Communications in education

The paper aims to provide evidence of the role of communications in education. The term communications is used in three interrelated ways: it refers to the interactions and engagements which take place between different actors in the education sector; it looks at the transmission of information, knowledge or data between two or more points; and it refers to the processes and means though which these interactions take place. The report identifies where communications in the education sector has been successful and some of its weaknesses. The paper focuses on spaces for communications in education, the processes of communications and the direct and indirect impacts of communications initiatives. It gives examples of a range of communication initiatives and provides evidence of impact, where available

In-Service Support for a Technological Approach to Science Education

Teaching/Communication/Extension/Profession,

Independent Evaluation of the Jim Joseph Foundation's Education Initiative Year 4 Report

Research indicates that well-prepared educators help produce strong learning outcomes for students. For the continued health of Jewish education, higher education institutions should have the capacity to prepare sufficient numbers of highly qualified educators and education leaders for careers in Jewish education. Teachers, division heads, and school heads represent a substantial segment of the educator population in Jewish day schools. More than 5,000 educators enter new positions in Jewish day schools every year and are in need of adequate preparation. The most frequent obstacle to instructional quality in Jewish day schools is the difficulty in recruiting qualified teachers (Ben-Avie & Kress, 2006; Jewish Education Service of North America, 2008; Kidron et al., in press; Krakowski, 2011; Sales, 2007).A similar problem has been observed in supplementary schools in congregational or communal settings. These schools enroll the majority of Jewish children and adolescents receiving a Jewish education in the United States (Wertheimer, 2008). In recent years, congregations have begun to replace traditional educational programs with new approaches that aim to raise the quality of instruction and the level of parent and student satisfaction relative to their programs. These new approaches may include greater integration of experiential Jewish education and community service, family learning, and the integration of all aspects of congregational learning under the leadership of one director (Rechtschaffen, 2011; Sales, Samuel, Koren, & Shain, 2010). High-quality programs that are updated or reconstructed across time to meet the needs of the Jewish community require well-prepared directors and educators. However, many directors and educators in congregational schools have not participated in teacher preparation programs, and the depth of Jewish content knowledge among these teachers is highly variable (Stodolsky, Dorph, & Rosov, 2008)

Science education on the U.S./Mexico border: Field-based studies for future teachers in bilingual/binational schools

The University of Texas at El Paso’s field-based program of studies for future teachers provides opportunities for powerful learning through a dialectical union of reflection and action. Methods courses in academic disciplines are linked with seminars and coursework on community partnerships, dual language education and culturally responsive education. This article illustrates the processes of planning, implementation and evaluation of this approach, highlighting the impacts of forging connections among schools, communities and university personnel to improve education on the U.S./Mexico border and in communities with culturally/linguistically diverse student populations. Parents, students and future teachers interact in bilingual workshops that center on pupil achievement and conceptually correct science education. Preliminary outcomes indicate that two-way dual language (TWDL) bilingual programs (i.e., validating native language literacy along with English language acquisition) with a strong parental engagement component provide a strong framework for teaching/learning that can help improve educational outcomes for ELL/immigrant children and deepen future teachers’ skills and knowledge. Focusing on academic enrichment for all students, these field-based experiences enable future teachers to learn strategies that integrate students’ and families’ linguistic and cultural experiences as a resource for learning. The co-authors highlight qualitative data findings from the Science in Our Homes – Ciencia en Nuestras Casas field-based project in a multilingual, multicultural K-8 school on the U.S./Mexico border, providing insights for educators in diverse communities whose efforts focus on closing the achievement gap for English language learners and/or immigrant students

Transforming High School Teaching and Learning: A District-wide Design

High school improvement is one of the most pressing issues facing American education but little attention has been paid to reform strategies that will improve teaching and learning. Drawing on the expertise of teachers, principals, superintendents, policy makers and researchers, a new paper from the Aspen Institute Program on Education, Transforming High School Teaching and Learning: A District-wide Design by Aspen Senior Fellow Judy Wurtzel, offers both a new framework and concrete suggestions for a new approach to high school improvement across an urban school district. The data on high school student performance and graduation rates make clear that significant increases in student achievement are necessary if all students are to graduate from high school fully prepared for post-secondary education, citizenship, and work. Recent high school reform has focused on organizational aspects of high school, particularly creating a wide variety of smaller schools, smaller learning communities, and alternative learning pathways to meet the needs of young people. However, while smaller schools may create the relationships and conditions that make high quality instruction possible, improved instruction and achievement does not flow directly from them. Given this track record, questions facing the high school reform movement include: -- What will it take to get high school instructional improvement that results in demonstrated increases in student learning? -- What supports do high school teachers need to be successful in improving instruction and from where will they get them? -- What changes affecting the professional role, knowledge, and skills of teachers are needed if reforms are to be successful? Though the ideas represented in the paper are not new -- some school districts and states have implemented some of elements described -- what is useful is the attempt to lay out a fairly comprehensive picture of high school instructional reform and to push the conversation about high school instructional improvement into some new territory. First, the paper builds on work done in many urban districts at the K- 8 level to create systems of "managed instruction," that is, deliberate efforts to align common curriculum and instructional materials, formative and benchmark assessments, extensive professional development, and instructional leaders who support a shared set of instructional practices. Second, the paper suggests how these approaches can be developed and implemented in ways that are both consistent with and reinforcing of a robust vision of teacher professionalism. Third, the paper recognizes the urgency of attracting and retaining a teacher workforce that embraces this new job description for high school teachers and can effect improvements in student learning. Finally, it is useful to note that this paper focuses primarily on the district role in improving high school instruction. This is because it seems increasingly clear that school districts are a key unit for instructional improvement. However, much of what is described here could be initiated or supported by states, by consortia of districts, or by networks of managed schools within or across districts

Access to Education in Bangladesh: Country Analytic Review of Primary and Secondary Education

This country analytical review examines the key issues in access to and participation in primary and secondary education in Bangladesh, with a special focus on areas and dimensions of exclusion. Against a background of overall progress, particularly in closing the gender gap in primary and secondary enrollment, the research applies a conceptual framework outlining different forms of exclusion and presents two significant findings which compromise access and diminish gains made: high dropout rates at primary and secondary levels and nominal access but virtual exclusion from quality learning. Other areas surveyed in the review include interventions by public sector and non-governmental providers in primary and secondary education as well as the financing of basic education. This review of the literature concludes with suggestions for future research directions that might lead to new understanding and insights on equitable access and participation

Creating Quality Integrated and Interdisciplinary Arts Programs

The report offers some reflection on arts integration while examining a diverse group of partnerships and a set of new important tools to aid efforts in improving arts teaching and learning across the classroom

Heinz Endowments 2009 Annual Report

Contains president's message, foundation history, 2009 grants list, financial summary, and list of board members and staff