This research paper is about the role of the principal in enabling teacher leadership for pedagogical innovations and school improvement studied in two Innovative Designs for Enhancing Achievements in Schools (IDEAS) schools in Singapore and Australia over a 3-year period from 2005 to 2007. The research reported is based on the developing…

Setting the Direction for Special Education in Alberta is a major Alberta Education project designed to create a new framework that will help students with special needs receive the education necessary to be successful. Phase 1 of the project reviewed the effectiveness of the current approach and then focused on defining a vision and principles…

This study examined the design, implementation, and instructional effectiveness of three of America's most widely disseminated comprehensive school reform programs (the Accelerated Schools Project, America's Choice, and Successful for All) over a four year period that encompassed the school years 2000-2001 through 2003-2004. The authors' goal in…

In the modern economy, a college degree has become the gateway to the middle class. Nearly 75 percent of future jobs will require a postsecondary degree or certificate, and many of these job openings will be in middle-skill professions that require more than a high school degree but less than a four-year college degree. Although the demand for…

The overarching goals of the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (ARRA) of 2009 are to immediately stimulate the economy in the short term and to invest in education and other essential public services that will ensure the long-term economic health of this nation. The United States Education Department (USED) offers guiding principles to be…

The National Center for Research on Evaluation, Standards, and Student Testing (CRESST) at University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA) was contracted to undertake a three-year external evaluation of the Artful Learning program, an arts-based school improvement model developed from the work and philosophy of the late composer Leonard Bernstein.…

This discussion article takes a closer look at 5 Early Reading First projects in this special issue. It first explores what needed to be in place before these projects could help teachers individualize instructional support for children. The way in which each project sought to provide effective instruction for all children is then discussed,…

Purpose: The purpose of this paper is to introduce and describe the features of a new e-learning quality framework developed for a large multi-campus university. The framework is explicitly designed to improve the quality of e-learning sites and the quality of online student learning, by developing the skills of the academics who design the sites.…

This formative experiment was designed to ensure that a group of high school students developed their literacy habits. The intervention consisted of a schoolwide approach to literacy using four instructional routines: think-alouds, note-taking writing to learn, and dedicated reading time. As part of the formative experiment, we document the…

Creative Partnerships aims to change the ways in which children learn and teachers teach, and to support whole school change. Our research examines how schools take up the "cultural offer" made by Creative Partnerships. In this article, drawing on data from snapshot visits to 40 English schools, we suggest that it has made a difference…

Reading literacy has been a major problem for American students for the past several years. Educators have struggled to find a solution to this problem that will help students while at the same time maintain their interest in the subject matter. Educational video games and other e-learning technologies have made their way into classrooms and homes…

Context: Diabetes care is challenging in rural areas. Research has shown that the utilization of electronic patient registries improves care; however, improvements generally have been described in combination with other ongoing interventions. The level of basic registry utilization sufficient for positive change is unknown. Purpose: The goal of…

This article talks about Achievement Through Technology and Innovation (ATTAIN) Act, a bill introduced by Senators Bingaman (D-NM), Burr (R-NC), and Murray (D-WA) and applauded by a coalition of education and industry groups. The proposed ATTAIN Act is similar to its companion in the House (HR 2449), and builds upon the Enhancing Education Through…

Research-Practice Partnerships (RPP) can enable and support an evidence-based school culture for decision-making in districts across the nation. Based on our experiences in a large urban district, a key element for a successful RPP is to understand that school districts have their own research needs/agenda typically articulated in strategic plans.…

Low levels of education and dropping out of school are associated with criminal involvement. The Portuguese prison system, similar to other prison systems (e.g. England), offers prison-based educational programmes so inmates can complete compulsory education. However, the completion rate of these educational programmes is low, and the dropout rate…