"Focus on Basics" is the quarterly publication of the National Center for the Study of Adult Learning and Literacy. It presents best practices, current research on adult learning and literacy, and how research is used by adult basic education teachers, counselors, program administrators, and policymakers. "Focus on Basics" is…

This book describes the European language teacher of tomorrow. Based on a European Union-commissioned study of 32 countries, it sets out the current provision of language teacher training, focusing on inservice and preservice training. Fifteen case studies of innovation and good practice are included. Four chapters look at: (1) "Contexts for…

This publication presents Montgomery County, Maryland's plan for empowering the educational community by organizing the necessary resources, knowledge, and skills to fulfill the promise of success for every student. The four main goals are: to ensure success for every student; to provide an effective instructional program; to strengthen productive…

Building upon the work of the Effective Early Learning (EEL) Project in raising the quality of early learning for young children in the United Kingdom, the 3-year Accounting Early for Life Long Learning Project (AcE Project) focuses on enhancing in 3- to 6-year-olds those attitudes and dispositions that are important to life-long learning. This…

This article describes a school-university partnership that fosters teacher research within classrooms. The effects of teacher research in the implementation of inclusive practices are illustrated, with descriptions of four teacher research projects which examined: (1) inclusion of a child with emotional disturbances; (2) inclusion for literacy;…

Two teacher educators utilized professional standards to inform their teaching. They used reflective dialog, action research, and critical inquiry in a standards-based language arts curriculum to support revisions and improvements in classroom practices and curriculum development. This led to new ideas about collaborative structures and stimulated…

Four teachers from diverse early childhood environments formed a teacher research group to learn more about children's language and literacy development. This article discusses the formation of the group, the value of teacher research for understanding children's language, and the lessons learned by the participating teachers that enhanced their…

This paper proposes a process model of reflective practice for second language teachers, designed to facilitate a closer understanding of language use and interactive decision-making. The L2 classroom is portrayed as a dynamic and complex series of inter-related contexts, in which interaction is central to teaching and learning. An understanding…

The Master of Arts in Education (M.A.E.) program was created when Truman State University (then Northeast Missouri State University) was designated the state's premier liberal arts and sciences university and most of the undergraduate and graduate programs in education were phased out. The rigorous program is heavily field-based with extensive…

This paper describes the collaborative process and outcomes from involving teacher educators and school personnel in school-based collaborative supervisory teams formed by clustering graduate-level preservice teaching interns in a number of elementary and secondary field sites. The school-university collaborative reflects key elements in the…

A popular concept in education indicates that effective instruction requires the teacher to know the child. A study was conducted at the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee in order to determine where this knowledge comes from. A group of 15 teachers enrolled in the graduate school listed their students and indicated which students they knew…

In 1980, the Maryland State Education Agency initiated a statewide effort, School Improvement Through Instructional Process (SITIP), to put into practice the results of research on classroom management and school effectiveness. SITIP was intended to provide training and technical support to all local education agencies (LEA's) during the adoption…

his paper describes the validity and value of self-study and action research by a cooperating teacher, supervisors, and a principal who were involved in a school-university partnership at the University of New Hampshire. The self-study and action research projects were completed by participants enrolled in a course, "Developmental…

This resource provides schools and jurisdictions with a sample framework and strategies for developing and/or supporting a culture of character and citizenship. The framework encourages individual schools to assess and put action plans in place to improve their cultures. It also looks at how character and citizenship education can be supported by…

Reviews a study that used a collaborative action research model to explore ways to integrate music authentically into the curriculum of a particular whole-language first-grade classroom. Presents a more differentiated definition of integration, identifying five types: topical, associated skills, conceptual, higher-level thinking, and pedagogical.…