Describes members' responsibilities within effective middle school interdisciplinary teams. States that principals are responsible for hiring, orientation, teacher empowerment, and staff development, while existing team members help new members by building a new team identity and developing collaborative relationships. Asserts that new teachers…

Describes different team approaches to the organization and delegation of teachers' tasks in public schools, offering insights into the types of skills teachers need to ensure the success of the team and providing examples of how a teacher team may function effectively. (SM)

Reviews 73 reports of classroom action research classified into seven groups: seeking quantifiable answers, determining results of change in classroom practice, exploring effects of program restructuring, discovering whether students can learn to use a process, establishing new professional relationships, developing new understandings of students,…

Describes a collaborative action research project (the Genesee Valley Research and Reform Collaborative) involving university faculty and elementary teachers and administrators. The project originated in a discussion among educators who had participated in organized trips to observe New Zealand schools. It focuses on using collaborative action…

Discusses the meaning and benefits of collaboration and how to determine if a program's policies and standards reflect and reinforce the value of collaboration. Offers strategies for building and sustaining collaborative relationships with families and for supporting the collaborative efforts of teaching staff. (TJQ)

In an effort to find out what makes small schools work, teachers, administrators, and students from seven small high schools in seven states were interviewed. While each school was different, themes that surfaced included the presence of varied forms of small learning communities, personalized learning plans, learner-centered assessment and…

Assuming the role of mentor, a group of college of education faculty from the University of Central Florida supported their colleagues in a 45-hour state-mandated faculty development initiative. Two faculty members chronicle the mentor-mentee component of the training, sharing results of a mentee survey. Results suggested that effective mentoring…

Discusses recommendations for redesigning teacher education programs and addresses the need for professional development of teacher educators to meet the need for program design. Highlights include integrating and implementing technology; commitment toward change; obstacles to using technology; attitudes toward technology use; the narrative of…

This article provides a compilation of integration options for including students with severe disabilities. It discusses collaborative planning for inclusion, and provides a chart illustrating the stages of planning for curriculum adaptations for students with disabilities. A case study of collaborative planning is provided. (Contains references.)…

Promising educational practices focus on achievement for all students and present evidence to demonstrate their effectiveness. Schools that have broken the mold are vision-focused and values-based. The most hopeful strategy for sustained, substantive educational improvement involves developing school staff into professional learning communities in…

This article suggests strategies and ideas to help build collaborative partnerships among all teachers who work with students who are gifted and have learning disabilities. It discusses the collaborative consultative process, establishing relationships with collaborative partners, and making collaboration run smoothly. Several relevant forms are…

This study examined perceptions of unified early childhood personnel preparation programs by 28 faculty members in such programs and by graduates (n=42) of unified, dual, or separate exceptional child education or exceptional child special education programs. Faculty stressed the importance of commitment and collaborative problem solving. The…

Describes the American Social History Project/Center for Media and Learning, discussing the importance of sustained professional development and collaboration in achieving reflective practice and teacher change and describing how social and cultural history and literature and innovative critical pedagogy work together to enrich curricula, advance…

Discussion of rewards given to higher education teachers for excellence lists criteria in the following areas: demonstrates outstanding achievement; demonstrates various competencies; is committed to the integrity of his/her subject; appreciates stakeholders' concerns; is committed to continuous improvement; and constructively contributes to…

This article discusses components of teacher collaboration, such as working together to prevent learning and behavior problems and to minimize the need for special service referrals; learning to manage the care of students who must be referred; and participating in school-based teams working towards comprehensive integrated, programmatic…