Planning a comprehensive staff development program

Directing an early childhood education program is a backbreaking, stressful endeavor. The successful administrator learns to manage time so as to squeeze the completion of infinite tasks into a finite daily time frame. Budgeting, paper work or unexpected conflict resolution often take priority over work with the staff or the curriculum. Staff development efforts are often limited.Jeffrey Trawick-Smith is an Assistant Professor at Eastern Connecticut State University in Willmantic     

Professional development for sessional staff in higher education: a review of current evidence

The aim of this study was to provide an integrated review of evidence published in the past decade around professional development for sessional staff in higher education. Using the Integrating Theory, Evidence and Action method, the review analysed recent evidence using the three principles of the Benchmarking Leadership and Advancement of Standards for Sessional Teaching project – Quality Learning and Teaching, Sessional Staff Support and Sustainability. Quality Learning and Teaching refers to issues affecting the quality of sessional staff teaching and learning, while Sessional Staff Support refers to the provision of consistent support and inclusive infrastructure for sessional staff. The Sustainability principle refers to practices that encourage the retention of good sessional staff and the pursuit of quality teaching. Clear themes emerge from the evidence that suggest long-standing structural issues that are yet to be effectively addressed. However, several examples of effective strategies were also identified, particularly around peer observation and mentorship.     

Rational-emotive staff development

The application of Rational-Emotive Therapy principles and techniques in in-service education for school personnel is discussed. Teachers and counselors participated in a staff development program designed to: (a) help participants develop an understanding of how emotions work, (b) decrease irrational beliefs among participants, (c) provide participants with techniques to manage their emotions more effectively, and (d) provide participants with techniques useful in helping students to manage their emotions more effectively. All four program goals were met. Implications of these findings are discussed in light of previous research.     

迈向专业化:小议大学基层行政队伍建设的问题与对策

基层行政队伍建设是建立现代大学制度的重要内容之一。本文从四个方面分析了大学基层行政队伍所面临的问题,而根本则在于其定位不清,缺乏专业性。因此,明确定位、分类管理、完善职业发展机制是基层行政队伍专业化提升的三个努力方向。     

The Just Community: a method for staff development

Abstract

This paper describes a study which examined the relationship between Just Community participation and teachers’ moral judgement. At the pre‐test stage, the teachers attributed resolution for their dilemmas to an assistant principal or administrator. Analysis of the teachers’ moral development after participation in the Just Community shows that the treatment group changed but that the comparison group did not. The study suggests that a teacher may make judgements of responsibility for moral action when s/he has experienced moral growth through participation in an on‐the‐job moral education programme which requires the discussion and resolution of real‐life on‐line moral dilemmas to fulfil the responsibilities of the perceived job role.     

Facilitating play skills: Efficacy of a staff development program

Staff members of a day care center took part in a year-long training program designed to help them facilitate a child's ability to learn through play. This paper briefly describes the training objectives and methods used in the first two workshops of this program. An evaluation of the effectiveness of those methods is presented, based on pre-training and post-training observation of interactions between caregivers and children in the day care center. Results indicate that the training was very effective in increasing caregiver verbal involvement with children during play, but was less effective in reducing the number of verbal directives delivered by caregivers in interacting with the children. A negative relationship was found between caregiver's level of education and amount of verbally directive behavior after training, but not before training.     

加强基础建设稳定实验室人才

以实验室建设对于师资队伍建设的作用，说明加强基础建设对于吸引和稳定人才的重要意义。阐述了基础建设与稳定人才队伍之间的关系，提出了加强基础建设稳定人才的途径和方法，并对进一步完善实验室建设工作提出了建设性意见。     

Enhancing research through academic staff development

Abstract

In the past few years, research has been an increasingly important focus of academic staff development, but there is little documentation of this new area of development. The purpose of this paper is to describe the evolution over four years of a programme to develop research skills. The experience of planning and implementing this programme illustrates how changes in higher education and university priorities (such as amalgamations of institutions, increased pressures on staff, increased competition between institutions for funding, and universities’ growing corporatization) have interacted with staff development objectives to shape changes in the programme's purpose, format, mode of participation, and planning approach. A collaborative approach to planning is seen to be appropriate in the current climate, maximizing sensitivity to the distinctive needs of the various faculties, departments or schools. Current scholarly discussion is recognized as providing support for a move toward collaboration and context‐sensitivity.     

Effective models of staff development in ICT

Previous studies into teacher attitude and motivation have identified staff development as one of the contributing factors in using ICT effectively in the classroom. Substantial funds have been provided for such staff development in recent years in the UK. Currently, ICT training is being funded to a level of £23m in Scotland and £230m in England and Wales over the period 2000–2003. This paper will report on an investigation into effective staff development in ICT for teachers. A sample of Scottish primary school teachers have been surveyed to investigate the impact of different models of staff development in ICT on the teacher and to explore the knowledge and skills gained by teachers from staff development: technical; academic/content‐related; pedagogy. The results indicate the need for a much greater emphasis to be placed on the pedagogy of ICT. This should be of interest to all involved in teacher education and the continuing professional development of teachers.

Des recherches antérieures dans les attitudes et la motivation des écoles et du secondaire ont montré que la formation du corps enseignant est un des facteurs les plus importants dans l'utilisation de l'outil informatique de manière efficace en classe. Des sommes conséquentes ont été allouées pour cette formation dans les dernières années au Royaume Uni. En ce moment la formation à l'outil informatique ainsi dispensé le chiffre à £23 millions en Ecosse et £230 millions en Angleterre et au Pays de Galles pour la période 2000–2003. Ce rapport va rendre compte des recherches dans la formation en informatique et de son efficacité pour le corps enseignant. Un sondage auprès des professeurs des écoles en Ecosse a été réalisé dans le but d'enquêr sur les effets des différentes approches de la formation es professeurs du primaire et aussi d'explorer les connaissances et les compétences obtenues par les instituteurs à l'issue de la formation dans les domaines; techniques; académiques; pédagogiques. Les résultats montrent qu'il est nécessaire mettre l'accent sur la pédagogie de l'informatique. Ceci doit intéresser tous ceux qui prennent part dans la formation initiale et continue des maîtres.

Es war durch vorgehende Forschungen über die Geisteshaltung und Motivierung der Lehrers gewiesen, dass die Ausbildung sehr wichtig für das Benützen der Informatik in der Klasse war. Man hat grössere Gelder fur solche Ausbildung in Grossbrittanien gefunden. Zurzeit die informatische Ausbildung wird in Schottland zu £23 Millionen finanziert; und zu £230 Millionen in England und Wales finanziert. Dieses Referat wird über effektive Ausbildung für Lehrern von Informatik berichten. Eine Untersuchung der schottischen Lehrern in Grundschule war gemacht, um die Wirkung von verschiedenen Sorten Ausbildung auf den Lehrern zu finden und um die Kentnisse und die Fähigkeiten den Lehrern nach der Ausbildung; teknische; akademische; pedagogische; zu studieren. Die Ergebnisse zeigen, dass man die Pedagogik der Informatik betonen soll. Das soll interessant für alle, die beteiligt an die Ausbildung von Lehrern sein.     

Reflective practice,staff development and understanding

This paper looks at the idea of reflective practice in the context of educational and staff development. The main elements of reflective practice and differences in the approach of the ‘expert’ in comparison with the ‘reflective practitioner’ are outlined. Notions of reflection‐in‐action and reflection‐on‐action are then taken up and elaborated. In particular, understanding, self‐understanding and openness are considered to be important for reflection‐in‐action. These are briefly considered and located within the tradition of interpretation, or hermeneutics. Reflection‐on‐action is then discussed and found to be very important for reflection‐in‐action. It is suggested that for busy, professional practitioners, reflection‐on‐action often comes under severe pressure and is the ‘endangered species’ of reflective practice.     

Interviewing staff: A review of the Literature

Summary

It has been shown that the interview has an important role to play in selection provided that it has been adequately planned. If the interviewer has decided what he wants, what to look for, and how to find this, the interview procedure used can be adapted to suit the requirements of the employing organization.

Despite the criticisms of the interview, the critics have not as yet, in the author's opinion, offered any satisfactory alternatives. This they would be able to do, perhaps, when employers become willing to employ staff without face to face contact. ‘The value of the interview—of “the meeting face to face”—has’ in Oldfield's [28] opinion ‘grown rather than diminished’ because it provides a ‘contrast with a background of uncommunicative correspondence’.