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This study examined Oregon's early intervention (EI) and early childhood special education (ECSE) pipelines as a function of children's intersecting ethnicity and home language(s) with a focus on children from Latino/a backgrounds with communication disorders. We found differences in children's referral source and age of referral, likelihood of evaluation and placement, and type of placement for conditions related to communication, including autism spectrum disorder and hearing impairment. Results showed differences in EI and ECSE; however, disproportionality appeared greatest among Spanish-speaking Latino/a children and non-Latino/a children who spoke languages other than English compared to non-Latino/a English-speaking counterparts. Our findings suggest that attending to children's intersecting ethnicity and language backgrounds in referral, evaluation, and placement add nuance to examinations of disproportionality. Results also indicate that practices related to characterizing children's communication disorders likely make substantial contributions to inequities in EI and ECSE. Precise identification of differences in service provision can lead to targeted policy and practice solutions to reduce structural barriers to care in EI/ECSE systems and improve equity, particularly as related to placement for children of color with communication concerns.

The participants in this study were teachers and students of a large school district located on the east coast of Canada. We distributed surveys to 1,514 teachers across 84 schools and received 1,423 usable surveys for a return rate of 94%. At the time of the second data collection, three years later, 1574 teachers from 78 schools agreed to participate. Teachers' perceptions of their schools as professional learning communities were assessed using 32 items in a 5-point Likert format. The responses to the 2006 survey were factor analyzed using ML estimation. A number of different factor structures were tested, including a single factor model and a second-order factor analysis. In spite of a heavy emphasis by school board leaders and the collaborative development, introduction, and implementation of PLC practices before and during the study period, no significant measurable effect on student learning was identified.

In this paper we compare the use of research and other evidence in the decision-making practices of two groups of education policy elites, situated in different contexts--provincial education ministries and school districts. Data are derived from two pan-Canadian studies: Galway (2006) and Sheppard, Galway, Brown and Wiens (2013). The findings show that policy decisions at the ministry level are informed primarily by political and pragmatic factors, personal and professional beliefs and local knowledge. The role of external research is shown to be relatively marginal and confined to quantitative studies and performance assessments. Decision makers at the school district level attend less to political and pragmatic influences relying more on personal beliefs, values and experiential factors supplemented by the advice of professional staff and in-house research/indicators. Results from both studies demonstrate limited reliance on external data and university-based research--the latter ranking 15th of 20 influencing factors. Consistent with Beck's (1994; 1997) risk theory, we theorize that education policy making in both contexts is influenced by both macro- and micro-level factors, where choice of policy evidence is mediated by personal considerations and political risk factors. This suggests a weak policy development paradigm that is resistant to independent research-informed evidence.

In this article we report on the results of an innovative research partnership with the largest school district in one Canadian province where we are exploring how educational leadership practices and the factors that influence these practices interact to impact student learning. This article makes a clear connection between leadership and student learning and makes a significant contribution to the knowledge base regarding what we know about leadership in educational contexts, how and how much leadership matters within that context, as well as how important those effects are in designing productive learning environments that facilitate the learning of all children. Using Arbuckle's Amos 17 and maximum likelihood estimation, we employed path analysis procedures to develop a best-fitting nested model to examine the interrelationships among three primary sources of formal leadership for education found in schools, school districts, and government, and how these leaders interact with one another and with professional teachers, parents, and other community stakeholders to directly and indirectly impact the existence of a clear focus on student learning. We conclude with a discussion of the pathways in our best-fitting model as we explore in detail the interrelationships among the primary sources of leadership and discuss the direct and indirect effects of each of these leadership sources on one another and on the extent to which the factors individually and collectively impact a school's focus on student learning. (Contains 2 figures, 4 tables, and 1 note.)

Early childhood professionals know that good fathering has a profound impact on children. Research confirms that when fathers are involved in the lives of their children, positive outcomes can be expected; when fathers are not involved in their children's lives, more negative outcomes can be seen. Fathers can play an integral role as attachment figures in the lives of young children. How men perceive their role is crucial in good parenting. Positive perceptions of fathering are consistently and significantly associated with caregiving activities, paternal warmth, nurturing activities, physical care, and cognitively stimulating activities, such as singing, reading, or telling stories to their child. Men who identify with the father role and view being a dad as important tend to be more invested and actively engaged with their children than are men who do not strongly identify themselves as fathers. This article discusses Boot Camp for New Dads, a program for expectant fathers, which instills confidence and pride in being a father. Men learn how to make the home safe and secure for the newborn, support their partners before and after birth, and prepare to bond with the baby. Survey results show Boot Camp for New Dads is effective. Follow-ups indicate that fathers who completed the program overwhelmingly feel that the class had a positive impact on how they bonded with their babies. By applying the research showing that father involvement is important for children's healthy development, the program nurtures dads-to-be in their quest to give their children the best start in life. (Contains 12 online resources.)

A study of school-level change in 13 Newfoundland schools found a positive relationship among team leadership, organizational learning, and classroom practices. Subsequent research found that within team leadership, at least one leader must be recognized as a champion for change; external interventions may be necessary in schools without team leadership; and an action research process is essential for successful organizational learning. (TD)

A study identified several problems encountered by nine Newfoundland schools while converting to a team leadership model: time restraints, school management concerns, limited perceptions of leadership, district interference, personnel changes, apathy, dysfunctional politics, goal-setting difficulties, reduced professional-development opportunities, and the principal's unwillingness to share power. (MLH)

Focuses on findings from studies investigating leadership for change in schools and districts which indicate that teacher- librarians must be mirror-images of other teachers if they are to have credibility with teachers and principals. Discusses the essential characteristics of knowledge base; technical skills; personal, interpersonal and team skills; and values and beliefs. (AEF)

Within the context of an apparent transnational agenda of accountability, standardization, and increased government control of public education in many countries, including Canada, a growing number of constituencies question the legitimacy of school boards and argue for their elimination. Herein the authors report results of their pan Canadian study on the extent to which school board insiders (school board trustees, provincial school board association executive directors and school district superintendents) perceive this transnational agenda to have impacted public school governance in Canada in two specific areas of interest: (a) the relevance of school boards; and (b) the nature of school board members' connection with their constituents. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to extend the understanding of distributed leadership to the school district level as the authors examine how leadership for twenty-first century learning is distributed within public schools and school districts as they strive to transform their school classrooms from primarily teacher-directed toward more student-centered and technology-enhanced. It contributes to a growing understanding of the inherent distribution of school and school district leadership and helps elucidate how existing leadership machinations can be adapted to facilitate the transformation of public school classrooms from being primarily teacher-directed, to predominately student-centered, technology-enhanced learning environments. Design/methodology/approach – This is a qualitative study conducted in all school districts in one Canadian province. Data were gathered through interviews of all district technology leaders and principals of two schools (per district) deemed exemplary in their use of technology for classroom learning; focus group sessions with stratified samples of teachers and all district-level program professionals in each district, and semi-structured observations of district-selected technology-savvy classrooms in two schools per district. Findings – The paper provides insights into the challenges of leading classroom innovation, including costs associated with technology acquisition and the provision of quality professional development. It reaffirms the continued relevance of the school principal while concomitantly confirming the inherent existence of distributed leadership within and across organizational boundaries that can facilitate or impede complex change. Finally, findings from this study serve as yet another reminder that the accumulated, rich evidence base regarding the process of leading and implementing complex innovation appears to be largely ignored by practitioners. Research limitations/implications – Because the research approach is qualitative and restricted to one defined population, the generalizability of this study may be limited. Practical implications – This paper draws attention to practical importance of fostering leadership from multiple sources and the need for reflection on how research evidence in education can better directed toward improved practice. Originality/value – Given the major public expenditures in the acquisition of new and emerging technology for public school classrooms, this paper may foster reflection for improved leadership and implementation practices. The paper anticipates that this work will contribute to a growing understanding of the distributed nature of school and school district leadership. Also, the paper believes it will help elucidate how current machinations of leadership might be adapted to facilitate the transformation of public school classrooms from primarily teacher-directed to predominately student-centered, technology-enhanced learning environments. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article offers information about the Boot Camp for New Dads, a program for expectant fathers that teaches them to make the home safe for the infant, support their partners, and prepare to bond with their baby. The article discusses the relationship and attachment between father and child. It describes Boot Camp sessions, in which veteran fathers share important concepts or traits including patience and flexibility to the rookie ones. It notes that the discussions also focus on supporting the mother in terms of preparation for the hospital stay and interaction with the newborn. Survey results indicate that the program is effective, in which follow-ups show that fathers who completed the program have overwhelmingly felt the positive effect on how they bonded with their babies.