This article details the joint collaboration of a large-scale program that brings multiple middle schools and the local high school together for a mini-comic book convention. Collaboration with other librarians, administrators, and community members are highlighted.

Targeted school-based programs seem to be a promising approach to help adolescents in need. Nevertheless, successful implementation and evaluation of such programs is challenging. However, there is limited knowledge about (overcoming) the challenges of implementation and experimental evaluation of school-based programs. The goal of the present…

The Next Generation Science Standards (NGSS) put forth an aspiring call for science educators to enact instructional experiences that enable all students to participate in the real-world practices of science. To achieve this, teachers need to create classroom environments that will attract all students to science learning and support and sustain…

Learning networks for school improvement are a powerful structure for educators to expand their knowledge and improve their practice, and when networks include members with diverse experiences and perspectives, the results can be particularly effective. But how can network facilitators ensure that members are learning from each other and…

Decades of motivation research have yielded a set of Motivation Design Principles (MDPs) that can be leveraged to support the development of student motivation and engagement in the classroom. This article addresses the translation of these guiding principles to teacher professional learning and subsequently, classroom practice. Drawing from…

Purpose: The purpose of this viewpoint article is to share the reflections of school and university leaders on the success of their emerging school-university partnership for the preparation of middle school teachers. Design/methodology/approach: The article is a reflective paper in which the leaders of the school-university partnership discuss…

Scientist-led K-12 outreach offers many benefits to scientists, teachers, and students; however, many of these programs are top down rather than collaborative. Our team facilitated a museum-based scientist-teacher partnership to co-design a lesson on shark biology for middle school students. Following the implementation of the lesson, we conducted…

Middle school teacher Michael Yell and education professor Geoffrey Scheurman discuss a decades-long partnership of ongoing professional development opportunities that involve teachers, university faculty, and teacher candidates working together to create personalized, meaningful, and sustained initiatives that enhance the growth and skills of all…

Drawing upon a long-term partnership between a university and a Title I middle school, we outline relational principles that guided our justiceoriented approach to collaborative research. We conceptualize relational principles as intentional strategies for equitable relationship cultivation and infrastructure development, grounded in the values…

This article describes the creation of a university-based cross-disciplinary collaboration with elementary schools to address the challenges faced by teacher preparation programs in providing preservice teachers opportunities to design integrated STEM learning environments. The partnership focused on the design of an electric car unit and…

Learning Forward's Standards for Professional Learning define and describe professional learning that leads to improved educator practices, leadership, and student outcomes. Standards draw on the latest evidence and research about what works in professional learning to help educators implement every phase of the professional learning process. They…

The purpose of this article is to extend the literature around reflective practices in PDS. In this article, the authors discuss their experiences, as novice Professors in Residence (PIRs) engaging in Professional Development School (PDS) work, using dialogic e-journaling as a collaborative space to process and reflect on professional practice…

Collaborations between the National Association of Professors of Middle Level Education (NAPOMLE) and European League for Middle Level Education (ELMLE) can be mutually beneficial. This article reflects on NAPOMLE's past experiences with our global affiliate ELMLE and promotes future partnerships expanding our commitment to supporting the…

Classrooms are operating differently during the COVID-19 pandemic, especially in lab-based courses. Virtual classrooms utilizing Zoom, Google Meet, or other conferencing software can create challenges for hands-on, lab-based classes. These virtual methods also pose problems for pre-service teacher education students attempting to gain much needed…

Researchers Martha Abele Mac Iver, Joyce Epstein, and Steven Sheldon summarize the outcomes of their four-year partnership with an urban district aimed at improving the ways schools engage families during the critical transition to high school. They describe how schools put into practice the strategies learned in ongoing professional development,…