Providing school-based learning in elementary school mathematics: the case of a professional development school partnership

Abstract

School–university partnerships also known as professional development school (PDS) partnerships provide potential for universities and schools to establish partnerships that can benefit university faculty, school teachers, university students, and school students. This study examines the impact of a PDS partnership in which the author served as a school-based mathematics coach for two years in a high-need elementary school. Data sources included interviews, surveys, and field notes from classroom observations. Inductive qualitative analyses which were situated in a multi-level framework for researching professional development found that teachers posed more cognitively demanding mathematical tasks and high-level questions in year two compared to year one of this project. Further, student achievement was noted on both state-wide and district-created assessments. Also teachers reported that the school-based approach to professional development led to some teachers taking on more informal leadership roles to support their colleagues’ mathematics instruction. Implications for school-based learning opportunities across the world include the need to establish specific university–school partnerships, and carefully designing research studies to examine the impact of these learning opportunities.     

America's Wasted Talent: A Karplus Lecture

Millions of young people who could achieve in mathematics and science are being discouraged or prevented from studying these subjects. Access to jobs, status and power in a high-tech, information economy depends upon mastery of these fields, but erroneous beliefs about aptitude are limiting the options for young women, students of color and students from poverty. Curriculum reform efforts are exciting, much-needed improvements, but the single most important change we need is a national consciousness raising. We should hold high expectations for all students and expect virtually all of them to achieve. Outdated and false notions about which groups possess the aptitude for technical subjects should not be used as barriers to access.     

Issues and challenges in higher education leadership: Engaging for change

It is proposed from this study that engaging productively with others to achieve change has never been more critical in educational environments, such as universities. Via semi-structured interviews with a cohort of senior leaders from one Australian university, this paper explores their perceptions of the key issues and challenges facing them in their work. The study found that the most significant challenges centred around the need for strategic leadership, flexibility, creativity and change-capability; responding to competing tensions and remaining relevant; maintaining academic quality; and managing fiscal and people resources. Sound interpersonal engagement, particularly in terms of change leadership capability, was found to be critical to meeting the key challenges identified by most participants. In light of the findings from the sample studied some tentative implications for leadership and leadership development in university environments are proposed, along with suggestions for further empirical exploration.     

The ‘Learning in Regular Classrooms’ initiative for inclusive education in China

The purpose of this article is to understand the Learning in Regular Classrooms (LRC) initiative for inclusive education in China. First, the paper reviews the policy, legislation, and practice in relation to the LRC. It then goes on to explore the specific social–political context of the LRC, and compares the Chinese LRC with the Western approaches to inclusion and integration. The authors then discuss the challenges posed by the attempt to further promote the LRC or inclusive education in the collectivist culture and socialist political context of modern China.     

Shakespeare in the Curriculum: direction by content

The results of a survey of secondary English Shakespeare teaching in one local education authority are reported. Centralised control of curriculum content in English is discussed in relation to findings about how much Shakespeare teaching is done and which plays teachers selected. The suggestion is made that recent controversy about content direction has deflected attention from the more important issues of methods of teaching and in‐service education.