Developed an evaluation based on R. Stake's Countenance Model of Program Evaluation (1967) to evaluate the Senior Block Field Experience Program at Mississippi State University, a teacher education program. Results identify strengths and weaknesses in all components of the program. (SLD)

This article first assesses the existing "state of awareness of the research to practice gap" among 111 preservice educators. It then discusses the potential benefits associated with the improvement of this knowledge and describes a variety of programmatic options, structural and instructional, that may enhance preservice educators' knowledge,…

This article reviews research conducted by the author and colleagues over a 27-year period on enhancement of peer-related social skills in young children with behavioral disorders or autism. It argues that a logical positivist approach has yielded significant quality-of-life benefits to participants while effectively challenging many outdated…

Describes the timely and useful information about education in the United States found in "The Condition of Education" and points out some key pieces of information that are missing. The most glaring omission is information about instructional practices, and a second omission is in the area of teacher knowledge. (SLD)

The Education Commission of the States conducted interviews in six school districts in five different states (California, Colorado, Iowa, Maryland, and Texas) to understand how districts can use data most effectively. These districts had used data to dramatically improve student achievement. Districts that make wise use of data have strong…

Using a standard survey instrument, the Barrier Scales, the present study surveyed university librarians' perceptions of barriers to greater use of library and information research utilization in Seoul, Korea. The greatest barrier was that the implications of research for practice were unclear, followed by a lack of replication of the research,…

The purposes of this article are to underscore the importance of using research-based practices to support the needs of all learners in general education settings and to provide teachers with strategies for obtaining research-based practices. Students with diverse learning needs require that teachers utilize more effective and efficient practices…

In his recent article in this journal, John Gough (2004) concludes that the practical results of the considerable academic research undertaken at the University of Melbourne into the uses and impacts of graphics calculators and CAS (computer algebra systems) should be made more widely available in journals for teachers. This short article is…

From the outset, the Teaching and Learning Research Programme gave significant importance to the meaningful involvement of users, who were expected not only to be trialling the outcomes of the research but also, more importantly, to be consulted in the process of formulating the project proposals and in the research process itself. This level of…

The social sciences are awash with studies of varying quality. The process of getting published is supposed to sort the good from the bad and, through feedback and editing, make the good better. Ideally, that is how the system should and usually does work--but it does not always work that way. One problem with social science research is that the…

"A Parent's Guide to Assessment" is the fifth volume in the "Life Journey through Autism" series published by the Organization for Autism Research (OAR). It is intended to remove the mystery surrounding assessment, provide parents with a practical understanding of the assessment process, equip them as a parent with the…

This chapter examines lessons learned by states that are using student unit record (SUR) data to improve outcomes for community college students and recommends steps states can take to strengthen their use of SUR databases to benefit students and communities. (Contains 1 exhibit.)

This occasional paper is a summary of what the staff of the National Center for the Study of Adult Learning and Literacy (NCSALL) Dissemination Initiative learned about how to connect research, policy and practice in ways that promote evidence-based practice in the field of adult learning and literacy. NCSALL Tools for connecting practice, policy,…

This paper examines the possibility that citizens' mediated and sporadic exposure to education research influences their policy attitudes. It reflects upon how citizens--who are not direct consumers of education research and who lack basic training in the modes of social scientific inquiry--use the paucity of information made available to them in…

Finding time for teams to work in schools is both a necessity and a responsibility. If educators are sincere about efforts to improve student learning, leaders must take responsibility for providing team time for teachers and a structure in which they are able to work collaboratively. The Papillion-La Vista (Nebraska) Public Schools took to heart…