This article introduces the process of inquiry-oriented mentoring as an appropriate tool for developing the knowledge, skills, and abilities of mentors who work with prospective teachers within the professional development school. The process shows promise as a tool for capturing the knowledge of what constitutes powerful mentoring practices, by…

In 2003, a state in the Rocky Mountain region combined the concept of partner schools (Goodlad, 1993) and the model of a professional development school (Holmes Group, 1986, 1995) to develop four university public school partnerships. This study asked two guiding questions: Is authentic cross-cultural collaboration possible between a university…

This article details a strategic planning model and concurrent 3-year research study focusing on the benefits of preK-16 professional development school learning communities for the participating preK-16 educational leaders in a midwestern school-university partnership network. Results of the study, along with the strategic plan's success at…

The continued discrepancies in educational outcomes and learning conditions found among our nation's schools serving low-income students and students of color call for teacher educators to seriously consider what factors lead to culturally responsive policies and practices. This article summarizes a comparative study of 96 middle school and high…

This article describes a school-university partnership that focuses on the development of classroom management skills for preservice teachers in an urban setting, through collaboration between mentors, principals, and a university supervisor. To prepare preservice teachers for the unique challenges of urban schools, three key elements were…

In this article, we share how a professional development school (PDS) partnership between several elementary school sites within a district and an institution of higher education prepares special education teacher candidates. The following challenges are identified for PDS stakeholders: recruiting qualified special education mentor teachers,…

School-university partnerships are promising collaborations for better preparing qualified and competent teachers for the realities of today's diverse American classrooms. Research has been conducted on many aspects of partnerships, but few studies have focused on partnered student teaching placements. In this article, a professor and five of her…

Many teacher candidates continue to choose the traditional student teaching path in spite of research documenting the value and benefits of professional development school programs. The purpose of this study was to explore reasons why teacher candidates choose a traditional model versus a professional development school model for their culminating…

We investigated how and to what extent a school-university partnership might influence the teachers and the teaching in one school, Parkland. We interviewed 23 novice and veteran teachers, the principals, and the university liaison. The data suggest that the university structures (i.e., the practicum, the student teaching internship, the Senior…

The article deals with one of the most important components of a professional development school (PDS) partnership--sustainability without funding. According to Ganesan, Das, Edwards, and Okogbaa (2004), sustainability is one of the most difficult components of actualizing a school-university partnership. The PDS partnership depicted in this…

While "Dancing With the Stars" often shares the background of the dancers and shows some of the preparation that goes into the dances, it does not always give viewers the background of the dances being danced. Many people are never knowledgeable about where dances came from or how they began. In this article, the author provides some background…

The 2009 Professional Development Schools National Conference recognized the professional development school partnership between Pennsylvania State University and State College Area School District for its meritorious partnership work over time and so named it one of the three recipients of the first-ever National Association for Professional…

The 2009 Professional Development Schools National Conference recognized the professional development school relationship between North Springs Elementary School and the University of South Carolina for its outstanding collaborative accomplishments, naming it one of the three recipients of the first-ever National Association for Professional…

The 2009 Professional Development Schools National Conference recognized the North Florida Urban Professional Development School Partnership for its outstanding work in an urban education context and so named it one of the three recipients of the first-ever National Association for Professional Development Schools Award for Exemplary Professional…

The article compares three replication studies that explore potential differences between teacher candidates trained in professional development schools and those trained in a traditional program. Data sources included student teaching evaluations (analyzed quantitatively) and portfolio reflections, oral and written (analyzed qualitatively). The…