Claims that the use of Kokeshi dolls--a small limbless cylindrical wooden doll from Japan--allows counseling supervisees to focus on conceptualizations, personalization, and process skills. Uses a case study to illustrate how these dolls can enhance supervision, allowing trainees to become actively involved in the supervision process. (RJM)

Asked bachelor's and master's of social work students to evaluate at two points in their practicum the supervision provided by field instructors. Early in the practicum, students found helpful those supervisory activities that introduced them to the agency and clarified performance expectations. At the end, students preferred activities that…

We are thesis examiners within the Australian academic system who formed a community of practice to try to resolve some of the issues we were facing. Stories of examiners reflecting on and examining their own practice are a notable silence in the higher degree research literature. In this study we have adopted a storytelling inquiry method that…

The purpose of this study was to explore the place of friendship in mentoring relationships among two female literacy education professors and three female doctoral students enrolled at neighboring universities. The authors used West and Oldfather's (1995) pooled case comparison approach to analyze the data from two separate studies: one that was…

This paper evaluates an approach to dissertation supervision, designed to assist international students with their academic writing. It argues that a blended approach to supervision within a Virtual Learning Environment can provide high quality individualised care not otherwise available. This leads to deeper, critical learning and more meaningful…

Team building and delegation are two of the most important tools available to division chairs or academic officers for increasing productivity and allowing employees to grow, but they are both often misunderstood, misused, or unused. Teams are small groups with the authority and technical, interpersonal, and managerial skills to carry out…

This paper presents a transformational philosophy of educational leadership, with a focus on the practice of supervision. The paper defines and outlines the purposes of both leadership and supervision. It discusses multilevel social forces that affect leadership for K-8 schools and examines four dimensions of leadership--knowing oneself, the…

This guide for managers of programs for people with developmental disabilities outlines key principles and issues in the decision-making process, and offers tips for building coalitions and negotiating the interests of consumers, families, board members, employees, and community leaders. Ten to 25 guidelines are offered for each of six…

This newsletter theme issue focuses on the value of supervision in developing personnel in programs for infants with disabilities and their families. The first article, titled "Learning through Supervision and Mentorship To Support the Development of Infants, Toddlers and Their Families" (Emily Fenichel), is an essay explaining the thinking of the…

The academic success of the speech communications internship experience depends on the coordinated effort of all three of the key players in the internship--the intern, the site supervisor and the academic coordinator/director. For this relationship to be most effective, for the development of open channels and shared expectations, the…

This paper provides guidelines for improving the objectivity, quality, and relevance of classroom observations. Suggestions are organized according to the three stages of the observation process--prior, during, and after the observation. Tips for establishing and maintaining a positive climate and for necessary preparations prior to the…

Discourse analysis describes a level of spoken text that lies between grammar and nonlinguistic organization. Using such an approach to understand the practical problems of communication in supervisory conferences, this paper explores two dimensions of the conference: risk and politeness levels. Level of risk is determined by the degrees of…

Increasing demands for educational accountability make it important for principals to know how and when to successfully use methods of supervision with teachers to attain the mutual goal of instructional improvement. To determine whether significant differences existed between junior high school teachers' perceptions of principals' supervisory…

Recent literature indicates that supervision at the secondary level in physical education has had little significant impact on the overall experience of a student teacher. Two factors contributing to these results have been the type of setting and the nontraining of the cooperating teacher. Recent studies have also shown through objective data…

The lack of a planned, disciplined, and well-supervised approach to research which frustrates a student's timely completion of a Ph.D. program is addressed. Some practices are discussed which, if adopted, could lead many more students to complete their Ph.D. expeditiously. A framework is presented that is intended to help the student and the…