ethanporcaro/eric-fulltext-meta huggingface dataset:
Professional Learning Communities. Research Brief
Author: Williamson, Ronald
Date: 2009-10-12
Type: Reports - Descriptive
Subjects: School Effectiveness,Educational Environment,School Personnel,Educational Change,Teacher Administrator Relationship,Academic Achievement,Educational Improvement,Principals,Administrator Role,Professional Development,Learning Activities,Interprofessional Relationship,Communities of Practice

The term, "professional learning community" has become so common place in schools that it is used to refer to almost any type of collaborative work. But the "professional learning community" suggested first in the early 1990's described a school where teachers and administrators continuously worked to learn and then act upon what they learned. The overall goal was to improve school effectiveness by focusing on improving the learning of students. Professional learning communities have several benefits for staff. They include reduced isolation, higher satisfaction, higher morale, and a greater commitment to the mission and goals of the school. Five elements of professional community have been identified: (1) Shared Norms and Values; (2) A Focus on Student Learning; (3) Reflective Dialogue; (4) Public Practice; and (5) Collaboration. Transforming a school into a professional learning community can only occur with the sanction and support of the principal. In order to build a successful learning community the principal must abandon the traditional position of authority and recognize that their role must include that of "learner," working with teachers and other school staff to investigate and seek solutions that will improve student learning. (Contains 9 online resources and 4 print resources.)
Productive Group Work for Students. Research Brief
Author: Williamson, Ronald
Date: 2010-05-08
Type: Reports - Descriptive
Subjects: Accountability,Cooperative Learning,Feedback (Response),Listening,Printed Materials,Research,Academic Achievement,Group Activities,Peer Teaching

There is clear evidence that students who are involved in productive collaborative groups outperform their peers. Cooperative group work also results in improved self-esteem, improved relationships and enhanced social and decision-making skills. Johnson and Johnson (1993) identified the elements of a successful collaborative activity. They include individual and group accountability as well as the explicit teaching of the interpersonal and small-group skills needed for successful collaborative work. Student accountability can be strengthened by designing lessons that emphasize larger learning goals, include a series of interim steps, provide clear timelines for each step, and ask students to evaluate their individual as well as group work. Critical interpersonal and small-group skills include communicating clearly, active listening, constructively responding to peers (both providing and receiving feedback) and considering different perspectives. (Contains 13 online resources and 11 print resources.)
Youth and Work: Restoring Teen and Young Adult Connections to Opportunity. KIDS COUNT Policy Report
Author: Annie E. Casey Foundation
Date: 2012-00-00
Type: Reports - Descriptive
Subjects: Manufacturing,Young Adults,Private Financial Support,Adolescents,Youth Programs,Employment Level,Unemployment,Job Skills,Business,Government Role,Economic Development,Dropouts,Career Development,High School Students

Forty years ago, a teenager leaving high school--with or without a diploma--could find a job in a local factory. Twenty years ago, even as manufacturing jobs moved offshore, young people could still gain a foothold in the workforce through neighborhood stores and restaurants. Amid the housing boom of the past decade, youth with some training could find a career track in the construction field. But today--with millions of jobs lost and experienced workers scrambling for every available position--America's young people stand last in line for jobs. In this KIDS COUNT policy report, the Annie E. Casey Foundation finds that nearly 6.5 million U.S. teens and young adults are neither in school nor in the workforce. With employment among young people at its lowest levels since the 1950s, these youth are veering toward chronic unemployment as adults and failing to gain the skills employers need in the 21st century. In addition to new national and state data on the issue, the report offers recommendations to support youth in gaining a stronger foothold in the economy. The core argument is that business, government, philanthropy and communities must come together to create opportunities to put young people back on track in a dynamic, advancing economy to ensure their success and to build a stronger workforce for the future. (Contains 2 figures, 1 table and 42 endnotes.) [This paper was written with the assistance from Tom Smith, Andy Sum, Linda Harris, Phyllis Jordan, and Tom Waldron.]
Professional Development. Research Brief
Author: Walker, Karen
Date: 2004-09-20
Type: Reports - Descriptive
Subjects: Foreign Countries,Professional Development,Bulletin Boards,Videoconferencing,Teacher Improvement,Collegiality,Teacher Collaboration,Computer Mediated Communication,Teaching Methods,School Districts,Teacher Leadership,Planning,Teacher Competencies

According to the literature, the purpose of professional development is to improve student learning. It was noted that there appeared to be a direct correlation between the depth of the teacher's content knowledge, methodologies, student-teacher relationships, and reflection, that when applied to an improvement in practices, positively affected student learning. There was ample research that found that the traditional &quot;one size fits all, top down&quot; model of providing training for staff after school, on Saturdays, and in the summer has not appeared to greatly improve student learning, yet often continues to be implemented because of organizational and financial constraints. The literature strongly supported the system that is utilized in Asia and Europe where professional development is part of the teacher's day. It was recommended that a strong staff development program have a balance of meeting together as a staff for district and school needs and building in time in the teachers' day so that they may work collegially with peers, contact others through emails and electronic bulletin boards and participate in video conferencing. (Contains 7 online resources and 1 resource.)
Proficiency-Based Education. Research Brief
Author: Johnston, Howard
Date: 2011-03-14
Type: Reports - Descriptive
Subjects: Credits,Competency Based Education,Remedial Programs,Models,Educational Change,Evaluation,Education,Learning,Academic Achievement,Tests,High Schools

Proficiency-Based Education is a contemporary instructional model that grew out of the competency-based education movement of the 1980's and 90's. It is based on the premise that TIME is flexible and that students work at their own pace until they have mastered necessary content and skills. As students demonstrate proficiency, then move on to more challenging content or higher levels of skill performance. This model is seen as replacing the old Carnegie Unit plan where students earned high school credits for &quot;seat time,&quot; the amount of time they spent studying specific content, rather than their mastery of it. Widely supported by business and legislative interests, this model is seen as more efficient, more equitable, and, ultimately, more economical since it eliminates the need for expensive remedial programs in higher education settings. (Contains 11 online resources.)
The Importance of the School Principal. Research Brief
Author: Williamson, Ronald
Date: 2011-01-09
Type: Reports - Descriptive
Subjects: Leadership Effectiveness,Instructional Leadership,Principals,Administrator Role,Administrator Characteristics,Educational Environment,Academic Achievement,Competence

Research shows that effective leadership is essential in schools. When schools have effective principals they are far more likely to be effective and to positively impact student achievement (Davis, Darling-Hammond, LaPointe & Meyerson, 2005; Firestone & Riehl, 2005; Marzano, Waters & McNulty, 2005). Researchers have identified a set of leadership characteristics, that when present, impact school climate and student learning. Those characteristics are discussed later in this Research Brief. (Contains 8 online resources and 6 print resources.)
Why Data Matter in ESEA Reauthorization: Recommendations to Ensure Data Are Used to Improve Student Achievement
Author: Data Quality Campaign
Date: 2011-10-00
Type: Reports - Descriptive
Subjects: Academic Achievement,Educational Policy,Elementary Secondary Education,Data,Educational Improvement,Improvement Programs,Evaluation Utilization,Information Utilization,Research Utilization,State Action,Alignment (Education),Data Collection,Systems Development,Organizational Effectiveness,Investment,Efficiency,Accountability,Federal Legislation,State Policy,Evidence,Inferences,Best Practices,Educational Quality,Quality Assurance

America can no longer afford an education system that fails to use data effectively to guide decisionmaking. The education sector is facing ever-increasing demands to improve student outcomes, reduce burden, increase efficiency, and improve transparency. These demands cannot be met without the strategic and effective use of data. Due to the tremendous progress across the nation in building statewide longitudinal data systems, states are well positioned to put data to work at all levels of the education sector to meet these goals and improve student achievement. Over the last decade the federal government has been a crucial partner in supporting and accelerating state and local efforts to build the capacity to use data effectively to improve student achievement. The reauthorization of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act (ESEA) provides a strategic and unique opportunity to better connect data with policy to ensure states, districts, and schools have the data capacity to meet their needs. In fact, nearly every high-priority item in national, federal, state, and local discussions for improving ESEA--and in proposals from across the political spectrum--requires high-quality longitudinal data for its design, implementation, or evaluation. In this publication, the Data Quality Campaign (DQC) recommends three core strategies to embed throughout the reauthorizing ESEA legislation--and eventual federal and state implementation--to support state and local efforts to effectively use data to improve student achievement and system performance: (1) Update and align existing federal data systems investments to help states address current and emerging realities and focus on effective data use; (2) Expect and encourage states to develop the data capacity required to successfully inform, implement, and evaluate priority policies and practices; and (3) Reduce burden, increase efficiency, and improve transparency of appropriate information by further streamlining and improving federal data collection and reporting requirements and providing stakeholders with the information they need to make good decisions. Appended are: (1) Summary of DQC's ESEA Recommendations; (2) State Progress Implementing DQC's 10 Essential Elements &amp; 10 State Actions; and (3) Alignment between DQC's 10 Essential Elements &amp; America COMPETES Act's 12 Elements. (Contains 1 footnote.)
Pivotal Role of Policymakers as Leaders of P-20/Workforce Data Governance
Author: Shah, Rebecca
Date: 2012-08-00
Type: Reports - Descriptive
Subjects: Stakeholders,Governance,Internet,Role,Policy Formation,Labor Force,Knowledge Economy,Educational Policy,Educational Practices,Trust (Psychology),Barriers,Time,Management Systems,Data Analysis

States are working to ensure that every citizen is prepared for the knowledge economy. Achieving this goal requires unprecedented alignment of policies and practices across the early childhood; elementary, secondary, and postsecondary education; and workforce sectors (P-20W). Consequently, many policy questions require data from multiple agencies to answer. As states implement systems to enable this data sharing, four themes emerge among the challenges they face: turf, trust, technical issues, and time. While most states have established data governance processes that span the P-20W spectrum, the majority of states' data governance structures lack the executive-level policymaker oversight necessary to systematically overcome these obstacles. Yet policymaker leadership is critical to garner the political will and resources to address the barriers of turf, trust, technical issues, and time. Policymakers can take the following actions to effectively develop and lead P-20W data governance and ensure that data systems meet stakeholder needs: (1) Establish the right structure; (2) Select the right people; (3) Empower the structure with the authority to make necessary decisions and implement charges; and (4) Ensure that the structure is sustainable, protecting the continuity of the state's vision. (Contains 7 endnotes and 13 resources.) [This paper was written with support from Paige Kowalski and Laura Sonn.]
The Influence of Nutrition Education on the Food Consumption and Nutrition Attitude of Schoolchildren in Slovenia
Author: Kostanjevec, Stojan
Date: 2012-00-00
Type: Journal Articles
Subjects: Foreign Countries,Eating Habits,Nutrition,Compulsory Education,Nutrition Instruction,Researchers,Grade 6,Elementary School Students,Questionnaires,Behavior Change,Tests,Knowledge Level,Student Attitudes

In Slovenia, nutrition education is included in the compulsory education curriculum of the nine-year elementary school. The aim of nutrition education is for schoolchildren to acquire knowledge on nutrition to help them form healthy nutritional habits. This research aims at establishing whether the formal nutrition education carried out at schools influenced children's nutrition knowledge, attitudes, and nutritional habits. The research included 630 11-year-old children from 28 randomly selected schools. During the research, Grade 6 children of the nine-year elementary school on average listened to 38.6 hours of nutrition contents, which are planned in the curriculum for home economics. At the beginning and at the end of the school year, a knowledge test was used to assess their nutrition knowledge. Through a questionnaire, the researchers established their attitudes to healthy eating and nutritional habits. Immediately after completing nutrition education, the children's behavior did not show a statistically significant change, and the connection between the newly-acquired nutrition knowledge and consumption of meals and various foodstuffs was negligible. In the researchers' view, formal education improved the nutrition knowledge of children, but had no significant influence on their attitude to healthy eating habits and their nutrition behavior immediately after the education was completed. However, the researchers did establish that children formed positive attitudes towards healthy eating habits, although they were less frequently applied in practice. To achieve goals of children's nutritional education, the researchers suggested an increased number of nutrition education hours, supported with the positive example of teachers and the school setting that ensures the availability of healthy food. (Contains 5 tables.)
Maternal Depression. Healthy Moms, Healthy Kids: A Series on Maternal and Child Health in Colorado
Author: Colorado Children's Campaign
Date: 2011-04-00
Type: Reports - Descriptive
Subjects: Pregnancy,Depression (Psychology),Family Violence,Birth,Family Structure,Child Health,Mothers,Symptoms (Individual Disorders),Females,Parent Child Relationship,Well Being,Mental Health,Identification,Therapy,Safety

Pregnancy and childbirth can be sources of excitement and joy for many new parents, but for some women, the hormonal fluctuations and lifestyle changes associated with pregnancy and being a new mother can feel overwhelming. Although up to 85 percent of mothers may experience mood changes (sometimes referred to as the &quot;baby blues&quot;) for a short period of time after giving birth due to changes in hormone levels, for some women, troubling symptoms may persist for months, warranting a more serious diagnosis of depression. In the 12 months following childbirth, women are 50 percent more likely to experience an episode of major depression. Furthermore, between seven and 12 percent of expectant mothers experience depression at some point during their pregnancy. Depression not only interferes significantly with a mother's mental, physical and emotional well-being, it can have a number of detrimental effects on children's healthy development as well. Efforts to identify and treat maternal depression in its early stages are critical to ensuring the long-term health and safety of Colorado's mothers and their children. &quot;Maternal Depression&quot; is one in a series of six briefs published by the Colorado Children's Campaign addressing maternal and child health topics titled &quot;Healthy Moms, Healthy Kids: A Series on Maternal and Child Health in Colorado&quot;. Other topics in the series include domestic violence, maternal depression, healthy pregnancies, family structure and teen motherhood and social determinants of health. (Contains 22 endnotes.)
Healthy Pregnancies. Healthy Moms, Healthy Kids: A Series on Maternal and Child Health in Colorado
Author: Colorado Children's Campaign
Date: 2011-04-00
Type: Reports - Descriptive
Subjects: Pregnancy,Risk,Nutrition,Child Health,Prenatal Care,Infant Mortality,Health Promotion,Females,Smoking,Drinking,Prenatal Influences

A woman's behaviors during pregnancy can have a significant influence on her baby's healthy development. Women who smoke or drink alcohol during pregnancy, go without prenatal care or suffer from poor nutrition are more likely to experience complications during pregnancy or childbirth, and their babies are at increased risk for developing a number of health problems. Regular prenatal care presents a key opportunity to inform expectant mothers about healthy behaviors during pregnancy and recognize risk factors associated with the leading causes of infant mortality in the U.S. and Colorado. &quot;Healthy Pregnancies&quot; is one in a series of six briefs published by the Colorado Children's Campaign addressing maternal and child health topics titled &quot;Healthy Moms, Healthy Kids: A Series on Maternal and Child Health in Colorado&quot;. Other topics in the series include domestic violence, maternal depression, family structure and teen motherhood, social determinants of health and nutrition. (Contains 42 endnotes.)
Nutrition. Healthy Moms, Healthy Kids: A Series on Maternal and Child Health in Colorado
Author: Colorado Children's Campaign
Date: 2011-04-00
Type: Reports - Descriptive
Subjects: Nutrition,Child Health,Obesity,Low Income,Food,Security (Psychology),Mothers,Health,Poverty,Eating Habits,Health Promotion

Adequate consumption of nutritious, wholesome foods is essential to the healthy development of young children. Unfortunately, many households throughout the U.S. and Colorado struggle to put sufficient food on the table. According to the United States Department of Agriculture, the percentage of American families who reported experiencing uncertainty over having enough food at some point during the year reached its highest level in 2009. Meanwhile, in 2009, Colorado's five major food banks experienced overwhelming demand and distributed 25 percent more food than in 2008. Even when children in food-insecure households do consume adequate quantities of food, often times the food they eat is low on nutrients and high on calories and fat, contributing to an unprecedented epidemic of childhood obesity across the country. Efforts to increase access to healthy, nutritious foods, especially among low-income families, are essential to improving the health of Colorado's children. This brief is one in a series of six briefs published by the Colorado Children's Campaign addressing maternal and child health topics titled &quot;Healthy Moms, Healthy Kids: A Series on Maternal and Child Health in Colorado&quot;. Other topics in the series include domestic violence, maternal depression, healthy pregnancies, family structure and teen motherhood and social determinants of health. (Contains 32 endnotes.)
A Framework of Active Learning by Concept Mapping
Author: Chen, Wang-Kun
Date: 2012-00-00
Type: Journal Articles
Subjects: Active Learning,Curriculum Development,Case Method (Teaching Technique),Energy Conservation,Concept Mapping,Teaching Models,Student Centered Curriculum,Problem Solving,Instructional Effectiveness,Lesson Plans,Evaluation Methods,Instructional Development,Courseware,Energy Education

This study presents a student-centered teaching model based on concept mapping and problem-solving. The concept map is used as a tool to develop curriculum and evaluate teaching performance. Case-based teaching was implemented on the course of building energy conservation. The results of this study, which include teaching plans, evaluation tools, and auxiliary software, were shown in this paper. (Contains 2 tables and 2 figures.)
Using Conceptual Change Theories to Model Position Concepts in Astronomy
Author: Yang, Chih-Chiang
Date: 2012-00-00
Type: Journal Articles
Subjects: Concept Formation,Change,Theories,Models,Astronomy,Science Instruction,Elementary School Science,Elementary School Students,Grade 5,Misconceptions,Teaching Methods,Comparative Analysis,Statistical Analysis,Interviews,Pretests Posttests

The roles of conceptual change and model building in science education are very important and have a profound and wide effect on teaching science. This study examines the change in children's position concepts after instruction, based on different conceptual change theories. Three classes were chosen and divided into three groups, including a model implicating group (n = 29), a conceptual conflict group (n = 31), and a model building group (n = 30). The researchers used a two-tier diagnostic instrument to inquire position concepts for elementary school students and interviews for gathering students' concepts. This study applies one-way ANCOVA (analysis of covariance) for data analysis. Results indicate that the three groups can improve their high-order understanding of the position concepts. The score of the model building group was significantly higher than that of the model implicating group. (Contains 5 tables and 4 figures.)