Each teacher brings different strengths and beliefs to the classroom through instruction. When teachers implement the same curriculum, pacing guides, training, and support, their instruction still varies, as does student learning. The Action Research study sought to improve the connection between teacher self-efficacy and teacher perceptions in…

This paper analyzes teachers' motivations and expectations when engaging in action research and relates these to the process outcomes and to the broader evidence movement in education. The theoretical framework builds on research on motivations for teaching and engaging in action research. The empirical data consisted of 50 written teacher…

This article focuses on impacts of collaborative action research with a spiral process of planning, acting, observing, and reflecting that had been used as a strategy to promote teacher professional development in science education of Thailand. With the school principals' support, three primary science teachers' instructional practices are the…

This case study examined action research conducted by bilingual education teachers in urban schools as a tool for progressing from novice-to-expert teachers. We described a longitudinal study across four cohorts of first-year bilingual education teachers as action researchers (n = 9). The study investigated the following: (1) how school leaders…

This study investigated the role of the school administrator in helping teachers to use instructional practices that led to improved student learning outcomes. The data indicated that teachers were comfortable learning from other teacher-leaders in the school. Teachers responded favorably to opportunities to participate in collegial observation…

Practices such as formal focused professional dialogue groups, coaching conversations, mentoring conversations and professional learning staff meetings have been taken up in schools and pre-schools as part of long-term action research and development activities to improve the learning and teaching practices. The development of relational trust has…

Success in primary and secondary school mathematics is becoming increasingly important to today's teachers, students, parents and employment providers in Australia. Mathematics is viewed as high status and essential for a range of employment opportunities. The Disability Standards for Education [1] and the Australian Curriculum, Reporting and…

The contemporary challenges facing Catholic schools and Catholic school leaders are widely known. Effective and systemic solutions to these mounting challenges are less widely known or discussed. This article highlights the skills, knowledge, and dispositions associated with mission driven and data informed leadership--an orientation to school…

This study examines the role of pre-service teacher research in facilitating early and meaningful links between research and practice. Results from this mixed methods study show that pre-service teacher research is a promising method of early acculturation. However, despite a programme-wide emphasis on research as a mechanism for learning to teach…

This article describes how the Danforth Leadership Program at the University of Washington used Data-in-a-Day, a collaborative, action-research approach, at an urban elementary school to create a reciprocal learning experience focused on motivated learning for diverse students.

This action research study examines the development of distributed leadership practice among a new team of teacher leaders and their principal at an elementary school. Using a qualitative approach including a series of interviews, observations and journal entries, this study analyzes the interactions and changing roles of teacher leaders and their…

A principal describes how she introduced the concept of action research in her school by encouraging teachers to analyze how their teaching practices impacted students' success and to look for ways to improve. During the course of a year, teams of teachers introduced and monitored innovative projects designed to meet students' specific needs in…

An $11 million executive-training course for principals, modeled after best practices used in the corporate, medical, engineering, and military worlds, is starting to gain traction among states. Developed by the National Institute for School Leadership, or NISL, a for-profit company based in Washington, the program is now used widely in…

This volume contains papers submitted to the 10th Annual Conference of the Bulgarian Comparative Education Society, held in Kyustendil, Bulgaria, 12-15 June 2012. The overall goal of the 10th BCES conference is to facilitate discussion of different perspectives on international education providing a forum for scientific debate and constructive…

High school students continue to struggle in algebra, especially in large inner-city schools with underprivileged students. Students are not the only ones skirmishing with algebra. Teachers and school leaders are just as frustrated as they search for answers to complex teaching and learning problems. Two high school principals report the results…