Teachers prefer that staff development be continuous, relevant, and integral to their jobs. A systems approach to staff development contains three basic components: planning, implementation, and evaluation. The proposed model emphasizes how interdependence of these components can be achieved through the use of feedback which facilitates system…

This handbook leads the reader through planning and conducting the collaborative evaluation of a workplace development initiative. A glossary is followed by an introduction that addresses the rationale for collaborative evaluation, values and characteristics, using the handbook in one's own situation, and optimum conditions for collaborative…

Following an 11-month period of study, planning, and pilot testing, a project was undertaken at Central Piedmont Community College (CPCC) to implement quality circles, i.e., small groups of employees doing similar work who voluntarily meet on a regular basis to set goals, identify and analyze problems, find solutions, and cooperate with management…

Over the past 20 years, the middle school has been a major innovative movement changing the face of intermediate education. While hard to define exactly, middle schools have different priorities and purposes than junior high schools. The former serve preadolescents (ages 10 to 14) through a balanced, comprehensive program. Middle school programs…

The Dade County, Florida, school system selected 32 schools to participate in a pilot program for shared decision making. Evaluators found similar problems and solutions in a variety of school settings and classified them into 9 categories. (MLF)

This guide describes a collaborative approach to high quality and relevant evaluation of a workplace basic skills program that can be carried out as part of normal program operations. It is designed for use by educators, union representatives, managers, supervisors, participating employees, and funders. The guide is organized into five phases. In…

Beginning in fall 1982 the Aurora West Public Schools (Illinois) conducted a multi-year study to identify the nature of their instructional programs and to establish a set of position statements that would serve as guides for program review and change. A significant element of the process was the involvement of the entire staff in development of…

After describing the programs and staff at Ian Bazalgette Junior High School in Calgary, Canada, this document reviews the problems at the school in 1979 that led to the implementation of the Effective Schools Program. A review of literature related to effective schools precedes an explanation of seven school effectiveness factors adopted by the…

This report documents the evaluation of a New York State Incentive Grant that was designed to improve the quality of instruction in New York City schools for students in Specialized Instructional Environment (SIE) classes during 1989-90. The program offered 25 hours of staff development training for SIE teachers and related service providers, and…

A conceptual framework that provides a mechanism for anticipating the worth and potential success of staff development activities, in advance of their implementation, is described. In the first section, descriptions are given of the four main components of the staff development framework: defining staff development, salient organizational…

The paper briefly discusses 12 critical issues that significantly affect program success in reducing severe self-injurious behavior (SIB) in group homes. The paper emphasizes the necessity of: (1) a process approach to the development and monitoring of treatment; (2) demythologizing the self-injurious client; (3) discussing and clarifying legal…

School Based Decision Making (SBDM) was implemented in two secondary, two junior high, and three elementary schools in the Memphis City School System in Tennessee during the 1989-90 school year. The implementation process of that first year and the roles of the persons involved are discussed as well as the use of the Tennessee School Climate…

Current efforts and methodologies to evaluate vocational education programs are plagued by a number of problems. Included among these are the following: disagreement over the primary role and function of vocational education, too great an emphasis on summative and product evaluation as well as on labor market outcomes as indicators of program…

Developed by Japanese corporations to improve productivity and product quality, quality circles (QC's) are small, voluntary groups of workers who share common job responsibilities and who meet regularly to generate solutions to problems. Features of QC's that are applicable to schools are examined in the nine articles summarized in this annotated…

This handbook discusses the following types of parent involvement in education: (1) decision-making; (2) parents as educators; (3) advocacy; (4) school support; and (5) parent education and support. The benefits of parent involvement are outlined. Examples from New York City's 1987-88 Parent Involvement Program (PIP) demonstrate that parent…