In today's era of increased accountability and standards-based reforms within the United States educational system, Community Partner Organizations (CPOs) can offer essential support to teachers, schools, and districts. CPOs have the potential to have a positive impact in urban schools in particular, where high-stakes testing and accountability…

Teams of teachers and administrators have become more and more common as a framework for improving responsiveness to the ever more dynamic educational environment. Although teamwork is often expected to broaden the team's collective knowledge base, consequently improving team effectiveness, research shows that this potential effectiveness is not…

Developing effective novice teachers involves many components. Researchers have studied the impact of principals, induction programs, and mentors on the growth and development of novice teachers. Relationships with college/university faculty, students, parents, and support staff can also impact the growth of these novice professionals. The…

This article discusses "Choice and Challenge" as a tool for school improvement and as a "practicable pedagogy" that attempts to embody the principles of "learning without limits," rejecting ability grouping and labelling. As considered here, "Choice and Challenge" emerges specifically from practice at the…

This article tries to respond to a basic question: "can in-service teachers of public sectors in Pakistan be reformed?" The authors' response to this question is: "yes, public teachers can be reformed, if contextual possibilities are exploited efficiently". Although a straightforward and simplistic response to the question,…

This article explores students' potential to make a difference to their school through a Students as Researchers programme. It begins by discussing the impetus for the current increase in student voice initiatives in schools. It continues the debate around issues of student empowerment and students' identity as change agents through an analysis of…

Creative Partnerships aims to change the ways in which children learn and teachers teach, and to support whole school change. Our research examines how schools take up the "cultural offer" made by Creative Partnerships. In this article, drawing on data from snapshot visits to 40 English schools, we suggest that it has made a difference…

Given the widening achievement gap between whites and students of color in US schools, Small Learning Communities have emerged as a reform measure claimed to boost achievement in general and among racial minorities. This article examines this claim by reviewing the major policy documents and literature on SLC and analyzing SLC using Frank's (1972)…

Learning mentoring programmes can be effective tools for increasing social, personal and educational development for young people. This article explores the views of girl mentees who experienced difficulty managing their mentoring programme within their school. Mentoring can be employed in different ways with different pupils to help the overall…