This report, coupled with current nationwide interest in encouraging schools to adopt comprehensive reform strategies or programs, urgently communicates the need for school improvement. Many schools, which are not supported by adequate funding, continuous professional-development programs, and active parent involvement, are the ones struggling to…

This report discusses the exploration of teaching that occurred in the Knight Collaborative National Roundtable on Teaching held in the summer of 2001. The participants were almost entirely family members from a range of disciplines and institutions. All participants shared a deep commitment to teaching, but the question who owns teaching?…

This paper provides a definition for the word democracy and examines some of the many definitions and descriptions of democracy that have been offered over time. The paper offers a lesson plan for teaching about democracy, beginning with an introduction: "Democracy as an Argument or a Developing Dialogue" (Donald Bragaw; Michael…

Seven papers on experimental research topics in education, written by educators of various nationalities, are compiled in this volume. The first paper, written in French with an English summary, explores the ability of the teacher to exercise an indirect influence over student behavior and the systematic training of certain teacher behaviors to…

Outcomes-based education (OBE) is a controversial model of educational restructuring that defines learning as what students can demonstrate that they know. This document reviews four journal articles and one bulletin that reflect a range of perspectives on OBE's potential promise and problems. In "Organizing for Results: The Basis of…

Finding a qualified marriage and family therapist that the couple or family will be comfortable with requires some effort on the part of the consumer. There are many people out there who advertise themselves as marriage counselors or family therapists but do not have the credentials. The client must shop around, interview prospective therapists,…

Because organizational effectiveness of schools is difficult to define, a model is needed to explain the complexities of the concept. Two models offer some promise. One is the goal model, which defines effectiveness as the degree to which organizations meet or surpass their goals (either official or operational). The other is the system resource…

Advisory work and its relation to teachers' centers is described. The following topics are considered: (1) differences between advisory work and other staff development; (2) purposes of advisory work; (3) methods advisors use; (4) realistic expectations of the advisor role: dilemmas and discouragements; (5) characteristics, skills, and experiences…

Individualized education programs (IEPs) for handicapped students are discussed in terms of contents, legal requirements, monitoring, and their implications for physical education. The role of the physical educator in developing IEPs and in providing specially designed physical education services is considered. Approaches to assessment and…

Third in a series of four publications on energy conservation, this booklet discusses the role of an energy conservation curriculum. The pamphlet outlines developing a curriculum, making goal statements, instilling an energy ethic in the minds of students, and effecting an interdisciplinary approach to energy conservation instruction. The…

This fact sheet answers frequently asked questions about psychological evaluations for infants, children, and adults who are deaf-blind. It also considers how to use psychological evaluation quality indicators and identifies desired outcomes to maximize benefits to the student. Questions addressed include: (1) what skills and abilities are…

This document consists of the three issues of the ARTE newsletter published during 1993. This newsletter describes organizational objectives and activities of the Assembly of Rural Teachers of English (ARTE), and presents articles of interest to rural English teachers. Articles discuss: (1) promoting and capitalizing on positive feelings of family…

An overview is provided of recent efforts to review and redefine the associate degree, with special focus on a workshop sponsored by the Center for the Study of Community Colleges (CSCC) and the Miami-Dade Community College District (MDCCD) which attempted to sharpen the focus of the inquiry into the definition of the associate degree. First,…

The two articles in this publication focus on ways of teaching argumentation and debate in the college setting. The first article examines the place of the argumentation and debate course in the speech communication curriculum and suggests cognitive and behavioral objectives and assignments for use in such a course. The second article discusses…

The document contains two components--a population reference newsletter focusing on census-related information and a module to help high school and college students understand census objectives, procedures, and uses. The newsletter presents general background on the census, offers annotations of census materials from the Population Reference…