The dynamic nature of led outdoor activities means that, despite activity providers' best efforts, activity leaders can be exposed to unanticipated situations for which no procedures exist. Improvisation, the spontaneous, real-time conception and execution of a novel response, has been identified as a potential means of maintaining safety in…

Conceptual change is one of the most studied fields in science education and psychology of learning. However, there are still some foundational issues in conceptual change research on which no clear consensus has emerged. Firstly, there is no agreement on what changes in belief and concept systems constitute conceptual change and what changes do…

This chapter briefly explores what a rite of passage is and is not, and the importance and benefits of such experiences to students, the college, and the larger society. The chapter also describes a practical set of strategies for integrating rites of passage into the campus community.

Unlike law, business, and medical schools, as well as universities in general, journalism schools and journalism programs have rarely been ranked. Publishers such as "U.S. News & World Report," "Forbes," "Bloomberg Businessweek," and "Washington Monthly" do not pay them much mind. What is the best…

The religious dynamics of higher education are changing rapidly. College campuses have become prime sites for conflicts involving religious identity. Few issues touch more broadly or more deeply on complexity, diversity, and change in the twenty-first-century world than those related to how people who orient differently around religion interact…

Students whose parents receive regular and personalized messages with actionable information from teachers are more likely to succeed in school. But effective data-sharing programs require more than simply sending data home. They also encourage educators and families to make connections with each other, sharing observations about how a child…

A central challenge for local education agencies (i.e., school districts in the United States) undergoing reform is to design systems that facilitate instructional improvement. At the core of these systems are educational infrastructures that bolster capacity building efforts and support teaching and leadership practices. Our goal for this special…

This chapter highlights the use of the Equity Scorecard with the Community College of Aurora. The Equity Scorecard is a theory-based strategy that assists community colleges in embedding equity into their institutional norms, practices, and policies.

The "Journal of Geography" has used key words since 1990 to help readers and researchers seek out work of particular interest. Key words generally supplement article titles and are hopefully chosen with care. The focus of this article is the "Journal of Geography" key word, its presence, timing, and frequency. Using a…

On Monday, October 6, 2014, Meg Whitman, CEO of Hewlett Packard, announced that her company would be splitting into two companies and laying off thousands of employees in the process. Speaking to "Fortune" magazine, Whitman underscored that the company's problems over the years relate directly to a lack of succession planning among…

This article outlines the need of infusing critical discourse analysis into the preparation and support of prospective school leaders. It argues that in the process of school transformation, the school leader must possess the ability to self-reflect on his/her language and understand the potential power of language as a means that may support or…

This inquiry aims to enrich conversation regarding school reform. The author asks about what other discourses are possible when the action-oriented question of how to "act" is a major approach to "fix" current educational problems. Drawing from Taoist philosophy of "wuwei" (non-action), the author provides a frame to…

Forming the first of two articles, this dialogue begins from the dilemma posed in the writings of David Kirk that physical education is in crisis because the dominant practice of physical education as "sport-techniques" is resistant to change. In order to make sense of crisis discourse, the discussion explores the potential for change in…

A grounded theory approach was used to examine the research identity of 17 master's-level counseling trainees and practitioners. The emergent theory gave an understanding to sources of variation in the process and outcome of research identity. The authors provide recommendations for counselor educators to use with current and former students.

In 2012, the American Evaluation Association (AEA) added community psychology (CP) to its roster of topical interests groups (TIG). One of the highlights of the CP TIG program at the 2012 AEA Conference and the genesis of this "American Journal of Evaluation" Forum was a panel of accomplished community psychologists and evaluation…