Most schools and districts have created an artificial distinction between working and learning. They operate in a way that suggests teachers work (teach) 180 or so days a year and learn (attend programs) on four or five days each year set aside for professional development. The author states that school leaders must end this distinction between…

We report on a study of a laboratory teaching apprenticeship program designed to improve graduate teaching assistant (GTA) performance. To catalyze GTAs as laboratory teachers we constructed learning goals, synthesized previous literature into a design model and a developmental path, and built two instruments to measure 12 strategic pedagogical…

Fifty years after the U.S. Supreme Court held in "Brown v. Board of Education" of Topeka, Kansas, that racial segregation in public schools was unconstitutional the children in America's urban school districts attend schools that predominantly are racial-isolated. In Minneapolis, the student profile is in stark contrast with the racial…

High­-quality early care and education (ECE) relies on teacher training. However, state policies require that the ECE workforce attain only minimal preservice credentials, and the field needs more information about inservice professional development models that might effectively train teachers, no matter what their prior experience or education…

"Research in the Teaching of English" (RTE) is the flagship research journal of the National Council of Teachers of English (NCTE) in the United States. It is a broad-based, multidisciplinary journal composed of original research articles and short scholarly essays on a wide range of topics significant to those concerned with the…

This paper reports on the final phase of a three-part study on the status of instructional supervision within several New York City public schools. In the first parts of the study the researchers found, through extensive use of surveys (questionnaires and interviews), that centralized educational reform had serious consequences for instructional…

The third volume of "The Soul of Educational Leadership" series offers key concepts and strategies for sustaining the critically important work of professional learning communities. With contributions from Shirley Hord, Maurice Elias, Karen Seashore Louis, Andy Hargreaves, and other nationally known educators, this essential reading for all school…

This brief by the Literacy Coaching Clearinghouse addresses issues related to literacy coaching in classrooms where there are English Language Learners (ELLs). Briefly defined, an English Language Learner is a child whose native language is other than English and who is learning English as a second language. Moreover, ELLs are defined as students…

This "Infobrief" explores the five key components of ASCD's High School Reform Proposal: (1) multiple measures of assessment; (2) personalized learning strategies; (3) flexible use of time and structure; (4) new professional development models for teachers and school leadership; and (5) business and community engagement. Each of these components…

Too many middle school students struggle to comprehend their textbooks in science and other content areas. Thus, many adolescent learners lag behind in developing scientific literacy, which the National Research Council has defined as sufficient understanding of the scientific concepts and processes required for personal decision making,…

This article describes professional development activities in specific suburban school districts that are experiencing rapid growth in their proportions of students of color, culturally and linguistically diverse students, and students from low-income families. As the author has worked with these districts, he has identified five phases of…

In the United States, government funding underwrites the cost of child care services for over 1.7 million children from income-eligible families. About one in four American children served by these subsidies is cared for in a setting where a state-issued license to operate is not required, but in many states the percentages are higher. In…

This paper presents findings from the SiMERR National Survey concerning the need priorities of secondary ICT teachers for professional development, resources and student learning experiences. The findings--drawn from a survey of 237 secondary ICT teachers across Australia--provide an opportunity to compare the needs of teachers working in…

Two faculty members in the department of mathematical sciences at a four-year university, with teacher-education experience, presented a workshop for in-service elementary and middle-school teachers. The intention was to address affective aspects of teaching including: teacher efficacy, learning styles, cognitive dissonance, relaxation, and…

Grassroot Soccer (GRS), a U.S.-based nonprofit organization, designed a curriculum and sport-based teaching model to build resiliency, targeting boys and girls in Lusaka, Zambia, and Johannesburg, South Africa, where most children are reminded daily of the devastation caused by AIDS and where many face chronic and acute hardship. Collaborating…