This article makes the case for a different approach to the professional development of teachers and school leaders called personal, professional coaching (PPC). Personal, professional coaching is grounded in reflective practices that cultivate self-awareness, emotion management, social awareness, and relationship management. Findings from two…

In this article, a unique model of instruction based on co-teaching carried out in the framework of the practice teaching program intended for third year college students is presented. The program incorporated principles of modeling based on processes of mentoring, instruction, and discussion, showing the students the pedagogical importance of…

The study provides an illustration of an elementary school's implementation of a model of Response to Intervention (RTI). The school was selected to be the pilot for RTI implementation within the district. The study employed interviews of all members of the school RTI Leadership Team and select members of the district-level RTI Leadership Team. An…

A single qualitative case study design was used to determine the opinions of administrators and faculty from a community college that is considered to be transitioning to a learning-centered college. The researcher conducted the case study to describe, explain, and evaluate the phenomenon. The researcher also recorded facilitators or roadblocks…

Scientific inquiry involves a variety of abilities scientists use to investigate the natural world. In order to develop students' scientific inquiry, researchers and educators have developed different curricula and a variety of instructional resources, which make features and descriptors of scientific inquiry in teaching and learning even more…

Starting in the fall of 2009, ELL (English-language learner) instructional coaches began to provide workshops to ELL and general education teachers in a northwest American city. This article aims to analyze the differentiated instruction provided in the workshops. Data in this study include observational field notes, interviews, and documents.…

Standards can aid educators as they work to produce strong student writers who can create meaningful and skillfully crafted authentic pieces of writing. This once-a-month, yearlong professional development program, conducted during the school day, shifted a district's kindergarten writing program to a writing workshop model that enabled the…

This article is a tribute to JoBeth Allen, recipient of the Elementary Section's 2012 award for Outstanding Educator in the English Language Arts. Each year, this award recognizes a distinguished educator who has made major contributions to the field of language arts in elementary education. This article was written by second-grade teacher and…

In 2003, a state in the Rocky Mountain region combined the concept of partner schools (Goodlad, 1993) and the model of a professional development school (Holmes Group, 1986, 1995) to develop four university public school partnerships. This study asked two guiding questions: Is authentic cross-cultural collaboration possible between a university…

The 2009 Professional Development Schools National Conference recognized the North Florida Urban Professional Development School Partnership for its outstanding work in an urban education context and so named it one of the three recipients of the first-ever National Association for Professional Development Schools Award for Exemplary Professional…

This paper explores the weaknesses in university faculty development efforts when compared with corporate professional development practices. Suggestions are offered to think of faculty development as a process rather than as isolated development activities.

This study examined the experiences of a group of American secondary humanities teachers engaged in lesson study. Lesson study (LS) is a teacher-driven, collaborative inquiry process grounded in the realities of the classroom. It is an approach to professional development (PD) that originated in Japan, and has been credited there with contributing…

"The Pentagon is currently undertaking a congressionally mandated Quadrennial Defense Review (QDR) of strategy, force structure, missions, and resources. One issue that should be on the table is defining professional military education requirements. The current system is inadequate. The Department of Defense (DOD) should restructure it to…

This newsletter is published four times a year. It focuses on school improvement, organizational planning, training, and managing change. This issue contains: (1) Protocols: A Facilitator's Best Friend (Lois Brown Easton); (2) NSDC Tool: Wagon Wheel; (3) NSDC Tool: Three Levels of Text; and (4) NSDC Tool: Success Analysis Protocol.

This newsletter is published four times a year. It offers articles on school improvement, organizational planning, training, and managing change. This issue contains: (1) Link Up & Learn: Use Technology to Create a Personal Learning Network to Connect with Experts and Mentors Everywhere (Valerie von Frank); (2) NSDC Tool: Get Connected with…