Mentor systems benefit beginning teachers, the school district, the students, and experienced teachers. Research and the Utah Teacher Evaluation Project suggest a number of essential characteristics of a mentoring system, which are discussed. (MT)

This article describes the role of the advisor in a staff development project and how advisors facilitate projects by providing support, clarification, materials, creative ideas, and structure. Recommendations regarding the use of advisors are made. (MT)

The impact of cooperative learning on students has been documented, but the outcome of increased collegiality among teachers has been overlooked. This article describes cooperative learning training and follow-up programs in two school districts set up to ensure that consistent and deliberate interaction occurs among teachers. (MT)

This article reviews recent research on successful evaluation, highlights differences between supervision and evaluation, and discusses alternative philosophies regarding supervision, teaching, and change. Suggestions are presented for staff developers to use in helping a school district to clarify what it believes and to select programs congruent…

Staff developers can plan better programs if they have some knowledge of adult learning theory and if they use principles and practices of exemplary adult education. Participants should be helped to examine their cultural and organizational assumptions. (JD)

Guidelines are presented for staff developers in preparing the content and planning for delivery of presentations. The basic planning techniques that are described are based upon learning theory and regard for the audience. (JD)

When New York State's standardized tests for third graders were scheduled to include questions on probability and statistics, the White Plains school system developed a model to improve mathematics instruction. A staff developer, a teacher with special training who works with other teachers, is vital to the implementation of the math curriculum.…

The Greenwich, Connecticut, public school system is training teachers and administrators in the use of structured cooperative learning groups as part of a district-wide strategy to explore a variety of effective teaching practices. The cooperative learning program and its impact on teachers and students is described. (MT)

A description is given of a staff development effort in a vocational-technical school which involved school-based management teams and a series of retreats for the purpose of improving the school's climate and increasing its effectiveness. (JD)

Rural teachers generally have a long-term commitment to teaching, personal ties with and credibility in the community, and a small work-place conducive to promoting necessary staff interaction. A cooperative staff development program is described that is based on the unique circumstances of rural schools. (JD)

This article describes the training process developed for teachers when the Columbus, Ohio, public schools decided to introduce Student Team Learning in the middle schools and the intermediate elementary grades. (MT)

Staff development planners, trainers, and evaluators can increase the impact of the staff development activities when they view their work from multiple perspectives using the Centric Reflection Model. The model offers a visual representation of various types of reflection that can occur in training design, delivery, and evaluation. (SM)

Developing a model to improve student academic learning time and achievement and to develop local resources to continue the program after the funding period required a staff development program that enabled teachers to use specific direct instruction teaching behaviors. The staff development program is described and recommendations are made. (MT)

Offers nine suggestions to help program chairpersons plan successful programs for professional meetings: clearly understand the organization's purposes and objectives, choose an annual site, experiment with times, announce meetings well in advance, plan various formats, plan for long-term professional development, expect the unexpected, use local…

A small high schools' staff development effort to train teachers in computer literacy is recounted. Staff developers used teacher feedback in designing the program, which started as a one-shot workshop but grew into a continuing professional development activity. (PP)