Assessment has become a popular buzzword on academic campuses over the last few decades. Most assessment models are designed to evaluate traditional learning structures. If we were to state simply the process of assessment, it might read like this: (1) what you want the students to learn; (2) how you want to teach the material; and (3) how you…

Kathleen deMarrais, professor in the Department of Lifelong Education, Administration and Policy at the University of Georgia, was honored to be invited to contribute to this special issue of "Critical Questions in Education." deMarrais addressed college/university deans to review the role of social foundations in teacher education and…

David Orr's classic article links education to living in the outdoors and studying all disciplines through the unifying lens of place. Pedagogy of place counters abstraction, it is the natural world embodying principles of learning that involve direct observation, investigation, experimentation, and manual skills. Place is the laboratory providing…

Fred Estes is a science teacher and lower school science coordinator at The Nueva School in Hillsborough, California. Carolee Fucigna is a prekindergarten teacher at The Nueva School in Hillsborough, California. Their year in the classroom regularly begins with starting a compost pile that serves as a focus for classroom research and science…

This article explores our experiences as faculty implementing a five year sustainability strategic plan within the Outdoor and Environmental Education (OEE) curriculum centre during a time of organisational restructuring. This paper builds on the work of Jansen and Boardman (2011) who describe the process of developing the strategic plan and some…

At tertiary institutions in South Africa and internationally, academic literacy practitioners and disciplinary specialists have traditionally functioned as separate communities of practice. However, research indicates that academic literacy is most successfully acquired when it is integrated into and taught within the contexts of specific academic…

Science involves children in exploring and gaining understanding about the world they live in. Use of a creative and imaginative approach to science can enhance this learning in many ways (Coates and Wilson, 2003). When presented with the challenge of teaching a series of science lessons on food and nutrition to a mixed class of years 4 and 5…

The complex task of "writing up" qualitative data provides difficulties and challenges for both doctoral candidates and their supervisors, which can often result in detrimental effects on the supervisory relationship. These effects can be heightened by the pressures currently felt by supervisors, not least to ensure their supervisees…

Comparative education represents one of the main topics included in teacher preparation programmes in most countries. This subject is critical for future teachers because it represents a window through which learners can look at other educational systems and see how they are managed and what sort of policies and educational philosophies are used.…

The recruitment and retention of the highest-quality artist educators in colleges and universities is a key element in supporting strong K-12 arts education programs. Artist educators must be expert in at least two disciplines: their art forms and education. However, the peer review processes commonly employed to recommend higher education faculty…

Mindful design of learning spaces can provide an avenue for supporting student engagement in STEM subjects. Thoughtful planning and wide participation in the design process were key in shaping new and renovated spaces for the STEM community at the University of Puget Sound. The finished project incorporated Puget Sound's mission and goals as well…

Two green chemistry courses have been introduced into the liberal arts curriculum at Susquehanna University. Green chemistry was integrated into an existing course, Chemical Concepts, and offered as Green Chemical Concepts for nonscience majors. This course is designed to instill an appreciation for green chemistry in a large and diverse group of…

Government agencies, foundations, business and industry, and other important higher education stakeholders continue to invest in important and deep changes they think are necessary for the vitality and health of higher education particularly interdisciplinary teaching and research. But we know little about how transformational changes happen,…

Pacific Lutheran University (Tacoma, WA) is renowned for the number of its courses that offer international and study-away opportunities. Inspired by the theme of sustainability, and my growing concern about the environmental impact of conventional fuels, I offered a course, Physics of Energy, for the first time during PLU's January 2011 term (a…

In 1983, the UK Open University (OU) offered its first women's/gender studies (WGS) course. Although a late entrant to the area, OU WGS courses were influential nationally and internationally for many feminists and WGS teachers and scholars. Not only did OU WGS courses have the largest WGS student cohort of any UK institution with over 8000…