Used hierarchical linear models to estimate the extent to which five inquiry-based teacher practices promoted student achievement and reduced achievement gaps among diverse students. Data from the National Education Longitudinal Study suggest that teacher practices that improve overall academic excellence simultaneously are as likely to contribute…

Examined the effects of positive interdependence versus no interdependence on college students' academic achievement. Students took weekly electronic quizzes where they could interact with groupmates in a chat room. Achievement was measured via biweekly examinations. Students in the positive interdependence condition engaged in significantly more…

Evaluated the Connected Mathematics Project (CMP), a middle school reform mathematics curriculum used in Louisiana's Lafayette parish. Analysis of Iowa Test of Basic Skills and Louisiana Education Assessment Program mathematics data indicated that CMP schools significantly outperformed non-CMP schools. Surveys of teachers and students showed that…

Developed a heuristic strategy (SOLVED) to explain the processes involved in understanding and solving mathematical word problems (problem translation, problem interpretation, solution planning, solution execution, and solution monitoring) among upper elementary students. Results indicated that SOLVED was more effective in aiding both short-term…

Examined the links between the minority and poverty status of public secondary schools and course-taking patterns within those schools by looking at the 1984 Regents Action Plan in New York state to explore the role of standards-based policies in altering connections between schooling context and curricula. Finds show the beneficial effects of the…

Reviews and synthesizes the literature that documents comprehensive school reform (CSR) implementation, positing that the more specific, consistent, authoritative, powerful, and stable a policy is, the stronger implementation will be. Identifies five policy attributes that contribute to implementation. (SLD)

The human capabilities approach developed by the economist Amartya Sen links development, quality of life and freedom. This article explores the key ideas in the capability approach of: capability, functioning, agency, human diversity and public participation in generating valued capabilities. It then considers how these ideas relate specifically…

The article argues that collective learning plays an important role in the practice of teacher research, which has not yet been adequately dealt with in its theory. Lave & Wenger's (1991) theory of "Situated Learning" is examined as an example for a conceptualisation of collective learning. In the concluding section, some provisions for "learning…

This short article is presented as a stimulus to thinking, and may be of particular interest to people who are new to doing educational research. It tells the story of what happened one day as the author was taking his daughter to school and how this led to insights about an important aspect of school life. The article then turns to some…

Notions of action research and of integrating object relations and field psychologies have exerted a steady influence on both the initial formation of The Tavistock Institute in London and on the subsequent 60 years of its professional identity and approach to work. These notions can be tied directly to early scientific contact with Kurt Lewin,…

During action research projects a great deal of written material is produced. Some of this is data generated about the project, some about the process of the research and some is reflective writing about the researcher(s). In this article I propose that a deliberate focus on the tracking of texts might be helpful in action research, particularly…

This article explores the factors that contributed to personal learning and development as a result of being a member of a collaborative action research project group. The project took place in a university School of Education, and involved five lecturers and the students they were supervising for their dissertations. Data were collected by…

This article considers teachers' work as they grapple with theories in practice in the everyday worlds of their classroom. It argues that Bourdieu's theory of practice and the concept of habitus may be useful in moving past theory/practice dichotomies. After establishing the historical context for teacher research in South Australia, the work of…

As higher education and universities become a more mainstream interest in society, pressures mount to invent new curricula and new and more appropriate ways to support the curriculum invention process. This article offers an account of the experiences of one such double-barrelled invention process associated with a Graduate Diploma in Legal…

This article presents findings from a 2-year reflexive action research study of a cohort-based Master's degree program in literacy for practicing teachers. Questions revolved around whether and how the program brought about changes in candidates' conceptions about literacy, expertise in literacy, and leadership/activist skills to foster equity in…