As Professional Development Schools (PDS) become more prevalent, educators already involved with a PDS continually seek insight into how it can be improved, and those interested in starting a PDS are in need of specific guidance on how to get it right from the beginning. This manual is a resource to help fulfill these goals and more. Structured around the five Standards for Professional Development Schools developed by the National Council for the Accreditation of Teacher Education, the book provides practical strategies for initializing, maximizing, and evaluating PDSs. Each chapter is devoted to a particular standard, covering: a description with practical examples of what the standard looks like at various developmental stages; issues, challenges, and resolutions associated with each standard; "quick-check" self-assessment models; a toolkit, including specific examples, proven suggestions, worksheets, planning and discussion points; and resources, including web sites and other texts.--From publisher description.