A study investigated inclusion policies and practices of 12 British local education authorities (LEAs). Results found six overlapping and interconnecting themes that seem to be crucial to the development of more inclusive practices within LEAs: policy development, funding strategies, process and structures, the management of change, partnerships,…

Describes a study conducted to ascertain the perceptions of various stakeholder groups on selected measures of institutional quality. States that questionnaires were distributed to 1,962 students, faculty, and staff at a two-year college; response rate was 49% (n=955). Concludes that outcome indicators (such as pass rates on licensure…

Addresses the issue of how educators can begin to improve poorly performing urban middle level schools. Suggests poor infrastructures, school size, and the lack of qualified professionals as reasons why many school underperform. Contends that solutions need to come from those who control the resources, specifically politicians and government…

Educators, policy makers, and civic leaders are baffled and frustrated over the stubborn achievement gaps that exist between white students and students of color. On a consistent basis, African American students do not fair as well as white students on school-related measures such as proficiency examinations and standardized tests (e.g.,…

This article reviews three of the most widely-known guiding philosophies of student affairs for the past 65 years. The article analyzes the rise, dominance, and fall of the student services and student development philosophies and then explores the emergence of student learning as a guiding philosophy. The results of two research studies on the…

Introduction: Solo and nonurban practice, nonmembership of a professional group, and aging are all associated with underperformance and may be indicators of professional isolation. Although it may lead to underperformance in physicians, there are no clear measures to assess professional isolation. Methods: By mailed questionnaire, experienced…

Despite comprehensive school reform (CSR) model developers' best intentions to make school stakeholders adhere strictly to the implementation of model components, school stakeholders implementing CSR models inevitably make adaptations to the CSR model. Adaptations are made to CSR models because school stakeholders internalize CSR model practices…

Administrators, teachers, staff, and other personnel must bear in mind that children are first and foremost our primary concern. As a result of increased accountability, administrators, faculty and personnel at all levels must posses the wisdom, deftness, and competence that heretofore may not have been required. It is of the utmost importance…

The study describes the factors that render possible and restrain students' learning when they try to develop new knowledge through collaboration in a net-based learning environment. The pedagogical platform takes as its starting point a framework of socio-cultural theories of learning and is based on dialogues and collaborative situations in…

Implementing an enterprise resource planning system is a complex undertaking. Careful planning, management, communication, and staffing can make the difference between a successful and unsuccessful implementation. (Contains 3 tables.)

This chapter uses a case study to develop a set of contexts and conditions for improving the alignment of purposes of alumni survey research within and across higher education institutions. (Contains 2 tables.)

This essay is based on a talk I delivered at Texas A&M University on December 10, 2005, in response to an earlier lecture at the university by Professor Samuel P. Huntington. It relies on social science evidence to first address Huntington's contention that Mexicans are overwhelming American borders. It then turns to evidence that Mexican…

A major task of South Africa's new government in 1994 was to design a more racially equitable education system. This article evaluates progress towards this goal using three concepts of equity: equal treatment by race, equal educational opportunity, and educational adequacy. The authors find that the country moved quickly towards a race-blind…

This paper discusses the impact of the introduction of a virtual learning environment (VLE) on teaching practices within a new university in the UK, and explores the factors that have encouraged or, conversely, discouraged, the adoption of the VLE by teaching staff, from the latter's perspective. It is based on findings from the analysis of…

In this article, the challenges and issues of designing next generation learning environments using current and emerging technologies are addressed. An overview of the issues is provided as well as design principles that support the design of instruction and the overall learning environment. Specific methods for creating cognitively complex,…