The conference papers in this collection emphasize the theoretical significance of their authors' work in the areas of mathematical and cognitive psychology. Major topics considered include facilitation of problem solving; psychological differences among problem isomorphs; the process of understanding in problem solving; processing information for…

Faculty members, as their organization's parliamentarians, must exercise appropriately their own rights as members of the organization as well as maintain loyalty to their role as parliamentarian. Add to this dilemma parliamentary indifference, and a "politics as usual" attitude and the outcome of any parliamentary session is in doubt. Such…

A survey of public relations practitioners was conducted to examine the decision making roles they play in their profession. The 458 respondents provided information on their participation in policy decision making; the roles they play on the job, such as problem solver or technical services provider; and information on their decision making…

The place of argumentation within the speech communication curriculum is the focus of this article. The article provides a rationale for an upper-level college course in the deliberation and decision making process currently taught at the University of North Carolina, and relates that rationale to broader concerns of argumentation theory. Various…

To explore the utility of decision seminars as instructional tools in educational administration training, researchers observed two one-quarter graduate courses in educational administration at Ohio State University. In the courses--one with 13 students, the other with 18--the decision seminar was used as an instructional framework within which…

This booklet is for people who want to improve the effectiveness of groups: group leaders, facilitators, and group members. Some of the basic factors that influence how effectively a group works together are briefly described. Factors that affect group effectiveness fall into two categories: those that affect the way group members accomplish…

This teacher's guide contains energy education activities for the classroom. Activities are arranged by grade level (primary, intermediate, junior high, and high school). The book is designed so that pages may be easily removed for duplication. An introduction and usage instructions are provided along with a section of charts. (RE)

This paper is based on the assumption that the educational administrator is the mediator in policy development. The author sees the administrator as caught between two conflicting approaches to policy-making--one characterized as "rational" and the other as "political." In attempting to deal with this dilemma and with the dilemma of shrinking…

This paper is an account of the theoretical and practical underpinnings of the Decision-Proposal Modification Coding System (DPM), which allows researchers to study more accurately the many aspects of group decision making in organizations. Following an introduction that reviews and supports arguments for process-oriented research on decision…

The basic problems faced by those implementing a project of assessing school needs and initiating change are discussed. An example of a teacher corps project funded for such an endeavor is summarized. How the initial problems of assessing needs to determine project goals and establishing a credible change relationship with school personnel were…

The Blake Interaction Model presented in this manual is designed to eliminate three problems which usually confront a task force charged with the responsibility of program development in a conference setting: (1) how to involve simultaneously several work groups in the productive capacity developing solutions for several separate problems; (2) how…

This booklet presents an extensive simulation exercise intended to give readers a greater understanding of the role and responsibilities of the local school district superintendent and to aid readers in improving their administrative, interpersonal, and problem-solving skills. The booklet is organized in two major parts. Part 1 contains background…

This book presents a collection of previously published journal articles dealing with the theory, practice, and research of planning. The various readings were selected to stimulate thought and action in educational planning, rather than to present solutions to specific problems. The articles include "Knowledge and Action: A Guide to Planning…

The aspect of the Unified Science and Mathematics for Elementary Schools (USMES) project described in this paper was undertaken in an effort to observe the problem solving behaviors of elementary school children. The Notebook Problem consisted of presenting a student with three notebooks arranged so as to differ from each other in terms of such…

This paper discusses the financial crisis facing public education in the United States today and argues that the most effective response to this crisis is to improve the decision-making skills of educational administrators. Based on a review of the literature on administrative decision-making and organizational change, the author examines several…