The Universal Forum of Cultures, to take place in Barcelona in 2004, is spearheading the creation of international networks of learning communities; each will take action on 1 of 10 themes related to cultural diversity, sustainable development, or conditions for peace. The work of the thematic network on communications media and new technologies,…

Describes three interrelated models for faculty development: (1) the School Improvement approach, in which school staff identify institutional goals and their own needs; (2) the Readiness, Planning, Training, Implementation, Maintenance (RPTIM) model; and (3) a model of effective inservice activities in RPTIM training and implementation phases.…

Current rhetoric about the educational "impact" of new information and communication technologies (ICT) often masks the complex reality in which it is educators' decisions and practices with ICT that result in change and constitute the impact. In communities of interpretation, teachers and researchers can collaborate to construct knowledge of…

In the Network of Performance Schools, 75 British Columbia schools conduct action research on school improvement. Among their findings: a sense of identity around a common goal was key to successful networking, assessment information generated from classroom work provided meaningful data and supported school learning communities, and network…

When the Battle River Regional School Division (Alberta) realized that multiple staff development priorities were fragmenting school and district focus on increasing student achievement, it formed a committee of regional, district, and school stakeholders that developed six staff development priorities, all promoting student achievement, and…

The Marie-Victorin school board, in cooperation with 11 community organizations in Longueuil, Quebec, launched "De A a Z, On s'aide!," a project designed to encourage an interest in reading and writing in families with children 0-4 years old and break the recurrent cycle of illiteracy that plagues poor neighborhoods. (TD)

Briefly reviews current understandings of learning that have direct implications for teaching practice, and includes references to other work that may be useful. Discusses five general topics: multiple domains of competence (multiple intelligences); socioemotional factors in cognitive processes; collaborative learning; pathways to competence; and…

Across Canada, a range of approaches to assessment reflects different theories of organizational change and contrasting views of the purpose of education. Saskatchewan's accountability framework is based on shared principles about appropriate evaluation, jointly developed by education stakeholders. Features include cooperation and shared…

The Whole School Approach to Early Literacy Development program, implemented in high-needs schools in Calgary (Alberta), focused on changing school culture so that teachers, administrators, parents, specialists, and students cooperated to meet high expectations for student achievement. Participating schools committed to six requirements that…

Canadian educational reform involves "top-half" provincial policy makers and "bottom-half" communities, schools, and local jurisdictions. Policy reforms in curriculum, instruction, and assessment are on the right track while those in teacher education and community development are not. Local implementation concerns are…

A principal of three Ontario "twinned" schools (sharing principal and services) discusses the arrangement's advantages: greater sharing of both human and technical resources and increased opportunities for broader budget negotiations between schools. The disadvantages of twinning relate to the additional stress placed on the principal…

Describes the efforts of the Centre on Collaborative Research at Brock University (Ontario) to understand the processes of collaboration by participating in school-university collaborative research. Explores professional interrelationships and attitudes involved in collaboration and the necessary time-consuming commitment to relational processes.…

Four elementary schools in Washington, Alaska, and British Columbia are cooperating on a project to explore issues surrounding the Pacific salmon fisheries. Place-based techniques and interactive media are used to bring together science; global concerns; the histories of Canada, the United States, and First Nations peoples; background on the…

Describes school-improvement measures in Quebec, supported by the Partnership on School Improvement and the Quebec School Improvement Network. The Partnership includes representatives from government, McGill University, associations of school boards and school administrators, and teachers' unions. Staff trainings and improvement initiatives in…

Evaluation of the provincial science curriculum in grades one to five in Saskatchewan (Canada) involved collaboration among teachers, administrators, and subject specialists in developing an evaluation plan, developing evaluation instruments, administering student and teacher questionnaires and student achievement tests, evaluating case studies of…