The role of principal as supervisor and evaluator of teachers is central to instructional leadership, and this means direct involvement through classroom observation and interaction with each teacher. Principals often neglect this role, with lack of time usually given as the reason. There are other reasons: Interacting with teachers about their…

Now that educational reform has targeted principal performance as a key to school excellence, methods and procedures for evaluating these administrators have become an increasing concern. Current studies suggest that evaluation practices used in many districts are ill-suited to improving principals' performance and professional competence. Many…

The importance of all children achieving adequate reading outcomes by the end of third grade cannot be overstated. Awareness is growing nationwide of the dividends of early reading success and the dire consequences of early reading failure. Schools need a prevention-oriented assessment and intervention system to prevent reading difficulties from…

Integrative education, although organized around curriculum, also unites people and activities. This monograph explores the integration of people, activities, and subject matter as seen through the eyes of those who support and implement the meaning and processes of integrative education. In chapter 1, scholars and trainers in and out of academia…

When evaluating student performance, teachers often find themselves in a quandary. Teachers must judge, sometimes with firm frankness, while also demonstrating caring. Fortunately, assessment in schools is moving away from judgment to embrace the notion of teachers and students sitting beside one another during the teaching, learning, and…

This bulletin summarizes the principles of discipline and classroom management that appear to be successful. It also looks at how educators in Oregon and elsewhere are applying these principles in their schools. Despite differences of philosophy, certain principles are shared in some form by all schools of thought. The first chapter discusses…

Three writing projects in the state of Oregon, each of which uses a different approach to the teaching of writing, are described in this report. The first section of the report deals with the Coos County ESD Composition Improvement Project, which focuses on writing as a three-step process involving prewriting, writing, and postwriting. The section…

This document presents diagnostic and prescriptive techniques that will enable teachers to enhance secondary school students' learning through reading in content areas. Three terms used in the document are defined in Section I: "vocabulary skills" include word attack skills, sight word skills, and word meanings; "comprehension skills" are literal,…

This bulletin provides an overview of the ways in which school districts and schools are making learning a priority in schools despite scarce resources. it describes how districts and schools make use of resources, instructional strategies, and policies to overcome the barriers caused by tight budgets. Examples from Oregon schools are provided.…

This report provides information about current research on at-risk students and describes the development of an at-risk program in an Oregon school district. After a preface and introduction, chapter 1 reviews current literature on students who are considered at risk of school failure. Issues explored include (1) student characteristics, (2)…

Oregon Senate Bill 354 has required each school district in Oregon to develop a teacher evaluation plan that would include job descriptions, performance standards, observations, postevaluation, and a written program of assistance, if needed. The Beginning Teacher Evaluation Study (BTES) has drawn some conclusions about teacher effectiveness that…

A conference on new perspectives in school administration was held for elementary school principals in the summer of 1975 by the Confederation of Oregon School Administrators. This paper summarizes material presented in five topic areas by eight speakers. Steve Goldschmidt's talk on school law touched on the administrator's and the school's…

Profiled in this report are three Oregon first-grade teachers--the state's 1984 Teacher of the Year and two other finalists for that title. Distinguishing characteristics of the teaching approach of Jonelle Maurer of the Lincoln Elementary School in Grants Pass include phonics and group reading instruction, the use of activity centers, and a…

In contrast to the recent back-to-basics movement, which emphasizes rote-learning and the acquisition of mechanistic skills, small-group cooperative learning emphasizes the development of thinking and problem-solving skills. It also seeks to minimize student anxiety and competition by creating an environment in which students feel safe to make and…