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The purpose of this study was to understand the ways doctoral students in an online Ed.D. program developed their skills as practitioner researchers through a project-based learning (PBL) experience. In order to describe and analyze the nature of the students' PBL experiences, case study methodology was used. Interviews, a video-recording of a two-hour synchronous class session, and student generated artifacts were iteratively analyzed by a team of researchers. Results reveal underlying tensions within three case themes: individual versus collective learning, simulated versus real research experience, and public class activity versus private group conversations. These findings demonstrate that Ed.D. program area faculty must balance the competing tensions raised by these case themes in order to facilitate research skill development and foster the ability of their students to grow as practitioner scholars.

Practitioner scholarship encompasses the dispositions and skills necessary for educators to effect change for marginalised students in their local contexts. Ed.D. programmes play a role in helping educators develop these traits. Understanding what practitioner scholarship can look like post-graduation could inform programme planning as well as inspire broader audiences to support these efforts. In this interview study of 11 graduates from one online Ed.D. programme at a research-intensive university, we describe post-graduation enactment of practitioner scholarship. Graduates' proactive stances reflected a social justice-oriented disposition and mastery of skills related to uses of scholarly literature and data.

As the population of the United States becomes more diverse, both challenges and opportunities are created for the educational system. The gap that currently exists between a predominantly White, middle class, female teaching workforce and an increasingly heterogeneous population of students is one of the key factors that shapes these challenges. In an attempt to address this gap and better serve the needs of all children, Banks (2006) has advocated that every level of education should be "substantially reformed and educators must acquire new knowledge and skills." The efforts of teacher education programs in this endeavor are critical to any hope for successful change. It stands to reason, however, that if the majority of teacher educators come from positions within teaching, then they are likely to be more similar to those currently entering the teaching workforce than to the students occupying seats in classrooms. With this in mind, it is imperative for doctoral programs in education to follow the lead of the multicultural teacher education literature and help future teacher educators cultivate the strategies and habits of mind necessary for preparing culturally responsive teachers. This article reports a research which examines the experiences of students in a doctoral seminar in critical pedagogy that attempts to foster multicultural knowledge and dispositions by providing future teacher educators with opportunities to examine their sociocultural identities while critically exploring the current system of education in the United States. Specifically, the focus is to understand the impact the course had on participants' personal and professional beliefs and practices. Additionally, the researchers were interested in features of the seminar that explained its impact on the participants. Insights from the study have implications for transforming teacher educators and are therefore relevant to successful multicultural teacher education.

If educators are to support the learning of students who have traditionally struggled for success in school, administrators and teachers must understand the difference between equity and equality and engage in classroom practices that support the former. In simple terms, "equality" reflects the idea that every student should get the same thing. In contrast, "equity" is defined by the idea that every student should have an equal opportunity to be successful. Embedded in this definition is the understanding that an equal opportunity to be successful means students' differing needs are met in differing ways. In her work with teachers, Vicki Vescio has found that the most effective way to promote equity for students is through enacting culturally responsive practices that focus on relationships, relevance, and responsibility. In this article she provides examples of everyday practices teachers can engage in that will support their efforts to move toward greater levels of equity in their classrooms.

Professional learning communities have long been considered a powerful form of collaborative professional learning, as the Learning Communities standard in Learning Forward's Standards for Professional Learning attests (Learning Forward, 2011). This focus on communities can engage teachers in ongoing professional dialogue and examination of student work as members learn with and from each other over time. One aspect of professional learning communities that has been overlooked in both theory and practice is how individual teachers learn within these collaborative groups, especially when one critical definitional aspect of professional learning communities is a shared vision and mission. Just as educators differentiate learning for diverse students in their classrooms, they must also remember that professional learning communities consist of individuals who need different things in order to learn and who may be at drastically different places in their careers or their teaching capabilities. To maximize the potential impact of professional learning communities for teachers' professional development, educators need to maintain a simultaneous focus on both collective and individual learning. This article offers three solutions that can improve individual learning within collaborative groups operating in a K-12 setting.

After an overview of the characteristics of professional learning communities (PLCs), this manuscript presents a review of 10 American studies and one English study on the impact of PLCs on teaching practices and student learning. Although, few studies move beyond self-reports of positive impact, a small number of empirical studies explore the impact on teaching practice and student learning. The collective results of these studies suggest that well-developed PLCs have positive impact on both teaching practice and student achievement. Implications of this research and suggestions for next steps in the efforts to document the impact of PLCs on teaching and learning are included.

This qualitative study examined the experiences of 10 prospective teachers completing internships in low-income, majority-minority schools while participating in a professional learning community within the context of a course that focused on culturally responsive pedagogy. Drawing primarily from interviews and online discussions, the article documents the teacher educators' development of a no-excuses teaching philosophy among eight of the interns, as reflected by a continuous commitment to solve learning and behavior puzzles. However, at times, five of these interns made statements that blamed the home context or expressed doubt that every child could be reached. Despite these statements, the interns never quit trying to solve the learning puzzles posed by any child. The findings provide evidence that interns can develop both the skill and the will to teach low-income, majority-minority students. Implications suggest how to better prepare interns for and support novice teachers in these challenging school contexts.

This article discusses a research project on international doctoral students' perceptions and experiences of supervising pre-service teachers in the United States. Three international doctoral students at a large public university in the Southeastern United States participated in in-depth interviews and observations of their practicum seminars and of coaching conversations with pre-service teachers. Findings revealed international supervisors' perceived positive contributions that they made in addition to navigating common challenges as they simultaneously had to teach and learn in a new context. Implications include the importance of providing multiple levels of support for international doctoral students who supervise pre-service teachers. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]