Staff development is the key to middle school effectiveness, and this article lists characteristics of an effective staff development program, examples of activities and topics, and questions for program evaluation. (DCS)

In 1987, the College of Education at Virginia Tech restructured its principal preparation program. Internships are conducted by principal-mentors expected to be teachers, models, and supportive colleagues. The program allows mentors, central office staff, and professors to meet with graduate students in an environment where all are learners. Any…

This author discusses the need for employer-based career education, barriers to its widespread implementation, and how to overcome those barriers with changes in staffing and fund allocation. If career education is one of your top priorities, you'll find this indispensable reading. (Editor)

Presents and explains how to use a checklist for helping principals determine the presence of effective elements in their schools' staff development programs. The checklist process involves testing such program factors as school commitment levels, needs assessment components, program development activities, program implementation and evaluation,…

As Mississippi's experience shows, there are five necessary stages for staff development: preplanning (forming a committee), planning, implementation, evaluation, and maintenance. This article examines each phase, provides checklists, and highlights the principal's responsibility during each phase. (eight references) (MLH)

Having worked for several years with three Wisconsin school districts, the author describes the metaplan that emerged for developing districtwide improvement plans. He presents a completed plan to clarify the process. The participating school districts welcome inquiries. (Author/TE)

A study of U.S. demographics reveals a trend toward rapidly increasing cultural diversity. This trend can potentially cause serious misunderstandings among students, teachers, parents, and administrators in culturally diverse schools. Principals and staff members should be able to recognize and resolve culturally based school and community…

Secondary school administrators can use local community colleges as resources in several ways: as showplaces of diverse uses for computers, links to the needs of business regarding computing skills, participants in concurrent enrollment programs, and providers of staff development courses and computing services. (Author/JM)

The statement that "every teacher is a teacher of reading" is an ineffective cliche. However, cooperation among secondary school content and reading teachers can be achieved through establishing schoolwide reading teams, offering services and inservice education for content teachers, pairing reading and content teachers, publishing newsletters,…

Confronted by lack of congruence among supervisors' identification of teachers' needs, teachers' identification of their own needs, and in-service training, East Brunswick (New Jersey) High School developed a comprehensive staff development program based on videotaped lessons provided by teachers and reformulated teaching behavior descriptions…

After nearly two years' experience with the interdisciplinary studies program, career pathways, and alternating-day 10-block schedule, the Farmington (Missouri) High School faculty is pleased with their progress. Student and teacher surveys indicate an ongoing need for improvements to meet all students' learning needs. This schedule is not for…

Implementing technology in a classroom is a personal process that varies from teacher to teacher. The Concerns-Based Adoption Model identifies seven stages of concern that teachers may experience, from awareness to refocusing ideas. Innovative staff development strategies include establishing organizational structures to support technological and…

Focused, sustained staff development occurs too seldom in U.S. schools. The "just-in-time" approach involves learning teams composed of teachers who teach a specific content area at the same time or at contiguous grade levels. "Bite-sized" training sessions, facilitated by a staff-development professional, occur every few…

What schools are doing by way of using their staffs more effectively in the instruction of youth is explored here as the author reports his findings in NASSP's exemplary program files. (Editor)