital world of the twenty…

Even though one of the prerequisites of inquiry-based science classes is acquiring measuring skills, there is not enough emphasis in the schools today on developing these skills. The current study, which has been designed with the thought that this situation may be caused by the fact that teachers do not have a sufficient level of measurement…

This paper examines the definition of research, purpose and influence of educational research on policy and its practitioners, the distinguishing features of positivist and interpretative approaches as complementary research paradigms, and to debate their relevance in exploring quality education in schools in St. Lucia, a small Caribbean Island.…

This paper reports a mixed methods study which aimed to improve Turkish pre-service English language teachers' competences and qualifications during their teaching practice experience (the practicum). The analysis of qualitative and quantitative data was framed by a sociocultural perspective focused around individual, cultural, and social factors…

Since the advent of new technology for learning, innovative language instructors have been constantly seeking new pedagogy to match the potential of technology-enhanced instruction. While previous studies have supported the adoption of technologies to facilitate language teaching and learning, research into enhancing English as a foreign language…

This article examines changes in teachers' beliefs and practices over the course of a professional development (PD) program concerned with the implementation of a constructivist-oriented pedagogy in English as a Foreign Language (EFL) classrooms. Grounded in situative theories of learning and development, the School-based Support Program places…

As learning a foreign language poses a number of challenges for the students, it has become indispensable to search for "optimal" conditions to enhance opportunities of engaging in the target language. Within this context, the Mobile-Blended Collaborative Learning model has been integrated in and out of the classroom learning in order to…

Undergraduate education incorporating active learning and vicarious experience through education outreach presents a critical opportunity to influence future engineering teaching and practice capabilities. Engineering education outreach activities have been shown to have multiple benefits; increasing interest and engagement with science and…

This study was conducted with medical students, physicians, patients and carers in a paediatric and an adult hospital to determine use of mobile devices for learning, and beliefs and attitudes about others' use. Awareness of ethical, patient privacy and data security concerns was explored. The research was conducted using a mixed-methods…

Purpose: The purpose of this paper is to expand the growing body of research on the educational impact of 1:1 mobile devices, investigating the iPad's potential to reduce the disparity of access to high-quality instructional technology and achievement for low income, racially, and linguistically diverse students. Design/methodology/approach: This…