To complement National College Health Assessment data and to further assess student lives and health needs, staff at the Rutgers University Health Services' Department of Health Education used a participatory research method called photovoice. Using this methodology, health care professionals provided a discrete and tangible way for students to…

We currently face a significant contemporary crisis, not just of student voice but of compulsory schooling and the social and political contexts that shape it. This paper offers a typology that seeks to understand and explain both that crisis and the burgeoning of "new wave" student voice work in Australasia, North America and the UK. It…

The author outlines five promising principles, emerging from his research, on teaching that can empower teachers and Black male students in urban school contexts. In particular, teachers and students (a) envision life beyond their present situations, (b) come to know themselves in relation to others, (c) speak possibility and not destruction, (d)…

Democratic classrooms are those in which the curriculum actively engages students in collaborative inquiry, decision making is shared between students and staff, and students choose their daily activities. Compared with traditional classrooms, students in democratic classrooms take more ownership of and responsibility for their own learning.…

Reflects on the process and experience of attempts to open dialogues between Women's Studies staff and students on the topic of feminist teaching practices. Provides biographies of the staff and students concerned, discusses what is meant by empowerment, and delineates debates over the Women's Studies teaching model. Addresses contradictions and…

Accepting that few lists are comprehensive, but acknowledging that they still have value, here then are seven important factors that contribute to a healthy school climate: (1) Models: Adults are teachers in more ways than one, and the way that has the greater impact is less what they say than what they do; (2) Consistency: The school staff must…

This article argues that students who have leadership skills are empowered toward better learning and decision making and ultimately are more disciplined. Herein, the author offers a number of techniques teachers can use to put group leadership skills into practice in the classroom.

Most school districts conduct annual leadership retreats for their school boards, central and site leadership teams and their business and community partners. Holding leadership development retreats for students, on the other hand, is a new and somewhat revolutionary idea. This article describes a series of leadership retreats where faculty worked…

Using "visual narrative" theoretically and practically, this paper explores issues of inclusive education, during a period of curriculum reform and renewal in Australia. In Australia, the middle years of schooling, Years 5 to 9, are well researched and known as a period when students disengage with learning and participation in…

Article discusses the After-School Girl's Leadership Program in Seattle designed to foster positive development in girls. Their ideas and concerns are at the center of the curriculum, and they are able to experience the power of positive peer support. The program empowers them to address the environmental concerns that impede development.…

Urban writing programs help frustrated city youth to gain interest and find power through writing. Education leaders and urban writing programs along with classroom teachers will have to work collaboratively in order to motivate and empower students through the written words.

This paper proposes an expanded conception of scaffolding with four key elements: (1) scaffolding agency--expert, reciprocal, and self-scaffolding; (2) scaffolding domain--conceptual and heuristic scaffolding; (3) the identification of self-scaffolding with metacognition; and (4) the identification of six zones of scaffolding activity; each zone…

Given that online higher education is a competitive marketplace, this paper discusses how to ensure online student success. Within the online learning environment, the following may create the vitality of the online institution: (a) The online learning environment; (b) The role of the instructor; (c) Learning Communities; (d) Computer-mediated…

There is in higher education a powerful discourse of "independent learning". While there may be pedagogical rationales to support the desirability of increased independence at the tertiary stage, it may also serve other institutional agendas, such as functioning as a way for academic staff to "manage" the frustrations…

Describes The Social Development Program, a way to foster social responsibility and in the process reduce unacceptable classroom behavior simply and easily. The strategy is based on several principles: positivity; empowerment by choice; the importance of self-evaluation and self-correction; assumption of social responsibility; and authority…