The superintendent position is important to the overall quality of a school system. Staff would have difficulty succeeding without the support of an effective and efficient system. It is also potentially rewarding. There is great satisfaction in knowing that something you did had a major impact on the quality of education provided to children. You can change the future, but it comes at a cost. The superintendent position is difficult. In addition to all of the technical skills and knowledge required, doing this job well requires strength of character, mental toughness, and a high level of self-awareness. You must know who you are and what you believe in. Not only that, you must have the fortitude to represent those beliefs in the face of crises and adversity. These are not the topics taught in most graduate school education coursework. Through sharing of "ten truths" the author fills this void. More specifically, readers will learn the realities of being a school superintendent and practical suggestions for navigating the difficulties inherent in the role.

Schools of Education are emerging academic units in higher educational institutions in Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) nations. Most of these teacher training programs are in their infancy stages. Modern day educational discourse across teacher training programs globally, including the Middle East and in the GCC, have predominantly focused on student-centered approaches to teaching and learning. This approach to teacher training is infused with critical scholarship and marks a shift away from positivist approaches to educational scholarship. Integrating critical scholarship in GCC teacher training programs brings about a number of challenges, as this approach to education is a departure from traditional cultural and social norms for schooling in the region. This multidisciplinary volume highlights some of the challenges and complexities that inevitably arise from this paradox. Professors, researchers, and specialists working in the GCC have contributed to this volume with the intent of empowering educators with authentic and contextualized research and insights to advance collective understanding of the complexities and challenges of teacher education and training in the GCC. Ultimately, this work will serve as a practical tool and resource that can be employed by schools of education to provide authentic insights, strategies, and research to further develop teacher training in the GCC and globally.

This edited book expands the current scholarship on teaching world languages for social justice and equity in K-12 and postsecondary contexts in the US. Over the past decade, demand has been growing for a more critical approach to teaching languages and cultures: in response, this volume brings together a group of scholars whose work bridges the fields of world language education and critical approaches to education. Within the current US context, the chapters address the following key questions: (1) How are pre-service or in-service world language teachers/professors embedding issues, understandings, or content related to social justice, human rights, access, critical pedagogy and equity into their teaching and curriculum? (2) How are teacher educators preparing language teachers to teach for social justice, human rights, access and equity?

This open access book provides a comprehensive and informative overview of the current state of research about student perceptions of and student feedback on teaching. After presentation of a new student feedback process model, evidence concerning the validity and reliability of student perceptions of teaching quality is discussed. This is followed by an overview of empirical research on the effects of student feedback on teachers and instruction in different contexts, as well as on factors promoting the successful implementation of feedback in schools. In summary, the findings emphasize that student perceptions of teaching quality can be a valid and reliable source of feedback for teachers. The effectiveness of student feedback on teaching is significantly related to its use in formative settings and to a positive feedback culture within schools. In addition, it is argued that the effectiveness of student feedback depends very much on the support for teachers when making use of the feedback. As this literature review impressively documents, teachers in their work - and ultimately students in their learning - can benefit substantially from student feedback on teaching in schools. "This book reviews what we know about student feedback to teachers. It is detailed and it is a pleasure to read. To have these chapters in one place - and from those most up to date with the research literature and doing the research - is a gift." John Hattie

This book offers various perspectives on the complex and crosscutting concepts of the science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) disciplines in the classroom context. Presenting empirical studies, it reveals how researchers in the Asia-Pacific Region planned and implemented STEM education in the classroom. Further, it discusses the assessment of STEM learning to clarify what important elements should be included and how researchers and educators frame and design assessment tools. The book consists of four parts: potential and trends in STEM education; teachers' practical knowledge for STEM teaching; STEM teaching practices; and assessment of STEM learning. Providing evidence on developing curriculums, implementing instructional practices and educating classroom teachers, it is intended for readers wanting to explore STEM education from multiple perspectives.

Teachers and trainers are dual-professionals - they are required to have up-to-date industry skills and also skills in teaching and learning. The issue of professional identity, and the promotion of maintaining and building pedagogic expertise in relation to their vocational work, is therefore an extremely important one. This book argues that quality teaching and learning is very much dependent upon teachers and trainers undergoing continuing professional development (CPD), engaging actively in professional learning activities, generating professional learning communities and building their level of professionalism to meet increasing teaching standards. Unfortunately, CPD is battling a context of intensification of work, pressure of time and economic restrictions. The completion of CPD under such conditions can often become tokenistic and hitherto there has been very little research or evidence base for determining what approaches to CPD are most effective and efficient. Challenging Professional Learning draws on a wealth of recent research and evidence on what ingredients are necessary for effective and efficient (crucial at a time of such fiscal constraints) professional learning. It also explores the wider implications of these findings and the concept of learning as a collective activity. It argues that real professionalism cannot be achieved in isolation but instead takes place in a context that has political, social and cultural influences. The book brings together research from the Institute for Learning and practice around professional learning to link both individual and collective professional learning to organisational learning, leadership and the management of change whilst offering practical suggestions for improving these practices. It will be of great interest to teacher educators and their students at undergraduate and post-graduate levels, as well as anyone who works in higher education and with professional development.

In today's fast-paced world, many individuals unknowingly find themselves on a quest to win the race against time. The current digital age has overhauled how we interact with and conceptualize time, as constant streams of pressing notifications and packed schedules put tremendous stress on the minds of modern humankind. Now more than ever before, to live a joyful and productive life requires intentional design. Purpose and planning form the core of the Maximizer Mindset, designed to empower individuals within a myriad of contexts to work less, achieve more, and spread joy throughout each day of their lives.

Winner of the 2017 AESA Critic's Choice Book Award This book provides multiple perspectives on the dual struggle that teacher educators currently face as they make sense of edTPA while preparing their pre-service teachers for this high stakes teacher exam. The adoption of nationalized teacher performance exams has raised concerns about the influence of corporate interests in teacher education, the objectivity of nationalized teaching standards, and ultimately the overarching political and economic interests shaping the process, format, and nature of assessment itself. Through an arc of scholarship from various perspectives, this book explores a range of questions about the goals and interests at work in the roll out of the edTPA assessment and gives voice to those most affected by these policy changes, teacher educators, and teacher education students.

Little is known about how language teacher educators become, and also develop professionally as, teachers of teachers. One avenue for teacher education professional development is that of teacher research, whereby teacher educators can not only improve their practices in their immediate context but also help develop transformative pedagogies in wider contexts by sharing their research. This volume aims to understand how language teacher educators around the world continue developing professionally by examining their own teaching practices. It seeks to understand the professional gains teacher educators see in conducting research with their own students/future teachers; to promote knowledge democratisation by including teacher educators from under-represented contexts such as Latin America and Africa; to examine language teacher educators' motivations to write for publication; and to reduce the gap between educational research and educational practice in BA and MA programmes in language teaching.

Learning, as it is being increasingly recognized, is centrally predicated upon students' well-being. Research findings indicate that in the instances of wounding and trauma, students' capacity and ability to learn can be severely compromised. This understanding applies particularly to the immigrant students in the language classroom, many of whom are refugees bringing with them past experiences of privation, violence, wounding and trauma. Since teachers often find themselves wearing multiple hats, not only as instructors, but also as friends, philosophers, guides, confidantes, and counsellors to their refugee and immigrant learners, addressing those students' trauma with compassion, and employing appropriate pedagogical practices to mitigate their suffering should be of great relevance and inform the teachers' praxis in the classroom. This book takes an interdisciplinary look at trauma from the vantage points of critical language theories, neuroscience, psychotherapy, and Buddhist psychology, and suggests pedagogies for well-being and trauma healing that utilize contemplative ways of education. The practical aim of this book is to support teachers in addressing trauma in their classrooms.

School principals must continue to learn and grow in their positions, as societal demands and accountability measures keep changing. Principals have become inundated with increased responsibilities often without the benefit of continued learning opportunities. Too often, district personnel are not equipped to provide the learning needed in order to support school administrators. Learning Opportunities for Principals: Methods for Meeting the Needs of Today's Administrators is a compilation of best practices to support principal learning to include "how to" design and implement learning prospects that will not only help school administrators, but also district personnel. Learning opportunities include communities of practice, mentoring programs, coaching, and the like. Many districts have programs in place, but they do not attain the desired results because of the program design and readiness of staff. Each chapter will explain how to design an effective program and will also outline the district's responsibility in the learning. With effective programs, principals' burnout will be decreased, which minimizes turnover in leadership. All of which will impact student achievement results.

This book focuses on the emerging area of partner-driven work-integrated learning inclusive of university or industry stakeholder development, and the integration of these two major stakeholders. It explores the significant interrelationship between university and school needs in this area of research. It uses a cross-institutional approach and focuses on local communities that educational providers interact with, to highlight and discuss the issues identified in various case studies. By doing so, this book aims to create a community of practice that explores work-integrated learning from an integrated stakeholder perspective, and develops a working model to extend existing understanding in this area through integrating the ideas explored in the various chapters.

This book focuses on sustaining communities of practice in primary and secondary schools in Australia and internationally for the professional learning of all teachers, and particularly, early career teachers. Informed by the communities of practice research of Wenger-Trayner, it shows what factors are conductive to the sustainability of communities of practice, drawing particularly on a case study of an Australian regional secondary school, and explores how it has sustained support particularly for early career teachers over a three-year period. The first chapters of the book provide longitudinal perspectives using qualitative data and include perspectives from a variety of stakeholders, including the principal, the professional learning coordinator and the early career teachers who have experienced the school's Communities of practice over three or more years. It offers practical suggestions on how to implement and improve communities of practice in schools and highlights the increasing importance of online communities to support early career teachers. Policy-makers, school principals, teacher educators and teaching practitioners find the book useful for implementing and sustaining communities of practice in schools. Subsequent chapters explore the value of online communities, such as Twitter communities; the role of collegial support networks in supporting early career teachers in Flemish primary education; and professional learning in Northern Ireland pre- and in-service teacher networked communities.

This book discusses a significant area of mathematics education research in the last two decades and presents the types of semiotic theories that are employed in mathematics education. Following on the summary of significant issues presented in the Topical Survey, Semiotics in Mathematics Education, this book not only introduces readers to semiotics as the science of signs, but it also elaborates on issues that were highlighted in the Topical Survey. In addition to an introduction and a closing chapter, it presents 17 chapters based on presentations from Topic Study Group 54 at the ICME-13 (13th International Congress on Mathematical Education). The chapters are divided into four major sections, each of which has a distinct focus. After a brief introduction, each section starts with a chapter or chapters of a theoretical nature, followed by others that highlight the significance and usefulness of the relevant theory in empirical research.

This book presents the distinctive theoretical and methodological approaches in geography education in South America and more specifically in Brazil, Chile and Colombia. It highlights cartography and maps as essential tools and provides a meaningful approach to learning in geographical education, thereby giving children and young people the opportunity to better understand their situations, contexts and social conditions. The book describes how South American countries organize their scholar curriculum and the ways in which they deal with geography vocabulary and developing fundamental concepts, methodologies, epistemological comprehension on categories, keywords and themes in geography. It also describes its use in teachers' practices and learning progressions, the use of spatial representations as a potent mean to visualize and solve questions, and harnesses spatial thinking and geographical reasoning development. The book helps to improve teaching and learning practices in primary and secondary education and as such it provides an interesting read for researchers, students, and teachers of geography and social studies.

This is a book about behavioral threat assessment that focuses on prevention and early intervention. It's about thoughtful connection, inclusion, prosocial relationship building, and the restoration of meaningful and positive experiences for young people within the school environment. It's about the importance of staying objective, avoiding assumptions, and eliminating prejudgment. Finally, it's about redirecting that person to constructive, nonviolent solutions and avoiding arrest, institutionalization, or worse.

This book provides a diverse look at various aspects of preparing informal science educators. Much has been published about the importance of preparing formal classroom educators, but little has been written about the importance, need, and best practices for training professionals who teach in aquariums, camps, parks, museums, etc. The reader will find that as a collective the chapters of the book are well-related and paint a clear picture that there are varying ways to approach informal educator preparation, but all are important. The volume is divided into five topics: Defining Informal Science Education, Professional Development, Designing Programs, Zone of Reflexivity: The Space Between Formal and Informal Educators, and Public Communication. The authors have written chapters for practitioners, researchers and those who are interested in assessment and evaluation, formal and informal educator preparation, gender equity, place-based education, professional development, program design, reflective practice, and science communication. Readers will draw meaning and usefulness from the array of professional perspectives and be stimulated to begin a quest to scaffold programs and professional development around the frameworks described in this book.

This book focuses on the role of cultural background in Korean public schools, and provides essential insights into how Korean teachers perceive and respond to the transition of their classroom situations with Korean language learners. It reveals the perspectives and the practices of Korean teachers, especially with regard to multicultural students who struggle with language barriers when learning mathematics. The information provided is both relevant and topical, as teaching mathematics to linguistically and culturally diverse learners is increasingly becoming a worldwide challenge.

This book explores the role of students' involvement in teacher professional development. Building upon a research study whereby pupils instruct their teachers in the use of Information and Communication Technology (ICT), the author argues that using student voice in this way can result in transformational learning for all those involved. The author presents the processes and experiences of pupils taking on the role of educators as well as the experiences of the teachers receiving such professional development from their students. In doing so, he promotes the innovative use of a student voice initiative to support teaching and learning, with the overarching purpose of improving and transforming teacher-pupil relationships. This book will be of interest and value to students and scholars of pupil voice, teacher professional development and transformational learning.

International Education Inquiries is a book series dedicated to realizing the global vision of The United Nations' (2015) Transforming Our World: The 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development. As resolved by the UN General Assembly (on 25 September 2015; see UN, 2015 October): The 17 Sustainable Development Goals and 169 targets which we are announcing today demonstrate the scale and ambition of this new universal Agenda. They seek to build on the Millennium Development Goals and complete what they did not achieve. They seek to realize the human rights of all and to achieve gender equality and the empowerment of all women and girls. They are integrated and indivisible and balance the three dimensions of sustainable development: the economic, social and environmental. The United Nations' goals and targets will stimulate action over the next decade in areas of critical importance for humanity and the planet.... We are determined to end poverty and hunger, in all their forms and dimensions, and to ensure that all human beings can fulfil their potential in dignity and equality and in a healthy environment. This vision includes to "ensure inclusive and equitable quality education and promote lifelong learning opportunities for all" (SDG4, UN, 2017). The founding co-editors seek to provide a forum for the diverse voices of scholars and practitioners from across the globe asking questions about transforming the vision of Education 2030 into a reality. Published chapters reflect a variety of formats, free of methodological restrictions, involving disciplinary as well as interdisciplinary inquiries. We expect the series will be a leading forum for pioneers redefining the international professional knowledge base about the people, places, and perspectives shaping Education 2030 outcomes and the meaning of global citizen education (UNESCO, 2015). Education 2030 topics of interest include, but are not limited to the following: Improving access to quality early childhood development, care, and pre-primary education. Ensuring equal access for all women and men to affordable and quality education. Increasing the number of youth and adults who have skills relevant for sustainable living and livelihoods. Ensuring equal access for the vulnerable, including persons with disabilities, indigenous peoples, and children in vulnerable situations. Achieving levels of literacy and numeracy required to engage in communities and employment. Acquiring the knowledge and skills needed to promote sustainable development, including: education for sustainable development and sustainable lifestyles, human rights, gender equality, promotion of a culture of peace and non-violence, global citizenship education, and the appreciation of cultural diversity and of culture's contributions to sustainable development. Providing safe, non-violent, inclusive and effective learning environments for all. Recruiting, preparing, supporting, and retaining quality teachers.

This book addresses common themes relating to the teaching and research nexus in the knowledge-based society through historical, comparative and empirical perspectives. It analyzes traditions of academic systems and national initiatives, and other factors affecting the main characteristics of the teaching and research nexus in eleven case countries from Asia, Europe, North America and South America. The book identifies key challenges of the academy, and trends in relation to the teaching and research nexus. The focus of case countries is on the attitudes and activities of the academy, as reported in the international comparative survey "The Academic Profession in the Knowledge-Based Society" (APIKS) in 2017-18. The data compared with previous international comparative survey "The Changing Academic Profession" (CAP) in 2007-08 in most chapters to make time series changes. The book discusses the teaching and research nexus in the case countries similar to and different from those of reference countries drawing on findings from the international databanks of the two international comparative surveys and previous research.

This book addresses a broad range of issues related to mental health in higher education in Australia, with specific reference to student and staff well-being. It examines the challenges of creating and sustaining more resilient cultures within higher education and the community. Showcasing some of Australia's unique experiences, the authors present a multidisciplinary perspective of mental health supports and services relevant to the higher education landscape. This book examines the different ways Australian higher education institutions responded/are responding to the COVID-19 pandemic, with reference to domestic and international students. Through the exploration of practice and research, the authors add to the rich discourses on well-being in the higher education.

This book provides a research-based guide to using ePortfolios to develop critically reflective teachers capable of transformative learning. It begins with a reconceptualization of critical reflection in teacher education, then analyzes the social discourse of prospective teachers' teaching practice through the narratives in their ePortfolios, triangulated by longitudinal classroom teaching observation and interviews. The results of the research indicate that prospective teachers reflections are performative and do not typically trigger transformative learning, in large part because of mismatches among the structures of the ePortfolio, the goals of the teacher education program, and supervisory practices. With this analysis in hand, the book turns to practical questions, providing a framework, examples, and tips for teacher educators to use the author s methods to understand, analyze, and support prospective teachers transformative learning through their ePortfolio narratives and classroom practice. "

This book is a narrative inquiry that focuses on four participating Chinese teacher candidates' cross-cultural learning in Canada and stories of induction in Southwest China. Through the lens of "three-dimensional inquiry space" and "reciprocal learning in teacher education," the author explores the influence of cross-cultural experiences on the dissonance of pedagogies, teacher-student relationships, socialization, and beliefs about teaching and learning that interweave global and national curriculum boundaries. The chapters provide insight into how Chinese beginning teachers struggle to voice and to socialize among a cacophony of past practices, lived experiences, and cross-cultural experiences.