The Center approaches educational research as a collaborative process that is an integral part of the process of learning and teaching. The Center supports partnerships between researchers, educators and community leaders which encourage collaborative implementation, reflection and evaluation of classroom practices. Fostering Learning Communities Center collaborations encourage teachers to play an active role in designing and developing ways to evaluate instructional practice. The goal of the Center is to establish long term relationships between learners and teachers of all ages, in and beyond the classroom. These communities help to foster intellectual practices that use evidence as a way of building understanding.
School improvement is tied to community development.
Some of the most powerful tools we have in educational reform are communication technologies. Education is a process of interaction among students and teachers. But students do not all fit this set. By creating learning communities we can begin to address the diversity that exists in the classroom. Students can share expertise and learn from experts that are both in and out of the classrooms.