Focuses on the organization Young Aspirations/Young Artists, or YA/YA, that was founded by New Orleans (Louisiana) artist Jana Napoli after inviting high school students to her studio. Provides background information on YA/YA. States that the organization works within the framework of capitalism and gives a voice to adolescents. (CMK)

Service learning involves learning a variety of skills through the act of service. It is a powerful teaching strategy that can enrich student learning, enhance teaching, and revitalize communities. This increasingly popular strategy offers a framework in which students can recall and apply more of what they learn than in traditional content-based…

Having ownership of a dream is a core element for school improvement and effectiveness. Believing in the effectiveness of a programme is the beginning of reviving a school's internal capacities for improvement. Any improvement and development programme needs to be inviting and non-threatening, a holistic process involving all stakeholders. In this…

The ability to communicate feelings, thoughts, ideas, viewpoints, and opinions empowers an individual to educate others about who they are. Because communication is a two-way action, when students learn to communicate effectively they also learn to look and listen to what others are communicating. Empowerment through communication skills…

By eliminating categorical labels traditionally assigned to students, staff, materials, rooms, instructional procedures, and behavior management practices and promoting teacher and student participation, the Winooski (Vermont) School District has moved away from a dual education system. Collaboration and teaming practices are the cornerstone of…

Discusses strategies for encouraging student participation in the development of an Individualized Education Program for a child with a disability. Outlines the significant steps in the process including developing a vision, prioritizing learning needs, collaborative problem solving, setting goals, and planning the intervention. (CR)

To ensure that students recognize themselves as stakeholders in their education, they must participate in planning and executing their education. This can include making decisions regarding course selection, curriculum, and independent learning. The Internet provides one avenue for independent learning. It is important for students to reflect on…

Taking an active part and responsibilities in one's own life is not always easy, particularly at adolescence, which is a very important period in which people progressively find their identity and life project. This article describes the social validation analyses of a Belgian self-determination curriculum that was adapted from a French-Canadian…

Pupil autonomy, empowerment, and clarity of school rules are factors underpinning school effectiveness in terms of supporting pupil health and education. This paper considers data collected from 27 one-to-one staff interviews conducted in two secondary schools. Analysis indicated that the schools subscribed to different philosophies regarding…

This book addresses the importance of student involvement in improving the quality of schools. It demonstrates how bringing together students of all achievement levels using empowering activities helps everyone. Chapter 1 demonstrates how student involvement can be used to alter the culture of a school and includes examples of specific projects to…

Describes how one teacher used peer review to help students understand state content standards. Students held one another accountable for the basics, then she assessed the core content of their work. To get students thinking about standards-based learning, she used a pizza activity. Next, students created rubrics for assessing book reports and…

Self-directed Individualized Education Programs (IEPs) allow students to assume leadership and become actively involved in the decisions made at their IEP meetings. This article describes how through direct instruction, social skills discussion, active practice, and role-playing students are prepared to facilitate their meeting. This active…

The Academy for Educational Development (AED) Colloquium on Diversity in Education Abroad: How to Change the Picture was conceived of as a collaborative effort between the speakers, presenters, and participants. This publication presents the papers presented by the speakers. These are: (1) What We Know about Diversity in Education Abroad: State of…

This book about widening educational participation draws on an ethnographic study of 23 students returning to learning through access courses provided at their local further education college in suburban England. Chapter 1 explains how certain poststructural concepts (discourse, hegemony, deconstruction, and subjectivity) are used as analytical…

Before educators can assess the problems associated with being at risk of academic failure, they must understand what is occurring in the lives of at-risk students. The focus of this study was the school lives of 15 high school students. Data were gathered from student observations, informal interviews, document analysis, and journal entries to…