With the growth and increased variation of faculty roles, research-intensive campuses have varied expectations with respect to teaching, service, and research. In this piece the authors introduce a categorization of the various types of teaching practice, differentiating them from knowledge generation in the disciplines. The authors then draw…

This is the first in a series of reports to be published by the National Alliance in partnership with Public Impact highlighting the experiences of school leaders of color in charter schools across the country. While the impact school leaders have on student performance has been well documented, there has been little attention to how leaders'…

Teacher evaluations can be used by states and districts to support and develop an exceptional workforce. Accurate evaluations based on quality data can help differentiate teacher performance, inform feedback, improve professional development, provide opportunities for pay increases and advancement, and provide rationale for teacher dismissals. Yet…

The aim of this study was to evaluate how [the Council on Social Work Education's] (CSWE's) 2008 shift placing more emphasis on research have affected newly trained social workers' use of evidence-based practice (EBP). This qualitative study examined the educational and practice experiences of newly trained social workers and how those experiences…

Debates over the efficacy of tenure are longstanding but tenure reform is now more prominent in the public eye given recent high-profile legislative battles in states like Ohio and Wisconsin. This focus on tenure also is a natural outgrowth of the large body of research showing that differences between individual teachers can have profound effects…

As community colleges across the country look for ways to promote student success, the need for scaling effective approaches is critical. This guide builds on a framework of four phases of scaling developed in Job For the Future's (JFF's) previous publication, "Thinking Big: A Framework for States on Scaling Up Community College…

The religious dynamics of higher education are changing rapidly. College campuses have become prime sites for conflicts involving religious identity. Few issues touch more broadly or more deeply on complexity, diversity, and change in the twenty-first-century world than those related to how people who orient differently around religion interact…

Non-parental arrangements for young children serve a dual function as supports for parental activities and educational inputs for children. However, arrangements that are suited to meet families' specific needs and preferences are sometimes in tension with experts' definitions of "quality." Researchers and policymakers increasingly…

This article describes the first phase of a longitudinal study that examines the impact of teacher preparation programs on the literacy instructional practices of teacher candidates. Case summaries and cross-case analysis by 12 researchers of 10 teacher preparation universities across the United States determined (1) the signature aspects of…

After two centuries of public higher education in the United States, the covenant between public colleges and universities and the public that created and funded them is under strain. In a time of scarce resources and changing policy in many corners of the country and around the globe, privatization has emerged as a possible replacement for the…

The nation's community colleges have an impressive to-do list: (1) Increase college completion by 50 percent by 2020; (2) Dramatically improve college readiness; (3) Close the American skills gap; (4) Refocus the community college mission; (5) Invest in new support structures; (6) Target public and private investments; and (7) Promote rigor and…

The authors espouse the need for negotiation in designing and delivering English for Specific Purposes (ESP) programs. Such negotiations take into account learners' needs as well as structural limitations of the context and candid assessment of ESP providers. The article explores lessons from the field and the importance of needs analysis.

Through ongoing rapid-fire changes in the nature of communications, the social, professional, and political landscapes of our time are rapidly transforming. But the prevailing paradigm in most schools and school systems is a relic of the industrial revolution. Schools and school systems must adopt a new paradigm for learning if they are to remain…

The purpose of this research was to understand ways exemplary award winning secondary school leaders have transformed their schools for twenty-first-century education and student achievement. This article presents three diverse case studies and identifies ways that each school's leader and leadership team reconfigured its culture and expectations,…

This report presents the findings from a rigorous national survey of charter school authorizers conducted in 2011 by the National Association of Charter School Authorizers (NACSA). This is the fourth time NACSA has conducted this type of national survey. As in years past, the vast majority of authorizers (90 percent) are school districts and they…