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Created by the Office of Justice Programs, this site bills itself as a clearinghouse for "Evidence-Based Programs and What Works in Criminal Justice." You can look for programs with a particular focus (e.g. juveniles or substance abuse) or you can look at all programs. All programs have undergone a rigorous research and screening process (see" Learn how programs are rated" link) and each then receives a rating of "effective," "promising" or "no effects."

I find this site both appealing and compelling. For the reader, the material is rendered very simply, but still reflects the deep preliminary research that the Office of Justice has done. Perhaps also a good teaching tool in terms of how to evaluate reports or information. -- Stephanie

Program of the Carnegie Corporation of New York, the page includes program news, news of recent grants and publications, and the relevant program staff.

Published by the National Institute for Excellence in Teaching (NIET), March 2012. This paper argues that, based on two recent studies, "job-embedded PD can be highly effective, but only when there is a sufficient infrastructure in place to support it." NIET's own program, TAP: The System for Teacher and Student Advancement, is such a program. Cited studies: Biancarosa, G., Bryk, A.S., & Dexter, E.R. (2010, September). Assessing the value-added effects of Literacy Collaborative professional development on student learning. The Elementary School Journal, 111(1), 7-34. -- and -- Saunders, W.M., Goldenberg, C.N., & Gallimore, R. (2009, December). Increasing achievement by focusing grade-level teams on improving classroom learning: A prospective, quasi-experimental study of Title I schools. American Educational Research Journal, 46(4), 1006-1033

While this analysis seems somewhat biased (clearly written in support of NIET's own program), many of the characteristics of their program match work that KPI has done in PD.

Brooke Gladstone, On the Media (NPR), May 14, 2010. This page offers both an audio podcast and a transcript of the story. Gladstone reports on the Interactive Telecommunications Program (ITP)'s spring 2010 show, and interviews Clay Shirkey, a teacher in the program.

By Claudio Sanchez on Morning Edition (NPR), April 22 2010. The Boston Teacher Residency program (BTR) models itself on medical residency programs. Prospective teachers take education classes and work directly with mentor teachers to gain on-the-job experience.

Part of American Radioworks' Tomorrow's College series, this podcast looks at the changing face of the college lecture. You can listen to the program online or download an MP3 (runs just under 1 hour) or you can read the transcript. Program materials include Emily Hanford's "Report's Notebook."

This edition of UPDATE focuses on partnerships, beginning with an interview with Dr. Gene Bottoms, founder of High Schools That Work (HSTW). Dr. Bottoms provides important insights into the ways partnerships were used to create HSTW, as well as the ways they are necessary to involving high schools and community colleges in the implementation of Programs of Study. This volume also includes two invited articles, one by Dr. Pamela Eddy, College of William and Mary University, and Dr. Marilyn Amey, Michigan State University, that give OCCRL readers a glimpse into their new book on partnerships and collaboration, and a second by Dr. Louise Yarnell, who shares a model that she and her colleagues at SRI are developing for the Advanced Technological Education (ATE) program of the National Science Foundation (NSF).

By Laura S. Quinn, Idealware, January 2012. Looks at a variety of software tools that can support program evaluation. Report includes a category on Analyzing and Displaying Your Measures, which might be most relevant. There are recommendations for report builders, tools that help create data visualizations, both quantitative and qualitative analysis tools, and dashboard recommendations.  Also reference to an organization called Innovation Network, which might be of interest.

Interesting academic opportunity in London, an MSc in Learning Technologies offered by the London Knowledge Lab. The program directors are Diana Laurillard and Alex Poulovassilis. The program focuses both on computer science and on learning theory. Link to application details on this page.

By David Moltz, News column, Inside Higher Ed, June 21 2010. Jamie Merisotis (president, Lumina Foundation) and Stan Jones (president, Complete College America) urge President Obama "to prioritize the distribution of funds from the recently created Community College and Career Training Grant program to those institutions that radically remodel their certificate and degree programs to emphasize speedy graduation and job placement."

By Beth Fertig, reported on WNYC March 24, 2010. In this education feature, Fertig reports on an experimental afterschool program called School of One, an individualized math program where students work online with math tutors and also occasionally work together. Their self-paced work plan is based on frequent online assessments. Daniel Willingham is quoted for his work on learning styles. MP3 is available, in addition to the transcript.

JISC is a UK-based group that "inspires UK colleges and universities in the innovative use of digital technologies...." The e-learning program offers 5 tracks to will help teachers learn how to teach in the e-learning environment. Support includes OER.

This graduate program at NYU's Steinhardt School of Education offers an MA in Digital Media Design for Learning, a PhD, and an advanced certificate in Digital Media Design for Learning. There is a lot of emphasis on games and gaming and the primary focus appears to be K-12.

Shared because there are likely affinities between some of the students (or faculty) in this program and our own interests.

Produced by McKinsey & Company, McKinsey on Society division, December 2012. McKinsey & Company notes that, in many countries, we are faced with "high levels of youth unemployment and a shortage of job seekers with critical skills." In this report, they have compiled case studies of best practices from around the world (with the goal of high employment of program graduates) as well as surveying students about their own prospects based on their education. On this page, links to the report itself (as well as Executive Summary) as well as access to some of the case studies.

If the goal of postsecondary education is employment, this report starts to posit some innovations and solutions.

This three-part series from American Radioworks looks at the American higher education system and asks "what's the right kind of education to get? And why are so many Americans failing to finish college." The programs include: Some College, No Degree; Don't Lecture Me (also bookmarked); and Who Needs and English Major.

Part of UD's Institute for Transforming Undergraduate Education, this program offers workshops at the K-12 or post-secondary level for how instructors can integrate problem-based learning into their own classrooms. The PBL Clearinghouse, a "peer-reviewed online resource" collects PBL problems and articles. Additionally, the site offers resources including sample syllabi and projects.

By Justin Reich on Educational Technology Debate on December 8 2011. Reich argues, from his research on the use of wikis in the schools, that educational technology tends to benefit affluent students, rather than under-served students, primarily because there are more resources for students and teachers in the affluent environment, so teachers can use technology to its best advantage. He recommends technology initiatives that specifically target low-income and under-served students as a solution, and cites some interesting programs.

The National Education Research and Development Centers are funded through IES's NCER. The mission of the R&D Centers is to contribute to the production and dissemination of rigorous evidence and products that provide practical solutions to important education problems in the United States. The R&D Centers achieve this mission by developing, testing, and disseminating new approaches to improve teaching and learning, and ultimately, student achievement. Each of the Centers conducts a focused program of education research in its topic area. In addition, each Center works cooperatively with NCER, conducts supplemental research within its broad topic area, and provides national leadership in defining research and development directions within its topic area. Currently, there are 18 National R&D Centers.

MDEC serves post-secondary education in Michigan with a network for educators to research and share best practices, refine strategies for quality programs, and to advocate for developmental education. This is not an online network - most meetings "held using a conference call format."

This is a free service of the Qualitative Data Analysis Program (QDAP), maintained by Texifter. (See QDAP tag) . Tools in this toolkit facilitate coding of text data sets, enable annotation with shared memos, and provide tools to assist with managing team collaborations (permissions, etc.)