Describes the components and procedures involved in implementing St. John's University's (New York) document delivery system, which uses University Microfilm International's PowerPackages product in conjunction with the Multi-Project for Automated Library System used by Westchester Academic Libraries Director's Organization. Evaluates the impact…

The same family and community involvement seen in the Boston (Massachusetts) Whole Village Project has guided the efforts of six Maryland high schools to create school and family partnerships. All six schools are part of Maryland's Tomorrow dropout prevention initiative. (SLD)

While the use of computers has become widespread in recent years, a unified, integrated approach to their use in the medical school curriculum has not yet emerged. Describes a program at the University of New Mexico that will phase-in computerization of its curriculum beginning in the fall of 1993. (LZ)

Chico, California, schools adopted multimedia distance learning using ISDN (integrated services digital network) to resolve a serious problem: the shortage of well-qualified science and math teachers. Problems encountered with using the equipment included audio signal difficulties, user-unfriendly conferencing equipment, stationary cameras,…

"Tissue rejection," rejection of an instructional innovation because of poor fit, is analyzed to demonstrate the problematic nature of appropriate information collection and the need for ethnographic "means analysis" to inform project design. Tissue rejection is attributed to informal orders within a host educational environment and communication…

Describes a long-term inservice program aimed at restructuring one elementary school's literacy program. Focuses on observed changes that occurred as teachers became active participants in staff development sessions designed around effective change principles. (SR)

Identifies some issues emerging from Barnet College's involvement in the United Kingdom's National Pilot appraisal Scheme for Further Education. Explores varying perceptions of both appraisers and appraisees, focusing on individual staff member and special interest group reactions. Only 14 percent of staff surveyed felt that the process was…

Although politicians and educational leaders are pressured to devise quick-fix educational reforms, significant change takes time, and reform efforts may not be fully measurable for 10 years or more. Case study of a California school district given 10 uninterrupted years to develop and implement an outcome-based instructional model suggests that…

Reviews progress in the establishment of a nonprofit preschool at an orphanage in Bucharest, Romania. Topics include recruitment of volunteers, collection of supplies, integration of neighborhood and orphanage children, the use of Piaget's learning-through-play philosophy, children's responses, staff training, and current activities. (AC)

Attributes one elementary school's rising test scores to the principal's introduction of a computer-based curriculum and integrated learning system; a neighboring elementary school's laboratory approach proved unsuccessful. For technology-based change to work, the principal must understand the technology, know the school's instructional and…

An office of the Canadian National Institute for the Blind completed a project which updated over 5,000 client files through personal conversations with them or their relatives, using 7 sighted volunteers and 7 visually impaired volunteers. Hundreds of individuals whose service needs had changed were identified, and an ongoing process for…

Describes the background and context of how action research has grown in the Madison (Wisconsin) Metropolitan School District--the organization and process being used to help teachers and principals work on their research questions, the value of the experience as perceived by the participants, and lessons learned about implementing action research…

Despite serving growing numbers of at-risk students, Pasco (Washington) School District has been transformed through outcome-based education into a district widely recognized for quality. Pascoe's OBE process demanded a school vision and mission statement; intensive teacher retraining; implementation of mastery learning, reality therapy, and…

Describes and evaluates a reading/study skills program at Ferndale High School, Ferndale, Washington. Notes that the high school has changed dramatically over the four years of the program, and its reading/study skills program continues to be an integral part of this evolution. (RS)

The move from teaching to administration is pivotal for creating innovative leaders. The National Policy Board on Educational Administration has called for principal recruitment and preparation reforms. This article discusses the socialization processes leading to the principal's role and describes implementation, benefits, and problems of New…