Stemming from increased levels of participation and diversity of the student base and from growing scrutiny on the quality of university degrees, governments have begun establishing mechanisms to monitor and support quality in higher education. Faced with administrative quality assurance structures, academics often complain that little is…

Developing high-quality programming for students with moderate to severe disability (MSD) and/or autism spectrum disorder (ASD) can be challenging for teachers across the range of experience and training including those in rural contexts. This article outlines a process for the iterative refinement of teaching programs comprised of an evaluation…

Funded grant projects all involve some form of evaluation, and Advanced Technological Education (ATE) grants are no exception. Program evaluation serves as a critical component not only for evaluating if a project has met its intended and desired outcomes, but the evaluation process is also a central feature of the grant application itself.…

The federal role in higher education has grown over the past two decades, and now a new administration has the opportunity to strengthen policies that support students and their colleges and universities. To help inform these decisions, the Urban Institute convened a bipartisan group of scholars and policy advisers to write a series of memos…

This study proposes the leadership practices that are necessary to nourish and improve the overall educational department by increasing the success rate of the students in a higher education setting. The study aims to furnish the in-depth understanding of the effective leadership practices and the student academic success. A qualitative, holistic…

Background: In response to an outbreak of severe meningococcal disease caused by serogroup W, the UK introduced the meningococcal ACWY (MenACWY) for adolescents and new university students as a control measure. Objective: To estimate MenACWY vaccine uptake and identify factors associated with uptake, barriers and motivations towards vaccination…

U.S. employers are struggling to find qualified applicants across a range of career sectors. In 12 career areas--including healthcare, computers and mathematics--demand for workers exceeded available supply by a total of 4.4 million job openings in 2016. This gap threatens the economy, undermines the innovation and competitiveness in many of the…

This article explores whether presenting conservation issues in a manner that makes connections with intertwined issues of violence, economics, social issues, and politics elicits more engagement than does presenting the conservation issues in isolation. Survey data were collected concerning African elephant poaching for ivory and the effect of…

This article gives an account of a project aimed at improving the teaching practice and self-reflection of English as a foreign language teachers in Manizales (Colombia) by means of a professional development program. At the initial stage, surveys, class observations, and documentary analysis allowed the researchers to identify teachers'…

Stanford Center for Assessment, Learning, and Equity (SCALE) provided a commentary on the manuscripts in the first part of this special issue, which highlighted the benefits of edTPA and the necessity for such assessment programs to improve teacher education and strengthen teaching practices. In turn, the authors responded to the SCALE commentary.…

This performance improvement-based dissertation in practice analyzed and addressed a retention performance problem embedded in a higher education setting. A problem of practice is defined as an ongoing performance problem that exists in the context of a scholar-practitioner's workplace (Burrington & Throne, 2021) which, if addressed, can lead…

In this results-oriented era of accountability, educator preparation programs are called upon to provide comprehensive data related to student and program outcomes while also providing evidence of continuous improvement. Collaborative Analysis of Student Learning (CASL) is one approach for fostering critical inquiry about student learning.…

The Local Control Funding Formula (LCFF) represents a sea change in the way California funds public education. By directing resources to the students in greatest need, freeing districts from the constraints of categorical programs, and inviting stakeholder participation, the new funding system creates the conditions for districts to advance goals…

This study examined the preconceived notions of preservice teachers toward those from poverty backgrounds at a medium-sized public university in Pennsylvania, USA. Results of the study indicate that cultural stereotypes about those who are poor persist in preservice teachers and that these views differ significantly based on when, how and in what…

This brief offers lessons learned from California State University teacher preparation programs engaged in using data to inform improvement efforts. The authors consider teacher preparation programs as systems that can undergo continuous, data-driven improvement through an improvement science approach. Teacher preparation programs typically have…