Background: Internal health locus of control has been associated with positive health outcomes and behaviors. Understanding the mechanisms of this relationship are key to designing and implementing effective health behavior intervention programs. Purpose: The purpose was to examine whether self-efficacy and social support mediate the relationship…

This study investigates early childhood education teachers' and assistant teachers' views about a year-long professional development model that focuses on developing intentional teaching. The study shares the results of interviews conducted with the teachers at the end of the implementation of a one-year experimental professional model in Head…

Which academics benefit from participation in formal mentoring programmes? This study examined the needs and mentoring networks of new academics with evaluative data from a pilot mentoring programme. Themes from these data point towards re-envisioning initiatives for academic staff development. First, an examination of the expansion of mentoring…

Catherine Steiner-Adair, clinical psychologist, has consulted for more than 350 independent and public schools, parents, and students, on a wide range of topics related to strengthening children's social and emotional development, shaping school culture, and deepening parents' connections to their children. Four years ago, she was able to collect…

People with severe disabilities (SD) communicate in complex ways, and their teachers, parents and other involved professionals find it difficult to gain knowledge and share their experiences regarding the person with SD's communication methods. The purpose of this study is to contribute to our understanding of how parents and professionals share…

This study presents the perspectives of education graduate students of using Twitter as a pedagogical tool for 15 weeks as a required social media activity in class. The results indicated that participants in each course reported a positive learning experience of using Twitter. Although this was their first experience with Twitter, participants…

Background: Increasingly clinical and health research awareness is a priority for health and medical research communities. Translational research, including the prevention and treatment of conditions, relies upon proper funding as well as public participation in research studies. This requires executing more effective communication strategies to…

This issue of ETS Policy Notes (Vol. 22, No. 1) provides highlights from a recent symposium sponsored by ETS and the Children Defense Fund (CDF), "Advancing Success for Black Men in College," held on June 23, 2014, in Washington, DC. The symposium is part of a two-conference series: It was the 18th of ETS's "Addressing Achievement…

States are striving to support the expansion of technology tools and resources in K-12 education through state policies, programs, and funding in order to provide digital learning opportunities for all students. This paper highlights examples of states with policies in support of five key areas: (1) innovative funding streams and policy; (2)…

The study attempts to determine whether or not Facebook is an environment suiting the Community of Inquiry Framework by investigating the cognitive, social, and teaching presence perceptions of students in Facebook groups and to examine the impact of group size on the CoI model. Additionally, whether or not these three types of presences predicted…

For higher education institutions in the United Kingdom there is a growing focus on improving student retention, encouraging academic engagement, and easing transition into university life. This article reports on the creation and outcomes of Head Start, a pre-induction online course created to provide students with a level of understanding of…

This case study explores the role of the online instructor and how they influence student satisfaction. While there has been a substantial body of literature on what impacts on student satisfaction when students study online, there is far less literature focussing on how the instructor mediates this satisfaction, in particular satisfaction related…

Social capital, an important mechanism for the creation and maintenance of healthy organizational life, may be developed through initiatives such as leadership development as effective leadership development not only enhances individual effectiveness, but serves to build relationships, coordinate actions, and extend and strengthen the social…

This article investigates the use of multiple learning approaches and different modes and types of learning in the (continuous) professional development (PD) of school leaders, particularly the use of self-assessment and feedback. First, formats and multiple approaches to professional learning are described. Second, a possible approach to…

What will technology-based teacher professional development look like in the next few years? In this article, teacher training curriculum designer Mary Burns presents her 5 top picks from the professional learning technologies now emerging around the world: (1) IPTV; (2) Immersive Environments; (3) Video; (4) Social Media; and (5) Mobile…