This article describes three reasons Twitter has become an essential part of US National Teacher of the Year Rebecca Mieliwocki's teaching life: (1) It provides professional development on demand by offering a steady stream of great new ideas, activities, lesson suggestions, book recommendations, and teaching tips that can be immediately…

One has heard about personal learning networks (PLNs), but what are they and how are they different than professional learning communities (PLCs)? Find out how PLNs can help a teacher pursue his/her own professional interests and be a better teacher. This article answers questions related to PLNs such as: (1) What are personal learning networks?;…

This paper uses a mixed-methods approach to investigate how the Young Women Leaders Program, a mentoring program for at-risk adolescent girls, supports mentor commitment, prejudice reduction, and increased understanding and acceptance of diversity among the undergraduates serving as mentors. The results suggest that particular mentoring program…

Roosevelt University students in elementary and secondary education, mathematics, and psychology served as mentors to groups of seventh-grade girls in the GO-GIRL Program during two spring semesters. This brief, descriptive essay will address the overall impact of mentoring on student mentors in the GO-GIRL Program, particularly what the…

The role of mentor development in implementing an out-of-school math and science Saturday program for middle-school girls is examined, using content analyses performed on journal entries that four college and graduate school-level mentors completed during the second year of the pilot program. Findings suggest that mentors matured and changed from…

The disintegration of teacher certification programs in the united States holds an eerie similarity to the recent meltdown of American financial institutions. Similarly, the No Child Left Behind Act of 2001, whose purported purpose was to ensure that all students get highly qualified teachers (HQT), has had an unintentionally devastating effect on…

Interest in improving the quality of professional development in this age of educational reform has intensified as a growing body of research suggests that teaching practices matter in terms of student achievement. Some have argued for embedding professional development in the context of teachers' work in order to transform both teaching practices…

The accountability required by school-reform measures such as No Child Left Behind has placed increased emphasis on data analysis for appraising schools, administrators, teachers, and students. The focus of accountability-driven initiatives is developing policies and procedures that collectively influence the district, the school, and most…

Describes a health fair conducted by the University of Texas at Austin and sponsored by the Health Information and Education Office at the Student Health Center. Its goal was to identify student health concerns and to respond programmatically. (Author/RK)

Describes a program, launched by the New Haven (Connecticut) Public School System, that involved parents, as well as other members of the family, in a variety of activities that promoted reading growth of children. (Author/RK)

One would not buy an automobile, a television set, or a gallon of paint without expecting some type of guarantee in return. Public school systems have a similar right to expect a certain level of performance from the graduates they hire from teacher-training institutions. Describes the teacher warranty program, its objectives and prerequisites to…

The Summer Youth Program, formerly the Neighborhood Youth Corps, held at the Knoxville campus of the University of Tennessee, is designed to provide summer employment to the community's disadvantaged. This article describes a plan to improve the overall effectiveness of the Summer Youth Program, which is applicable to other universities and…