"Making Assessment Work: Ten Practitioner Beliefs" was developed by the National Practitioner Advisory Group on Using Data to Inspire SEL Practice (NPAG), a group of social and emotional learning (SEL) practice leaders convened to provide insights on SEL. Educators, program leaders, and policymakers recognize the value of holistically…

This policy profile on education in Australia is part of the "Education Policy Outlook" series, which presents comparative analysis of education policies and reforms across OECD countries. Building on the OECD's substantial comparative and sectoral knowledge base, the series offers a comparative outlook on education policy by providing…

This policy profile on education in Chile is part of the "Education Policy Outlook" series, which presents comparative analysis of education policies and reforms across Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) countries. Building on the OECD's substantial comparative and sectoral knowledge base, the series offers a…

The National Staff Development Council (NSDC) has won recognition for the field of professional development. Researchers and education change agents acknowledge the importance of professional learning among strategies essential for reforming schools and raising teacher and student performance. The federal government, states, and school districts…

Offers advice to school music directors for improving their conducting techniques. Suggests a number of aural, gestural, and technical preparation methods that educators can use in preparing for conducting. Describes application of the principles. Provides a list of suggested readings. (SG)

Reviews published studies (referenced in ERIC Document Retrieval Service) dealing with teacher inservice in environmental education. Includes a chronological summary of the studies between 1970 and 1980. Findings reveal that a wide variety of formats were used but that program effectiveness studies were extremely limited. (ML)

A faculty committee at Michigan Technological University (MTU) developed a university-wide policy and procedure to encourage improvement of instruction and ensure that teaching effectiveness plays a significant role in personnel decisions. The experiences at MTU are described to help others seeking to establish similar policy on this sensitive…

Describes a technical assistance approach that offers a systematic framework for planning, conducting, and evaluating in-service training. (Author/MLF)

Proposes groundwork for a coalition to address environmental education (EE) policies and practices in America for the next decade. Aims, priorities, and needs for the coalition are listed. They include upgrading competence of environmental educators, improving student experiences in EE, increasing EE literacy of citizens, and identifying key…

Developed by a faculty committee to replace an outmoded system at Antioch (Illinois) Community High School, this teacher evaluation procedure calls for teachers to prescribe methods for improving their own instructional processes. Procedures for problem evaluation, routine evaluation, and probationary evaluation are listed and an evaluation form…

A program in Columbus (Ohio) assists teachers to develop instructional activities that will foster students' overall problem-solving skills. A sample of the books used in the program is listed. (MLF)

The Questions to Upgrade and Encourage Student Thinking (QUEST) program is designed to improve student reading comprehension by improving teacher questioning skills. (Author/MLF)

Describes an eight-topic inservice program to help teachers facilitate the integration of mainstreamed students into the regular classroom. The program covers the nature of the disability, its effect on the classroom, techniques for meeting the student's needs and preparing the student's classmates, and sources for support material. (PGD)

Notes difficulties encountered teaching history in an open university. Describes methodology used in a twentieth-century history course, combining current events with the course content. Using a major continuing news story as the basis for a semester project, students are asked to consider multiple scenarios and to predict outcomes of current…

Nineteen school districts will receive awards for exemplary staff development programs. The National Center for the Improvement of Learning selected these programs from among 99 submitted in the award competition. Ten programs are briefly described; the remaining programs will be featured in the March issue of this journal. (MLF)