Ralph Wolff is founder and president of The Quality Assurance Commons (https:// theqacommons.org) and an independent policy consultant focusing on accreditation and quality assurance processes in the United States and internationally. He served as president of the Western Association of Schools and Colleges (WASC) Senior College and University…

Librarians frequently utilize product trials to assess the content and usability of a database prior to committing funds to a new subscription or purchase. At the 2012 Electronic Resources and Libraries Conference in Austin, Texas, three librarians presented a panel discussion on their institutions' policies and practices regarding database…

The importance of content-focused professional development for high school teachers has been widely recognized by educators and legislators. Professionals in education at all levels have long argued for more contacts between secondary and post-secondary instructors as one important way to improve subject matter mastery. In response to this call,…

In this paper I continue to develop the growing interest in working with research approaches that enable people experiencing severe learning disabilities to participate in research activities. In particular, I discuss a research project that adopted a number of data generation strategies, including a drama pilot project. In this paper I focus on…

This paper is a reflection on practice. It begins by briefly describing an evaluation of an externally-funded education programme in Kosovo (a new country in south-east Europe). The programme was managed by Save the Children in Kosovo and aimed to develop and promote models of inclusive education through three strands of activity. The first of…

In 2005 the New Zealand Council of Trade Unions, the central organisation of unions in New Zealand, initiated a Learning Representatives Project based on the British model. The Government approved an eight-month programme to be funded through its Tertiary Education Commission to "scope the project". Work began not just on scoping, but on…

The purpose of this article is to exemplify and enhance the place of modelling as a qualitative process in educational research. Modelling is widely used in quantitative research as a tool for analysis, theory building and prediction. Statistical data lend themselves to graphical representation of values, interrelationships and operational…

The general goal of research into LGBT issues among youth is, of course, to improve the situation of young people. Research on its own cannot attain such an objective; it is a tool in a chain of interventions. Implementation of the recommendations of research is essential for effective use of research. But, implementation is often difficult. To…

Prejudice and discrimination are ugly cousins, haunting humankind like the evil fairy who appears unbidden to curse the young princess. Is education the good fairy, bestowing tools to overcome this curse? A course the author taught in winter 2006 at the University of California, Irvine--one of the most ethnically diverse campuses in the United…