Unlike every other developed country, Canada has had no national or pan-Canadian agency that works to support and promote research in education, and especially to build connections between research, policy, and practice. Canada has a national granting council that funds academic research in all fields, including education (the Social Sciences and…

Ontario embraced a provincial lead improvement plan that was designed to improve its 5,000 schools by focusing on literacy and numeracy, improving high school graduation, and improving public support for education. Its primary strategy was developing networks of educators and building their capacity for growth.

Despite a continuing stream of concern on the part of researchers, demographers, and cultural pundits about a crisis in boys' social development and schooling, surprisingly little attention has been paid to what is perhaps the richest pool of data: current, observable teaching practices that clearly work with boys. In schools of all types in all…

Much has been written about sustainable large-scale change, but there are few examples of it. Over the last four years, the province of Ontario, Canada, has been engaged in just that work of moving from a system that was in constant conflict to one that has generated both much improved student outcomes and positive energy. The Ontario education…

It is 40-plus years since the upstart Professional Development Program was initiated at Simon Fraser University. Among its many audacious innovations, the program offered opportunities for practicing teachers to play leading roles in the professional development of student teachers. Seconded (temporarily released) to the university for two-year…

District staff members and teachers in the Northern Lights School Division of Alberta designed a formal reading curriculum for kindergarten. In the first year, all 141 kindergarten-age students were included in the study. Their progress equaled that of students in average first-grade classrooms, and none of them failed. (Contains 14 references.)…

Private tutoring is a growing industry that is being transformed by an evolution from "shadow education" provision into "learning center" franchises. Traditional shadow educators closely follow the school curriculum, offering short-term homework help and test preparation. Learning centers develop their own curricular and…

Argues that reliance on the outcome of quantitative standardized tests to assess student performance is misplaced quest for certainty in an uncertain world. Reviews and lauds Canadian teacher-devised qualitative diagnostic tool, "Profiles of Student Behaviors," composed of 20 behavioral patterns in student knowledge, attitude, and skill.…

Recent efforts to develop a Canadian studies curriculum have focused on finding a national base for curriculum development and on better ways to promote understanding of the nature of Canada as a whole. The goal is to answer the question, "What should young Canadians understand about their own country?" (Author/WD)

A survey of 160 randomly selected teachers in the primary and junior divisions of four school jurisdictions in eastern Ontario showed a significant difference between teachers defined as inner-directed and those identified as outer-directed in terms of their acceptance of ideas and principles outlined in the Ontario guidelines. (Author/WD)

Some Canadian teachers play a special role in developing the teaching profession internationally. They participate in helping teachers in developing countries and promoting understanding worldwide. (MD)

Offers an update on global education programs from around the world, in the hope that American educators will seek dialogue with their international peers. (Author/MLF)

The Project on Alternatives in Education (1981) on North American alternative schools shows the movement's steady growth, high staff morale and control, and attendance. Factors contributing to success: smallness, choice, extended roles, relative autonomy, continuing evaluation, and teacher participation. Teacher/student relationship and positive…

Fear of censure and political pressures for standardization compel teachers to act in ways they know will not further their students' learning. Changing teachers requires more than offering them information about method, organization, and content. To change, teachers need to examine their own learning and discover what engages students in genuine…