Critical review of the literature on problem-based learning (PBL) in medical education focuses on: (1) the credibility of claims (both empirical and theoretical) about the ties between PBL and educational outcomes and (2) the magnitude of the effects. Concludes there is no convincing evidence that PBL improves knowledge base and clinical…

Interviews with 76 lecturers, 46 practitioners, and 131 nursing students in Britain showed that, despite recommendations that lecturers spend 20% of their time in clinical practice, most feel unprepared and unsupported in this role. Students and practitioners want a better-organized approach that would give them sustained support in the practice…

Examines change-related communication in the business services department of a large local-government organization in New Zealand, exploring it from three perspectives: functional, romantic, and critical. Outlines the logic, metaphors, and standards for evaluation of each perspective, and notes how they highlight different change-related…

The educational leadership field has not kept pace with globalizing events in policy and practice. Discusses major issues (transfer of ideas, clarification of cultural concepts, cultural assumptions in management, politico-cultural contexts, and tensions between indigenous cultures and reform tenets) raised in this special issue and expresses them…

Two-thirds of teachers (N=58) in special schools and units in the United Kingdom reported that they used interactive approaches but what this meant to them varied considerably. Their responses are compared with central elements of interactive approaches identified in the literature. A relative lack of emphasis on process among the teachers is…

A questionnaire was developed and administered to 30 young children with autism and a control group to explore sensory hyper- and hypo-sensitivities. Significant differences were found between groups across all (auditory, tactile, visual, gustatory, and vestibular) domains. Findings are interpreted within the framework of theory of mind and joint…

Provides units of study for a graduate level seminar designed to help students gain command of the conventions and nuances of filmmaking, while encouraging them to critique these conventions as they develop an emergent voice of their own. (PA)

A collaborative effort between George Washington University and the Fairfax County Public Schools enables people with undergraduate degrees to complete coursework for secondary teacher certification in a single year. The program has established close ties between theory and practice. Interns are placed in the district's 23 high schools, where they…

New results in neuroscience point to the brain's lifelong capacity to reshape itself in response to experience. Educators' great challenge is developing learning environments and practices to exploit the brain's lifelong plasticity. This challenge will be met by carefully studying human behavior and behavior change. Brain science should return to…

This tribute to Samuel Kirk, an early leader in the field of learning disabilities, focuses on two of his powerful ideas and their effect on the author's work and later research. The first idea is that effective teaching requires knowing the students well, and the second idea is that explicit instruction in skills and strategies based on known…

Recommends trying to improve teacher education and schooling by avoiding "either/or" approaches and focusing on "both/and" approaches. Includes examples from colleges of education that are well-known for their integrated approaches to problems of theory and practice and successfully built strong cultures of teaching. Also examines regional…

Explores the dynamics in the loci of commitment of several participants in a university-level biology course developed for elementary school teachers. Concentrates on two instructors with almost opposing loci of commitment. Contains 19 references. (DDR)

Describes a research program into environmental activity factors that consists of three studies. Evaluates the validity of the Integrated Action Model and applies the model to evaluate the effects of school environmental instruction and the effects of the nature experience. Contains 53 references. (DDR)

Reform policy adoption and implementation is examined in the states of Colorado and Maryland. The cases illustrate how three theoretical perspectives (institutional, rational/technical, and interpretive) facilitate an understanding of policy sustainability and adequacy. (MMU)

Review of the continuing professional education (CPE) needs of teachers, nurses, and radiographers in Britain identified issues involved in funding, curriculum coherence, and relevance to practice. The review concluded that CPE is underresearched and needs more emphasis on practitioner inquiry and reflective practice. (SK)