A "mentor" is someone who is always there for collegial support, but not dependency. Mentorships should feature availability, open communication lines, demonstration of administrative expertise, allocation of sufficient time, attention to the clarification of job expectations, and provision of spiritual support. Characteristics and benefits of…

Provides response to two reaction papers to January 1989 article "Mental Health Counseling Theory: Present Status and Future Prospects." Addresses many issues that either clarify past statements or show differing positions from viewpoints expressed by two reactions. Concludes that theory can guide skill-based, empirically validated practice as…

Describes in storytelling fashion a teacher's reflections on herself, the teaching process, the children as learners and her relationship to them, the course of her reflections, and the growing pleasure she took in them. (SR)

While certain curriculum evaluation techniques are useful for educational research purposes, few are feasible in the workaday classroom setting. This homilectic article recommends that curriculum evaluations be prescriptive, feasible, unthreatening, economical, and capable of reducing uncertainty. (MLH)

Describes William Stern's professional accomplishments, including pioneering work in educational counseling and contributions to general systems such as Gestalt psychology. Argues that Stern's example supports conclusion that no one scientific method provides single best approach to all questions of psychology, and that interaction between…

Although education lacks a rigorous theoretical base, principals and other administrators can improve their theory-based decision making by formulating a statement defining the status quo, adjusting practices to eliminate inconsistencies, developing a consistent districtwide theoretical structure, and giving future decisions a sound theoretical…

Defines two types of antimony--minor, contradictory statements that have major effects--and shows how they abound in reading research. Concludes that the problem of antimonies must be resolved before research, on empirical grounds alone, can effectively improve practice. (MM)

Participatory research embodies an ideal of community education: all persons affected by issues and decisions should be involved in defining the issues, deciding what information is needed, and participating in making the decisions. (SK)

Proposes that the work of the French feminist writers Helene Cixous and Luce Irigaray could serve as the basis for devising a more imaginative form of critical writing that might help to draw the history and practice of graphic design into a closer and more purposeful relation. (SR)

Presents a conceptual model for understanding occupational therapy performance and a model for practice. Evaluates both models on nine criteria, finding the conceptual model largely consistent but the practice model having technical, structural, and conceptual discrepancies. (SK)

Offers a pragmatic discussion of potential problems and practical solutions that arise when implementing funded research from the National Institutes of Health (NIH). Describes the activities of the investigator and NIH from the time a proposal is submitted through the first year of funding. Includes a timeline for review and funding for NIH…

The growing respect for practice is not incompatible with theory. Reflective practice and participatory research stress the importance of linking theory with practice within concrete forms of everyday action. (SK)

Presents technical communication as both discipline and profession. Explores the nature of research, discusses linking theory with practice, examines the gap between theory and practice, challenges conventional wisdom about the applicability of research, and offers suggestions for bridging the gap. (SR)

Examines the paradigmatic status of educational communications and technology from a cultural anthropology perspective. Kuhn's model is described, cultural evolution is discussed, emic and etic operations are described, and the schism between researchers and practitioners in educational communications and technology is considered. (32 references)…

Interviews with 12 student affairs administrators revealed that respondents were applied theorists and reflective practitioners; action phase of reflective process was integral to decision making; respondents believed their thinking patterns remained constant throughout life; formal education played minimal role in helping administrators become…