Describes how pre-service teachers at one elementary school participate in Grand Rounds (borrowed from the medical profession). Participants observe master teachers demonstrating model lessons and interacting with students. During a debriefing session, student teachers ask questions and discuss their observations with master teachers. Later, they…

Describes an interactive summer school teaching initiative in the United Kingdom that engages newly qualified secondary science teachers as mentors in the teaching of biotechnology. Highlights include course structure and format; opportunities for practical work; group work; peer assessment; course evaluation; and student attitudes. (Contains 52…

A Massachusetts two-way bilingual education program provides initial first-language (L1) literacy development for all students, teaches half of the curriculum in L1 and half in L2 by third grade, and selectively integrates native and non-native speakers of the target language. Both target groups meet academic and linguistic goals by fifth grade.…

Describes dual language instruction models, and presents a paradigm for examining congruence among theoretical models, teacher beliefs, and actual classroom practices to determine program effectiveness. Examples illustrate implementation pitfalls. Analysis of Proposition 227 finds it to be a decontextualized procedural model; it has an incoherent…

Discusses how child development research, social policy design, and human service delivery for children and families reflect three separate yet related cultures. Argues that transmitting knowledge from the academy to social policy and practice could be facilitated by a simple taxonomy differentiating established knowledge from both reasonable…

Forms part of a themed issue describing "Parent-Kid-Teacher Investigators," a program in which parents, children, and teachers gather regularly to use language and literacy for action research projects. Explains the philosophy, assumptions, and intentions behind the program, and research that supports it. Offers action examples of how each belief…

Examines the concept of authenticity and the way this notion has evolved in language testing and general education. Presents a study looking at the importance of authenticity for test takers, and shows that test takers are willing and able to identify the attributes of a test likely to affect their performance. More research is needed if the…

Describes potential contributions of theories of person-environment fit to understanding of the transition from school to work. Provides specific implications for integrating these concepts into school-to-work programs including: students need to spend time in exploration that leads to self-knowledge; programs should teach elements of…

Addresses questions that need to be considered in future theoretical and research agendas about how extant career theories provide conceptual insights into the content and process of school-to-work transition. Questions include (a) "Why are career theories not developed to account for the school-to-work process?"; and (b) "Are the proposed career…

Builds on the assumption that colleges and universities are organizations and subsequently that the organizational perspective provides important insights for improving retention on campuses. A review of existing organizational studies of undergraduate persistence serves as the basis for ten empirically-based recommendations for practice that are…

Examines five shibboleths (common ideas) about the relationship between campus culture and student persistence. Describes a six-step approach for using the peer group and classroom as key elements in cultivating a success-oriented institutional culture. (Author/EV)

Theorizes about interrelations between "rites of passage" in Tinto's (1993) Student Integration Model, and support from significant others in Nora and Cabrera's (1996) Student Adjustment Model. Depicts how both sets of factors impact social and academic experiences and integration, commitment levels to attainment of an educational goal…

The quality of existing teacher education programs is currently being debated in many countries and at many educational levels. This article examines the nature of teaching and challenges the common mechanistic approach to teacher education design. If teaching is a complex profession, then a more integrated and dynamic approach to designing…

The lead article of the January 2002 issue of "Educational Leadership" suggested five strategies for schools to welcome children from sexual minority families. The journal for "Equity and Excellence in Education" has finalized a special issue focusing on LGBTQ issues in schools. The "Journal of Adolescence" (2001) and the "High School Journal"…

Profound problems in public schools require solutions that are often difficult to implement. Although we, as a society, see the future embodied in the students, our promise to educate them is often not reflected in our practices. A lack of will is evident. The following article explores the notion of "schools at work" and provides…