This article describes research with schoolteachers using participatory methods and reflective practice. These approaches have been used to enable teachers to establish their practice needs in relation to education for sustainability (EfS) and also maintain the integrity of their subject disciplines. The participatory methods are derived from…

The Pennsylvania Adult Literacy Practitioner Inquiry Network (PALPIN) project was conducted to establish statewide and regional inquiry groups to help adult literacy practitioners improve their performance by raising and investigating issues meaningful to their day-to-day practice. The conceptual framework underlying Philadelphia's Adult Literacy…

This monographic series volume contains two separate monographs. "The Training of Student Teachers in Discovery Methods of Instruction and Learning," (John Heywood, Sarah Heywood) discusses the polarization of discovery learning and expository teaching. It describes a unit in the applied psychology of instruction, commonly known as…

A series of interviews carried out over a 6-month period investigated: (1) why and how five New York City high school teachers used writing-to-learn across the curriculum, and, (2) the outcome of conducting research on one's own colleagues. Subjects were a math teacher, a physics teacher, and a career education teacher from a high school for…

Instruction in reading, writing, and thinking has an important place in all classrooms. A study examined the effect of writing instruction on students' mathematics achievement, as measured by grade point average in math class and scores on the New York State Regency Competency Test in Mathematics. Subjects, 56 ninth-grade students involved in a…

This book presents case studies of classroom research into the teaching and learning of English, mathematics, and sciences, drawing on the experiences of teacher researchers who, in partnership with their local education agencies and local universities, set out to intervene in key areas of the primary curriculum. After "Introduction: Inviting…

This publication presents five reports that represent research conducted by adult educators. "Supporting Adult Educators in Researching Their Practice" (Janelle Davis, Jean Searle) presents results of four action research projects related to developing literacies for disadvantaged groups or groups with special needs. "Towards Mutual…

For seven years, the Test of Adult Basic Education (TABE) was the primary standardized assessment instrument used by the adult education program of the Midwestern Intermediate Unit IV (MIUIV) of the Pennsylvania Department of Education Bureau of Adult Basic and Literacy Education. While reviewing its current assessment procedures, the MIUIV's…

This yearbook addresses the nation's need to train and retain good teachers, exploring exemplary practices in teacher education. There are four sections divided into 12 chapters. The book begins with a forward, "Research on Effective Models for Teacher Education: Powerful Teacher Education Programs" (E.M. Guyton). Section 1, "Models for Enhancing…

This book includes 22 papers in three parts. After (1) "Teacher Inquiry: A Defining Feature of Professional Practice" (Anthony Clarke and Gaalen Erickson), Part 1, "Enacting Teacher Research in Practice Settings," includes (2) "Writing Matters: Exploring the Relationship between Writing Instruction and Assessment"…

This book examines issues in studying equal opportunity in colleges and universities, especially those in the United Kingdom, and methods for conducting research into equal opportunity issues. It is intended to provide a framework of ideas and starting points for research. Most of the techniques suggested are forms of participant research on a…

This document is comprised of volume 13 of the Harvard Education Letter, published bimonthly and addressing current issues in elementary and secondary education. Articles in the six issues of this volume include: (1) January-February --"Making Detracking Work" (Lynn and Wheelock), "Developing a Culture of High Expectations for…

Describes one university's Field Based Masters Program. Designed around intact cohorts of experienced teachers who meet weekly over two years, the program involves integrated curriculum and action research projects. The paper describes how group process and collaboration are integral to teachers' learning experiences and ongoing professional…

This study offers ways to understand how a fifth-grade student and her teacher co-constructed academic and social positions within classroom writing practices and how these positions constrained and enabled literacy learning. Positioning is viewed as central rather than optional to learning. Classroom writing practices enabled the case-study…

When the author was a little girl, her father told her the story of how he once saw the great Harry Houdini escape from a straight jacket. In the early 1900s, Houdini fascinated thousands of people by performing feats of life-threatening daring and agility. Houdini was a professional in the traditional sense: he acted alone, kept his trade secrets…