Product Description
A teacher using differentiated instruction employs varied strategies to capitalize on the learning potential of every student. But how can teachers and administrators learn to use differentiated strategies by participating in professional development that is not differentiated for their needs? To best use differentiated strategies, they need to first see them in action.

In this action tool, differentiation expert Cindy Strickland provides staff developers, teacher leaders, and other professional development leaders with the tools they need to model differentiation as they show teachers and administrators how to successfully implement and maintain differentiated instruction initiatives. This valuable professional development resource contains more than 45 tools and activities that can be used in workshops, professional learning communities, and small-group settings with participants at all levels of skill and familiarity with differentiation.

These tools and activities, which are also available for download along with additional online-only tools, will help professional development leaders:
* Establish a learning environment that is welcoming and respectful of teachers and administrators at all levels of expertise with regard to differentiation;
* Increase teachers and administrators knowledge about, understanding of, and skill with differentiated practices;
* Use ongoing assessment to guide staff development;
* Plan respectful differentiated staff development activities; and
* Flexibly and reflectively group teachers for a variety of learning experiences.

Staff developers and other professional development leaders can use this practical and interactive action tool to help ensure that their participants learn firsthand the value of high-quality differentiated instruction and are armed with the tools to implement these principles in ways that will help all learners succeed. ... Read more

Product Description
This tool for professional development provides both a conceptual and procedural framework on which educators can develop electronic portfolios. It provides practical, how-to information for the creation of e-portfolios as a tool for professional progression. This resource explains the benefits of the electronic portfolio and examines the three critical questions of portfolio development: What did I do? What did I learn? What will I do next? It then pulls all of the information together into a successful e-portfolio format. The supplemental chapters guide educators through organization, presentation and production considerations, hardware and software issues, and portfolio design. This book is a one-stop-shop for creating a professional electronic portfolio of which all educators, veteran or up-and-coming, can be proud. ... Read more

Product Description
Understanding by Design Professional Development Workbook extends the ideas presented in Understanding by Design (UbD) by focusing on professional development and the practical matters of curriculum design. The Workbook is a guide for Understanding by Design workshops and undergraduate and graduate courses, as well as further independent exploration. It provides a valuable resource to educators in developing curricula and assessments with a focus on developing and deepening students’ understanding of important ideas.

The Workbook contains the following materials to support your professional development and application of the ideas within Understanding by Design:
Design Templates--planning organizers based on the three stages of backward design for use in developing a unit or course. One-, two-, and six-page versions of the UbD templates are provided.
Design Standards--criteria for reviewing curricular designs as a means of continuous improvement. The UbD standards guide self-assessment and peer reviews, whereby colleagues provide feedback and guidance on each other’s designs.
Exercises and Process Tools--thought-provoking workshop activities for developing and deepening participants’ understanding of the key ideas of UbD. A set of review and reflection tools is included.
Design Tools--a variety of graphic organizers and worksheets are included to assist designers in each stage of backward design.
Samples--multiple examples from diverse subject areas and levels illustrate the various elements of understanding-based designs.
Glossary--definitions of key terms.

Preservice and inservice teachers, college professors, school-based administrators, curriculum directors, subject-matter specialists, staff developers, and personnel involved in assessment and evaluation can benefit from these practical and proven ideas and resources. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (15)

book review
I needed this book for work- the shipper sent it out super fast.if you need to do UBD lesson plans, the models are helpful

Understanding UBD
More than 1/4 of the way through but it has good "stuff" so far.Some of it may appear, at first, to be those kinds of things that seem so logical that everyone should have thought about it.Well worth the purchase.

You need the prior publication
The workbook without the prior publication, Understanding by Design by McTighe and Wiggins, is useless.

Great teacher resource
I bought this book as a textbook, but am finding it to be a valuable tool in a teacher's repertoire to make lessons thought provoking and transferable.

Invaluable resource!
This book is priceless when designing lessons "backwards"! I found it to be more useful and comprehensible that the actual text "Understanding by Design". This workbook is worth the money to ensure your teaching focuses on what is significant! It has many examples in different content areas and BIG IDEA explanations that will help you understand how to apply backward design to your area of specialty. ... Read more

Product Description

Updated Edition of Best Seller!

Today’s teachers must prepare all students to understand, master, and apply important concepts and skills in mathematics and science and become able problem solvers and inquirers. As someone who plans professional development, you are in a unique position to meet these challenges by designing more powerful professional learning programs—programs that deepen teachers' content and pedagogical knowledge, improve teaching skills, explore student thinking, and build a learning community.

Designing Professional Development for Teachers of Science and Mathematics, now in its second edition, guides professional developers, administrators, and teacher leaders to design learning experiences for teachers that are directly linked to improving student learning. It offers a framework for planning professional development, summarizes key research, and introduces critical issues. This book suggests many strategies to introduce professional learning into the daily work of teachers. Learn to design professional development programs that incorporate

Product Description
The purpose of the book is to provide Professional Development School (PDS) workers with a framework for conducting research in a PDS. The book examines the history of these schools as a phenomenon, analyzes PDS research since its inception in 1986, outlines the National Council for Accreditation of Teacher Education's (NCATE) PDS standards, and the American Education Research Association's (AERA) recommended research methods. The book includes hypothetical examples of research in these schools that are approved by the AERA. ... Read more

Product Description
Let Your Professional Journey Begin!Role Development In Professional Nursing Practice Provides Nursing Students With A Roadmap To Help Guide Them Along Their Journey As A Professional Nurse.Divided Into Two Units, This Text Provides Students With A Basic Foundation In Areas Such As Nursing History, Theory, Philosophy, Ethics, Socialization Into The Nursing Role, The Social Context Of Nursing, And Career Development In Nursing.The Second Half Of This Text Is More Directly Related To Patient Care Issues Such As Patient Education, Ethical Issues In Nursing Practice, The Law As It Relates To Patient Care And Nursing, Clinical Judgment, Informatics And Technology, As Well As, A New Chapter On Evidence-Based Nursing Practice And The Future Directions In Professional Nursing Practice ... Read more

Customer Reviews (2)

Like New.....
Fantastic condition with minimal writing.Smooth transaction and quick shipment.Great seller.Thanks!

New book in great conditions
Book arrived fast . I started reading it and it's like a nursing history book. It's pretty interesting ... Read more

Product Description
The Spring Framework is a major open source application development framework that makes Java/J2EE(TM) development easier and more productive. This book shows you not only what Spring can do but why, explaining its functionality and motivation to help you use all parts of the framework to develop successful applications.

You will be guided through all the Spring features and see how they form a coherent whole. In turn, this will help you understand the rationale for Spring's approach, when to use Spring, and how to follow best practices. All this is illustrated with a complete sample application. When you finish the book, you will be well equipped to use Spring effectively in everything from simple Web applications to complex enterprise applications.

What you will learn from this book
* The core Inversion of Control container and the concept of Dependency Injection
* Spring's Aspect Oriented Programming (AOP) framework and why AOP is important in J2EE development
* How to use Spring's programmatic and declarative transaction management services effectively
* Ways to access data using Spring's JDBC functionality, iBATIS SQL Maps, Hibernate, and other O/R mapping frameworks
* Spring services for accessing and implementing EJBs
* Spring's remoting framework

Who this book is for

This book is for Java/J2EE architects and developers who want to gain a deeper knowledge of the Spring Framework and use it effectively.

Wrox Professional guides are planned and written by working programmers to meet the real-world needs of programmers, developers, and IT professionals. Focused and relevant, they address the issues technology professionals face every day. They provide examples, practical solutions, and expert education in new technologies, all designed to help programmers do a better job. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (26)

not very much intresting
bought this book long back,
kind of boarting book,
its standard kind tricks has written there
although you can try it, but its boaring too

May be a challenge for a beginner
I think this is a book you would use as a reference for getting deeper into the understanding of concepts and being aware of the options for configuration and implemention of various aspects of the framework. But you would need to already understand the basics of Spring.

If you want a Spring tutorial that will help you start building Spring applications from basic concepts, especially if you are a beginner, you may struggle with this book. You get explanation of concepts and code snippets, but you may need to read other books and online articles that are written more in a tutorial style.

Can't really say
I lent it to a guy on my development team, and now I can't seem to get it back. He must like it. (!)

One thing I really appreciated was the comparative tables showing benefits and tradeoffs of using the different web frameworks with Spring. The book does seem a bit shallow for the number of topics presented -- should have been a couple thousand pages to cover everything I'd like to know.

Wasted my time
Very incomplete information and examples, the missing pieces being crucial.Overall, poorly and inaccurately written.The authors jump into details before giving the reader the context into which the details should fit.The examples are three-line snippets that fail miserable in showing how to put all the pieces together.Lots of features covered in very short sections that never explain how to use the framework to build a system from beginning to end.Only confused me and wasted my time.I'm at the point of giving up on Spring.

A waste of treeware
This book is TERRIBLE! Almost as bad as the Spring manual itself which doesn't surprise me because it was written by the same people.

Some examples give good detail but they are VERY hard to follow. For most things that I want to do, there is little or no examples.

For example, there is no mention of Acegi taglibs.

If you want a better book, try the Manning "Spring In Action" book. I have that one too and it is much, much better. ... Read more

Product Description

A thought-provoking textbook written for students enrolled in graduate Higher Education and Student Affairs Masters and PhD programs, College Organization and Professional Development focuses on the framing of critical issues in organization practice, the gaps between moral beliefs and actions, and improving equity within organizations. It can be used as a text in Organization, Leadership and Professional Practice courses that seek to integrate a focus on moral leadership and reflection practice. This breakthrough text seeks to revolutionize how we understand ethical practice and provides a new theory that informs practice within organizations. Unlike the majority of Organization textbooks currently available which lack social contextual understanding of moral issues and social justice, this text encourages the use of action research to inform and support change in professional practice.

Students will find the pedagogical exercises useful for reflecting on their own goals, examining their own practices, and testing new intervention methods within their organizations and communities of practice. Reflective assignments are suggested for readers to help them engage in a process of reflective analysis of professional practice.

This textbook is organized into three parts:

Part I: Focuses on the foundations for moral reasoning in practice, introduces the framework used in the book and encourages introspection and reflection as an integral part of professional practice.

Part II: Focuses on frames of professional development, both as frames of reasoning and as developmental pathways, focusing methods of learning moral reasoning and changing organizations that support just practice.

Part III: Focuses on challenges of building communities of practice that support social-critical changes and environmental consciousness.

This book can also be used in graduate programs across professional fields including Teacher Education and Business. Practicing professionals and those academics at different stages in their careers who wish to reflect on the gaps between their moral values and their actions in work situations will also find this text informative and useful. The chapters include fundamental and insightful guidance for reflection on the topics raised and discussed.

Product Description
Renowned software expert Steve McConnell helps software students transition to the role of software professionals. Significant developments are afoot that will impact the future careers of student programmers, including initiatives in education, professional development, certification, and licensing. Some of these developments are well thought out and positive; others are being forced and need to be improved before they are standardized. Software development is changing, whether programmers recognize it or not. Programmers who are not paying attention could easily find themselves working as twenty-first century software janitors. This book describes the occupation of computer programming as it exists today and the profession of software engineering as it can exist in the future. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (23)

Surprise ! A disappointing book by Steve McConnel
Are these people reviewing the correct book? I'm compelled to write this because I really disagree with the favorable reviews here. This book is a waste of money.

Let me start by saying that I have enjoyed many of Steve McConnel books. I still reference RAPID DEVELOPMENT at work. I like how practical and pragmatic he is in his books. So, I quickly bought this book when I saw it.

Well, this one is a dud. The main premise is that we need professionalism and training in this area to get good and consistent results. There is a lot of discussion about the importance of this to get quality, success etc but that's it. There is really not much insight here. After reading
Professional Software Development I felt like he's lost his way amidst the mountains of white papers and the multitudes of 'best-practices.'

I am very disappointed with the book. In fact, I found it so useless that I ended up doing something I normally do not do with my technical books: I threw away the book !!!

If you are interested in the book, take your time to evaluate the content and value to you. It is not as good as his previous books.

Sorry. I like Steve's other books like CODE COMPLETE and RAPID DEVELOPMENT but this one did not do it for me.

Excellent reference book
This is an excellent book for people that want straight facts about the software engineering profession and industry. It is also an excellent source for a plan to understand how to acquire knowledge in search of a better career as a software engineer.

For a long time I tried to find what was the real difference between computer scientists and software engineers because the general knowledge knowadays is that both professions are the same. This book finally gives a clear and straight explanation of the real difference between both.

Another thing I liked a lot about this book is that it explains the false idea that knowledge in software engineering becomes obsolete too quickly to be useful or to form a body of knowledge.

For all people working in the software industry this is a must-read book to really understand where they should be heading and why.

Not Quite What I Was Expecting
The main focus of this book in on the creation of a professional software development association or organization, similar to the ones of doctors and arquitects. The discussion is interesting, but not very useful if you have to deal with the problems and challenges of the day-to-day life in software development.

middle brow
Steve McConnell knows a lot about organising resources to get things done, specifically he knows (probably more than 50,000 things) about getting software done.I appreciate this, and I have benefited greatly from two of his books, the software project survival guide and software estimation; I have also benefited measurably, if to a lesser extent, from another (Code Complete).

Getting things done is a species of management, and an honorable activity, but McConnell is not happy to be a manager (a guy in a suit), he wants to be an engineer (a guy with, at least once upon a time, a slide-rule).His strategy for doing this is to rename his sort of 'organising resources to get things done' as 'software engineering'.Unfortunately, it is not clear to me that he knows, or has thought seriously about, the philosophy of engineering at any level much deeper than that of a self-confident guy in the bar on a Friday evening.

For instance the first thing I saw in my initial leafing was a pair of pictures, of Reims Cathedral, which is cited as an example of 'art without very well developed engineering', and of Sidney opera house, which is contrasted as a paradigm of 'art dependent on engineering'.This says of McConnell first that he knows nothing about the history of european architecture and that he is a dork worthy of Gary Larsen (you don't need any book learning to at least begin to appreciate the sophistication of Reims cathedral as an engineering achievement, all you need to do is to stand in the nave and look up); second that he knows nothing of the very well documented history of Sidney opera house, which is an ornament of the harbour, but is not a usable example of anything to do with scientific engineering (not to mention effective project managment - nor is it even thought a notably good opera house); and third that he is happy to opinionate about things about which he knows nothing and about which he has not even paused to think.

Speaking of which, the second thing I saw is that he does not appear to know much about Francis Bacon other than as a source of pretentious quotations.

If you look at the details, things do not get much better.Consider chapter 13, 'Business case for better software practices'.McConnell wants to argue that the returns on investing in better software development are enormous.This is a plausible claim given the stack of empirical data he quotes, but he does not add anything to the data that he (very helpfully) collects in one place.In another chapter he has complained about 'Cargo Cult Software Engineering', but the subsection 'State of the Practice' here is cargo cult statistical analysis: I could identify no coherent content in it.He also repeatedly says that the gains from investing in improved software processes are even larger for the 'best organisations', but I couldn't figure out what he meant by 'best' - surely the best organisations are the ones that already have good processes in place, and thus have less room for improvement (absent some weird positive feedback loop, which would result in the best organisations disappearing ínto a productivity singularity).I can only assume that by 'best' he means 'rotten, but turn-aroundable'.

A few years ago, I bought a house that needed complete renovation before I moved in; i.e. a new water system, new electrics, etc.The infrastructure that brought mains water and electricity to my house was designed and constructed, and is maintained by engineers.The people who connected my sinks and lights to that infrastructure, on the other hand, were 'plumbers' and 'electricians'.The very competent person who coordinated the work was a 'site manager'.

Equally, the people who built and maintain Oracle are engineers.The vast number of people who build software based on it are almost all 'programmers', while the slightly less vast number of people who coordinate them are 'software project managers'.

Me?I'm a programmer, though I do happen to own a novoduplex slide-rule.

McConnell Does it Again - This is the future of our industry
I graduated from a highly specialized program at Virginia Tech that focuses on Engineering Theory - Rocket Science & celestial mechanics (intermediate dynamics), 3 fluid mechanics, etc. with the goal of leading up to Biomechanics concentration.I programmed CAD software and joint-torque analysis physical therapy recommending software as part of my program.

Steve McConnell's association of Software Development to Engineering is a welcome (although at times, not faultlessly backed up) addition to the camp of people like myself who understand firsthand the benefits of Traditional Engineering approaches to Software Development.

Within 4 years of professional experience, I myself was able to secure the top technical position in our industry, Enterprise Architect - one that usually takes 12+ years to even consider.

Do I attribute this to my 152 IQ, impeccable communication skills, or rigorous background in Traditional Engineering?There are lots of people with a VA Tech degree who have high IQs and go through the same communications training.A fundamental flaw I have observed time and time again with my developers is the lack of rigorous problem solving techniques.

When you have spent 2.5 days on a LaPlace Transformation or 6 hours figuring out the angle of an attached pendulum to a moving body in a 3 DOF system in 3D, or deriving acceleration, velocity, and position plots for vibration systems, and you do these things for 4 years straight, often programming to achieve the results, you become a master of elegant problem resolution - engraining into your very being the ability to simplify, breakdown, and attack problems.

My experience in the software industry has proved skeptics like Alan Cooper wrong in my point-of-view.My colleagues and developers are often impressed with my architectures and coding approaches.To me it seems just like second nature - mastering the fundamentals of your technology with a certification, mastering best practices (like Code Complete & CxOne), and mastering inherent problem solving.Then, like the art of Traditional Engineering, there is a beauty to the approach you choose in the art of software design.

Yes.The leaders that will take this industry forward are at NASA and BOEING and increasingly Microsoft.We are Software ENGINEERS, and must embrace that distinction to move forward as a honed, veritable practice in general.Steve McConnell has a good jump start on telling you why - but don't expect an indisputable and flawless argument. ... Read more

Product Description
Developed by Dr. Joe Pace and incorporating the same material he has used to guide thousands of students and to train hundreds of instructors across North America, The Professional Development Series is designed to teach the personal skills that lead to college, job, and career success.

The result? Confident, motivated students who have the goals and skills to succeed in your program and in their chosen careers.

Book One is an orientation to the world of work.In it students consider the occupations that are most likely to have job openings in the coming years, how to prepare themselves to fill these openings, and what the workplace environment is like in the 21st-century.Professional business protocol, professional presence, and a customer-first attitude are also explored and discussed.

Each of the four books of the Series can stand-alone or be purchased in a discounted package with the other texts. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (1)

oh where oh where is my book?
I ordered a book on August 11th, well ahead of my class semester.It is now September 11th and 2 weeks into my class, and the book still hasn't shipped.I ordered the same book from another seller a couple days before the class started and it got there on time.Have sent a message to the seller with no response.It has been showing the "Shipping soon" status since the order went through. ... Read more

Product Description
Developed by Dr. Joe Pace and incorporating the same material he has used to guide thousands of students and to train hundreds of instructors across North America, The Professional Development Series is designed to teach the personal skills that lead to college, job, and career success.

The result? Confident, motivated students who have the goals and skills to succeed in your program and in their chosen careers.

One day a student leaves school and has a job; twenty years later they look back and realize they have a career.How can students make sure that the career they choose is fulfilling and rewarding?How can they avoid or overcome the inevitable missteps – taking the wrong job, for example – and get their careers back on track?Book 4 offers guidance on planning a career and, more importantly, on developing, changing, and maintaining it.

Each of the four books of the Series can stand-alone or be purchased in a discounted package with the other texts. ... Read more

Product Description

Learn to enhance your assessment and teaching of phonemic awareness!

Finally teachers have access to a professional development series, Evidence-Based Instruction in Reading, written specifically to guide them in sharpening their understanding of the five key components to Reading First—phonemic awareness, phonics, vocabulary, fluency, and comprehension. This book focuses on phonemic awareness, but each volume in the five-part series addresses one key component and presents friendly tips and strategies that teachers can take right into the classroom.

How to make Phonemic Awareness work for you!

• Consider recommendations for incorporating appropriate reading materials, fostering productive home–school connections, and promoting students’ desire to learn to read and write.
• Read about the findings of current key research studies and learn about their implications for classroom practice.
• Discover how to evaluate your current practices and create concrete plans for change.
• Start a learning community or book club and share your knowledge with colleagues.
• Access useful resources and links to extend and enrich your own learning beyond the classroom.

Teachers rave about A Professional Development Guide to Phonemic Awareness!

"I have been in reading instruction for 33 years and there are teachers in my school who have been in for three years [to] 23 years…with the variation in experience, we have a wide variety of backgrounds…this text brings all that together because of the way it is written…I would use [this book] with my lower grade Reading First teachers and with teachers in grades 2 and 3 for struggling readers. Phonemic Awareness is usually a missing piece in those students who are not on grade level by this time. We could put this information to good use and make it applicable at many grade levels.” 

                                    — Cathy Taylor, Reading First Literacy Coach, Stewart County Elementary School, Lumpkin, GA

Also available in the Evidence-Based Instruction in Reading series:

A Professional Development Guideto Phonics

© 2008ISBN: 0-205-45630-8

A Professional Development Guideto Vocabulary

© 2008ISBN: 0-205-45631-6

A Professional Development Guideto Fluency

© 2008ISBN: 0-205-45629-4

A Professional Development Guideto Comprehension

© 2008ISBN: 0-205-45627-8

Product Description

For software to consistently deliver promised results, software development must mature into a true profession. Emergent Design points the way. As software continues to evolve and mature, software development processes become more complicated, relying on a variety of methodologies and approaches. This book illuminates the path to building the next generation of software. Author Scott L. Bain integrates the best of today’s most important development disciplines into a unified, streamlined, realistic, and fully actionable approach to developing software. Drawing on patterns, refactoring, and test-driven development, Bain offers a blueprint for moving efficiently through the entire software lifecycle, smoothly managing change, and consistently delivering systems that are robust, reliable, and cost-effective.

Reflecting a deep understanding of the natural flow of system development, Emergent Design helps developers work with the flow, instead of against it. Bain introduces the principles and practices of emergent design one step at a time, showing how to promote the natural evolution of software systems over time, making systems work better and provide greater value. To illuminate his approach, Bain presents code examples wherever necessary and concludes with a complete project case study.

This book provides developers, project leads, and testers powerful new ways to collaborate, achieve immediate goals, and build systems that improve in quality with each iteration.

Coverage includes 

• How to design software in a more natural, evolutionary, and professional way
• How to use the “open-closed” principle to mitigate risks and eliminate waste
• How and when to test your design throughout the development process
• How to translate design principles into practices that actually lead to better code
• How to determine how much design is enough
• How refactoring can help you reduce over-design and manage change more effectively

The book’s companion Web site, www.netobjectives.com/resources, provides updates, links to related materials, and support for discussions of the book’s content.

Customer Reviews (9)

Emergent Design -- nothing new here other than title
I've just completed reading "Emergent Design: The Evolutionary Nature of Professional Software Development" by Scott L. Bain; I found the author's writing style to be engaging which made for an easy read.However, from my perspective (someone who has been in the trenches of software development for the past 20 years) I found nothing new in this book for the seasoned professional.

If you are just starting out, I would recommend this book; if you call yourself a programmer, I would recommend this book.However, if you are a trained software professional, and already understand that the phrase "software as an engineering discipline" is an oxymoron, then I would recommend you spend your time elsewhere.This book simply puts into written words what we already know -- waterfall development doesn't work for systems where the requirements aren't well understood or are subject to change during the development effort.The author adequately discusses the importance of patterns and their importance to modern software systems, the importance of paying attention to the details not found in the software, and the fact that you need to get over fear of change.In my opinion, the author does not offer any new insights.

Again, if you are just starting out, or have no exposure to object-oriented theory/practice, patterns and iterative-and-incremental development, this book is a good introductory text.If you are looking for advanced knowledge, in my opinion, its not here.

Software Engineering
This is a very good book specially for those that are interested in learning about design patterns and applying them in your own codes.

Nothing new
This book rehashes the Gang of Four's design patterns and standard recommendations about XP/test-driven development. There is a lot of filler and nothing new. Read the originals; they're classics.

For a real epiphany about emergent design, I highly recommend Eric Evans' "Domain-Driven Design: Tackling Complexity in the Heart of Software".

THE Book to read for developers whose code changes
I think of this book as answering three questions:
* what do developers need to know to work as professionals?
* how does quality coding and design play into unfolding designs?
* what is the proper way to integrate refactoring, test-driven development and design patterns in the real world?

All too long this industry has allowed individuals to do what they like instead of what their teams and businesses need.Programming is not just about individual people's opinion of approach and quality, but about real issues that have been long identified.

This book weaves the tale of what is known and how to use it in a real environment.I didn't react to this book the way Mr. Vodde did as an advertisement for Net Objectives.I like the anecdotal story telling of how this knowledge is conveyed to realy people in real situations.

Developers often talk about their problems in getting others convinced of better approaches.What better way than to hear how Mr. Bain has done this himself - something good to learn.

While this book is probably thought of as being for agile developers (those who write code in iterations) it'd be highly useful for anyone.Everybody's code needs to morph over time - even if the first release is done in a classic waterfall.

Good practices but does not live up to its title

Emergent Design by Scott Bain is a interesting book. The title is very promising, when I first heard about it, I got very excited! Finally a book about how designs emerge, how designs emerge from multiple people and how designs evolve over time compared to specifying. After reading the book, I felt the book was good, but disappointing. It did not cover the topics I would like to have seen.

The general idea of the book is that software should grow better over time instead of decay over time and that the optimal design will emerge. An idea I strongly agree with. The author links this to software development needing to change to become a profession. If SW development is a profession, then people will use proper practices and design will emerge. The practices (in a broad sense) are principles of design, patterns and disciplines. After the first couple of chapters the book was having a good start, though I started wondering if the author didn't bite of more than he could chew. Those are huge topics by themselves!

From chapter 7 to chapter 14 the author just describes good practices. He starts with qualities of code and qualities of designs. He moves to unit-testing, refactoring and then Test-Driven-Development. He ends with the pattern chapter. The last chapter puts all things together in a case study. Scott does a reasonable job in describing all practices. There are a couple of weird things, like the recommendation that every class has exactly one test class. The TDD chapter also seems to have very little TDD in it :)

As a catalog of best practices, this book perhaps does the best of all the current agile related books. Great job by the author.

However, there are some things that personally bothered me. The book seems to be very pattern focused. Scott seems to be of the opinion that patterns is what hold everything together (probably everything in the world). Though, I agree that patterns are an important concept in modern software development, I wouldn't put so much pattern focus in e.g. a chapter on test-driven development. Maybe the title of the book would better be "Scott on SW design and patterns".

That brings me to another issue with the book, the title. Emergent design is an immensely important topic. How does a design start with the first requirement. How does it evolve. How do multiple people work with the design. How can the overall architecture evolve. What about items that evolve difficult, like different programming language usage etc. So much to talk about and the book doesn't do this. It misses a huge opportunity to talk about emergent design & architecture and instead (although important) decides to talk about design principles, patterns and practices. (in that sense, the book is similar to Bob Martin's "Agile Software Development: Principles, Patterns and Practices", which I would recommend over this book).

But again, the content of the book is good and useful and normally I would go for a 4 star rating, but I decided to go for 3 stars. This is because the book IMHO contains things that really turned me off.
One of the examples is the talk about professionalism. Don't get me wrong, I do agree with the author on this subject. The point is, we are not alone. In fact, IEEE has been working on certification for many years. In 1999, Steven McConnell wrote a book called "After the Gold Rush" with the subtitle "Creating a True Profession of Software Engineering". Scott talks about finally making a profession out of SW development, but he seems to have not done any research on this topic and seems to not be involved in other attempts to make it a profession. It would have increased his credibility a lot if he would have said "the earlier attempts are different because ..." or something similar.

Another item that was a huge turn-off was the constant promotion of Net Objectives. The book, at times, almost felt like a commercial. Personally, I didn't need to know about what courses Net Objectives teaches, I want to know about Emergent Design!

Anyhow, all these negative points aside, Emergent Design is a good introduction to modern agile development practices. Especially if you are not yet familiar with topics like Refactoring, TDD and patterns, this book is certainly worth reading. Next to that, Scott's writing style is funny and easy to read. So, if you belong to that group of people, recommended! Otherwise, skip it.
... Read more

Product Description
Competencies for Staff Educators: Tools to Evaluate and Enhance Nursing Professional Development is the first book to give staff educators a measurable tool to establish and demonstrate proficiency. With more than 70 evidence-based competencies, staff educators can immediately incorporate them into practice. The 72 evidence-based competencies are included on the accompanying CD-ROM, allowing you to immediately customize and incorporate them into your daily practice. In addition, the CD-ROM includes fully customizable tools and resources such as sample orientation schedules and sample position descriptions. ... Read more

Product Description
This workbook contains a series of professional exercises for students who want to use their training in anthropology to develop a career in anthropology and other fields. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (1)

Great read for students, parents and educators!
This publication and its professional development exercises are practical, timely and useful beyond anthropology.The book is well written and includes many graphics and forms encouraging the reader to begin active participation in their future career immediately.This is a must read for aspiring anthropologists, parents of anthropology students and educators. ... Read more

Product Description

"This is a valuable resource .to help prepare advanced practice nurses with the skills necessary to navigate the healthcare arena. The editors and contributors are experienced advanced practice nurses with valuable information to share with novice practitioners." Score: 100, 5 stars

--Doody's

Now in its fourth edition, this highly acclaimed book remains the key title serving graduate-level advanced practice nurses (APNs) and recent graduates about to launch their careers. The book outlines what is required of the APN, with guidelines for professional practice for each of the four APN roles: the nurse practitioner, clinical nurse specialist, certified nurse midwife, and certified registered nurse anesthetist.

Advanced Practice Nursing focuses not only on the care and management of patients, but also on how to meet the many challenges of the rapidly changing health care arena. Obtaining certification, navigating reimbursement, and translating research into practice are just a few of the challenges discussed.

Key features:

• Essential information on educational requirements and certification
• Advice on how to make the transition into professional practice
• Guidelines for ethical and clinical decision making
• Discussions on the DNP and CNL roles in AP nursing
• Updated and revised content on leadership development, regulation, informatics, health care organization, and health care policy

Product Description

Edited by John Woodward, a nationally acclaimed special education technologies researcher, and Larry Cuban, a premier technology educator in the U.S., this book provides critical examination of current research into technology usage for students with disabilities. The contributing authors establish the history of special education technology and the new requirements per IDEA ’97, and then discuss the successes and obstacles for special education technology implementation. Research was funded by the Office of Special Education Programs, U.S. Department of Education.

This book highlights:

• Innovative uses of technology
• Consideration of pedagogical, curricular, and classroom organizational approaches
• Making technology implementation meaningful and enduring
• Design considerations for researchers and developers

Product Description
In todays society, the professional development of teachers is urgent due to the constant change in working conditions and the impact that information and communication technologies have in teaching practices.

Online Learning Communities and Teacher Professional Development: Methods for Improved Education Delivery features innovative applications and solutions useful for teachers in developing knowledge and skills for the integration of technology into everyday teaching practices. This defining collection of field research discusses how technology itself can serve as an important resource in terms of providing arenas for professional development. ... Read more