For excellent teachers and those aspiring to excellence, and for administrative or education policy leaders, this brief provides an overview of how an Opportunity Culture can help teachers have the well-paid, empowered profession they deserve--while helping many more students succeed. [For the full report, see ED560179; for the summary, see…

The work of schools is teaching and learning. However, the current educational culture is dominated by three characteristics: (1) the mechanistic view of organization and its practice based on the assembly line model where students progress along a value added conveyor; (2) the predominance of the Essentialist philosophy of education, in which the…

Jesuit education has gone to a renewal process in recent decades as a response to the Vatican Council II and the Society of Jesus's own call for renovation. This process has been conceived as part of our living tradition that began with the "Ratio Studiorum" and the opening of many schools and universities through the world in the late…

The commentaries to our target article "Towards a systemic theory of gifted education" differed in their assessments of the various arguments we put forward. Of the more than 40 responses to our target article, 27 responses were chosen as being representative of all commentaries. We grouped the responses according to the main points in our target…

The author's personal journey regarding simulation and gaming started about 25 years ago when he happened to realize how powerful computerized simulation could be for organizational change. The metaphors created by computerized simulation enabled him to transform a stagnant university into a high-performance organization. Through extensive…

This article examines major trends in testing and accountability reform in the United States over the past decade. The review covers the apex and decline of the national experimentation with a range of alternative assessments and the rise of test-based accountability as a central policy initiative. These trends signify that testing has become a…

This booklet is part of a series that was designed to serve as a resource for high school leaders. It focuses on the integration of technology in the high school and contains practical strategies, procedures, and ideas to enable school leaders to plan and implement programs that will help students. It highlights the findings in the National…

Since 1999, post-gymnasium education in Poland can be carried out at secondary schools with a basic or extended programme, at technical colleges or at vocational schools. At this stage of schooling, environmental education is conducted in the form of subject teaching, interdisciplinary tracks and in extra-curricular lessons. The aims and tasks of…

This digest contains three articles which consider ways to enhance the effectiveness of special education programs. The first article offers guidelines for more fully including special education in the school community, in the context of broader educational reform and restructuring efforts. First the need for reform is addressed. Next, indicators…

This article describes an innovation that embraces elements of both technical and professional models of school improvement within the elementary division of a large school system. Emphasis is on development of the reciprocal learning instructional strategy for teaching academic content in regular classrooms and enhancing teachers' adoption and…

Reiterates the oft-heard complaint that social studies instruction relies too heavily on textbooks and lectures resulting in disinterested and alienated students. Recommends social studies adopt more experiential and constructivist teaching methods (role playing, educational games, student projects) and utilize multimedia and the Internet. (MJP)

This document reports on the design, purpose, implementation, and outcomes of a policy forum entitled "Inclusion and the Role of Special Education in Restructuring: Focus on Language Minority Students" held in September 1994. Participants included representatives from the research and public school communities as well as from relevant offices of…

This paper reports research on three innovations addressing teachers' adoption of effective instructional interventions: (1) an adoption/administrative model for promoting the use of measurably superior instructional practices; (2) a computer program providing expert implementation advice to individual teachers; and (3) a schoolwide strategy for…

This article critiques the "Research, Development, and Dissemination" model for development of innovations in special education and urges greater recognition of the cultural perspective for understanding resistance to change by teachers. Difficulties teachers have had in implementing Direct Instruction principles and their reactions to…