In successful schools, teams of teachers meet regularly to examine student work through assessment and change their instructional practice accordingly to get better results. Staff developers should advocate simple but effective improvement mechanisms. The paper discusses what many improvement plans do wrong and recommends systematically reviewing…

Educators often overlook the largest body of evidence of student performance: student work. With careful and deliberate examination of various sources of student work, teachers can gather a wealth of information about student achievement and about their own instructional practices. Examining student work is not about grading or scoring papers. It…

This article examines the argument that "green" schools enhance educational performance. Having set the context of the relationship between environmentalism and the design of schools in the twentieth century, the article explores the performance of a number of green schools built in the UK between 1980 and 1995. The aim is to discover…

The "ISSS Annual Conference Proceedings" is a peer-reviewed professional publication published once a year following the annual conference. The following papers are included in the 2013 proceedings: (1) Teaching About Asia in a Social Science Education Program (Cyndi Mottola Poole and Joshua L. Kenna); (2) Teaching Students about…

A summary report of the first two years of the Arizona Career Ladder Research and Evaluation Project is presented. This program, established in 1985, included the formulation of the Joint Legislative Committee on Career Ladders, which provided oversight for program implementation and development. The pilot program seeks to determine if student…

This paper explores criteria for judging teaching effectiveness in the language arts. The author argues that a number of studies have been concerned with viewing pupil-teacher interaction during instruction, but few have focused on this interaction during the teaching and learning of specific language arts lessons. There is a need for establishing…

How teachers do what they do is the heart of the "silent curriculum." Research studies show how interpersonal relationships with students can be taught to teachers, and how teachers can change as a result. (Author/MLF)

This book examines how to generate successful professional development programs. There are 14 chapters in five parts. Part 1, "Set the Stage for Powerful Professional Learning," includes: (1) "The Case for Powerful Professional Learning"; (2) "Stretch Goals, Deep Change, and a Compelling Vision"; and (3) "A…

States are implementing standards-based reforms because of past failures to produce educational environments that ensure high academic achievement. The development of state standards, the availability of related curriculum documents, assessing student achievement, and institutional accountability measures have been some of the most effective…

Block periods of 75, 90, 100 minutes, or longer require good teachers to continue to develop and improve their teaching skills while keeping the student engaged over a long period. The fewer class meetings in the semester or year, and the rich potential for creativity and innovation provided by the longer period all combine to offer a challenge…

Data on student achievement and background and teacher training, experience, and hiring date, gathered from 400 urban midwestern elementary students and teachers, confirmed that differences in the quality of teachers hired during different time periods (the "vintage" effect) strongly affect the relationship between teaching experience…

Four educators respond to the article in this issue which suggests that statistical data do not support a link between student achievement and staff development. The responses revisit the research used in the original article, suggesting that the link exists and discussing how future research could be improved. (SM)

This interview with Linda Darling-Hammond examines recommendations in the new national report, "What Matters Most: Teaching and America's Future," which focuses attention on improving teaching as a way to improve student achievement. The interview examines such issues as characteristics of good faculty development; the effect of national teaching…

Better student learning means making more time for teacher learning. If schools are to be structured for success, professional development must be an ongoing, integral part of teaching. This paper provides examples from different schools and countries of organizing teacher time and rethinking school structures and practices, noting strategies for…

Investigated the relationship between professional development and the raising of academic standards and attainment, exploring the perceptions of British secondary school senior managers regarding this relationship and noting their attitudes about barriers to organizational translation of professional development into improved student achievement.…