The importance of interplay between school-based and networked professional development: School professionals’ experiences of inter-school collaborations in learning networks

Previous literature has demonstrated that networks can be valuable sources of professional learning. In 2005 all Liverpool schools formed into ten Learning Networks with the aim of improving the quality, and entitlement of, continuing professional development (CPD) for staff as part of a whole-scale local authority initiative. The Liverpool Learning Networks Research explored professionals’ CPD experiences following this organizational change and whether it has enhanced their practice. Triangulated data, a large-scale survey and qualitative interviews conducted in 2007, seem to suggest that where professionals benefited from professional learning in a networked context, the quality of the networked CPD as well as a positive school culture and intra-school collaboration were all important contributors to the success of networked-CPD. This finding can usefully apply Turbill’s (Teacher learning for educational change. Open University Press, Buckingham, 94–114, 2002) model of professional learning to the intersection between school-based and networked-CPD, which suggests that it is at this intersection between internal and external domains that teacher learning can take place. Two scenarios, where this interplay between school-based and networked CPD is positive (enhancement) or negative (tension), are reported through five case studies of professionals underpinned by the survey data, where relevant.     

Changes in Institutional Aid, 1992–2003: The Evolving Role of Merit Aid

Changes in the distribution of student financial aid have taken place at the state and federal level. In addition, several authors have reported on shifts in the awarding of financial aid to students at the institutional level. The analysis described in this study examines shifts in institutional responsiveness to both student need and student test scores over the period 1992–2003. The analysis reveals that three of the four sectors in the study have become less responsive to student need and more responsive to students’ academic characteristics over time.     

Introduction

This article explores questions of the politics of knowledge and epistemology in relation to Holocaust education. It argues that, since knowledge is not neutral, we must be attentive to the role of ideologies in the selection and presentation of knowledge concerning the Holocaust in textbooks, in teaching, and in the media. The construction of knowledge about the Holocaust in classrooms is a relational process of meaning-making in which the cultures, perspectives and experiences of all involved come into play. For these reasons, the authors argue, Holocaust education should be considered in light of other fundamental questions, including the relationship of history, memory and identity in order to understand its actual and potential role in fostering democratic citizenship.     

Introduction to the Open File

Sixty-five years after the liberation of Auschwitz, Holocaust education is at a critical juncture. Societies including Germany and Israel have moved through several discrete stages both in their relationships to the Holocaust, and in education about it. Those shifts will surely continue as the generation of survivors is progressively lost to the passage of time, taking with them our most powerful links to history, memory, and understanding. This special issue explores Holocaust education research, and locates it within our evolving understanding of the Holocaust itself, particularly in light of what is being learned within Central and Eastern Europe, where so many of the atrocities were committed. This introduction considers the potential of Holocaust education as well as its limitations, and the risks of its failure. It also considers the contexts in which Holocaust education takes place, and the meanings that are at work in those contexts. While many goals and visions animate Holocaust education, here we explore the notion of a culture of peace and remembrance. We close with a review of the contributions to this issue.     

The interface between arts practice and research: attitudes and perceptions of Australian artist‐academics

Whilst an academic working in the arts may have been appointed as a consequence of artistic accomplishment and a capacity to teach, the research that underpins such work is an intrinsic part of its production and also needs to be recognised. In Australia, the ability of the artist‐academic to translate research into a form that is respected and rewarded is an issue of contention. This paper gathers responses to this issue. Perceptions of and attitudes to creative work as research are canvassed alongside life decisions arising from those perceptions and attitudes. This research occurs in the context of a new Australian framework for the evaluation of research. This framework offers some recognition of the research that supports creative practice. Thus, the long‐standing experience of compromise reported by the Australian artist‐academics interviewed for this study are discussed alongside new policies that seek to construct methodologies for its amelioration.     

Interactive groups for immigrant students: a factor for success in the path of immigrant students

Student’s learning is the result of a large number of interactions in all areas. Consequently, with an increasing number of intercultural students, we need to bring to the classrooms successful educational actions that enhance interactions and that have an impact on improving education. Based on the CONEXITO project, this article shows how interactive groups (IGs) have contributed to increase not only the educational success of native students but also the success of immigrant students in different schools of Spain, for which IGs have particular educational outcomes. The communicative qualitative data presents evidence that, especially focusing on them, IGs increase instrumental learning and facilitate the bonds of solidarity and mutual help.     

Longitudinal effects of RtI implementation on reading achievement outcomes

Because several studies have investigated student outcomes in schools implementing Response to Intervention (RtI), relatively little research has investigated the impact of implementation on students’ long‐term achievement outcomes (i.e., several years after exposure). The purpose of this study was to describe one elementary school's RtI implementation process and to examine students’ long‐term reading comprehension outcomes following their exposure to various phases of implementation. Four cohorts of students who experienced different implementation phases (i.e., a baseline condition or Phases I, II, or III of implementation) during Grade 2 were subsequently followed across Grades 3, 4, and 5 to examine their outcomes on two reading comprehension measures. Results indicated that students who experienced the early phases of RtI implementation (i.e., Phases I and II) during Grade 2 generally had higher mean comprehension scores in Grades 4 and 5 than students in the baseline condition. Implications for practice and future research are discussed.     

Toward Cultural/Ecological Perspectives on Schooling and Achievement in African- and Asian-American Children

The review acknowledges that research on the family and its contribution to achievement in ethnic minority children is important. Past research and theorizing suggest the need for new directions, however. For example, research in educational achievement predicts educational failure for African-American students and educational success for Asian-American students. Little differentiation is made either among African-Americans or among Asian-Americans of different cultural, language, immigration, and economic backgrounds. The theory and design of research on family and educational achievement have been influenced by prevailing societal stereotypes. Research and policy implications of this review include the need to move toward cultural/ecological theories of achievement socialization and development.     

Perceptions of optimal conditions for teaching and learning: a case study from Flinders University

Effective teaching and learning in higher education is an important focal point of literature around the globe. Various models are presented as desirable and fostering optimal conditions for teaching and learning. However, each model must be examined within the context of its institutional culture, mission and strategic plan to ascertain if it meets the envisaged goals. The Reinventing Teaching Project survey conducted at Flinders University in 2009 provided a unique opportunity for academic staff and students across all faculties to respond to a survey that explored their perceptions of optimal learning conditions and assessed if the campus environment was conducive to effective teaching and learning practices. The exploratory study was designed to gather qualitative and quantitative data on the motivation of teachers and learners to engage with learning and learners (or not). The results of the survey present valuable insights into what teachers and learners consider to be important attributes of optimal teaching and learning and indicate a number of similarities and differences among teacher-student perceptions. This paper identifies and discusses some of the pertinent outcomes of the study to provide a framework for other similar studies.