A firm grounding in change theory can provide educational leaders with an opportunity to orchestrate meaningful organizational improvements. This article provides an opportunity for practicing leaders to review four major theories of organizational change--continuous improvement, two approaches to organizational learning, and appreciative inquiry.…

Although much has been written recently about gaps in the achievement of different groups of students, the problem has been with us for many years. This manuscript presents a historical perspective of the problem, viewing it as one of reducing variation in students' achievement. Specifically, it reviews the work of renowned educator Benjamin S.…

Discusses the process involved in curriculum changes. Describes the limiting factors that principals inherit. Outlines the successful use of the "contagion model" in implementing a mastery learning program as a curricular change in intermediate schools. (MD)

Reviews the nine factors contributing to educational productivity, the effectiveness of instructional techniques (mastery learning ranks high and Skinnerian reinforcement has the largest overall effect), and the effects of psychological enviroments on learning. Includes references and a table. (MD)

Outlines the importance of testing in the Mastery Learning process. Points out that as students demonstrate mastery, the amount of paperwork lessens for teachers. (MD)

Based on empirical evidence that nearly all students can learn most of what they are taught, mastery learning is recommended as a teaching strategy with the goal of maximum development of student learning potential. The implementation of mastery learning at one junior high is analyzed. (MLJ)

Liberty (Missouri) Senior High School's Teacher Improvement Project required identifying effective teaching behaviors, having teachers select 15 behaviors for implementation, creating a process for assessing progress and providing feedback, and making resource personnel available. The article lists 21 effective teaching behaviors and identifies…

Learning is not a spectator sport but requires active learners who integrate new experiences into existing cognitive structures. Principals can help students develop self-responsibility by initiating discussions on this topic, identifying and sharing multiple learning resources for student use, and modeling uses of assignments based on mastery…

In response to an interviewer's questions, internationally recognized educator Benjamin S. Bloom states his beliefs about the effectiveness of proposed educational reforms and argues for increased experimentation, greater stress on higher mental processes, the adoption of mastery learning, new research efforts, and more effective commitment to…

Urges accurate assessment of program implementation and the determination of student performance in areas not measured by achievement tests. Offers indicators of hard-to-measure levels of achievement in teachers and students, as they have been developed in the Johnson City, New York, Public Schools' mastery learning approach. (JW)

Alternative schools for intermediate grade students should be small and located in a separate building, where students and teachers can develop their own sense of identity. Curricula for high risk students require three components: a vocational orientation, interdisciplinary team projects, and a mastery learning/continuous progress approach.…

The supervision model adopted by the Minot (North Dakota) Public School District Board of Education provided the skeletal foundation for the Magic City Campus instructional growth plan. By enhancing this framework with both an instructional model and indepth coaching, teacher growth and effectiveness naturally evolved. Principals striving to be…

Competing notions of education are reviewed. The progressivist notion is individualistic and aims at self-actualization, whereas the more conservative perspective emphasizes a mechanistic approach in which some students' full potential may not be realized. To accommodate student differences, curricula must be treated as useful guidelines to…

Research on teaching has begun to concentrate on "product" or student outcomes. Three instructional techniques are important in the analysis of student outcomes: (1) academic learning time, (2) direct instruction, and (3) mastery learning. The author explores the merits of each, reviewing both critics' and advocates' positions. (MD)

Analyzes the positive and negative features of mastery learning and its place in competency-based education. (Author/WD)